With leading scorer Skip Mills sitting out because of a concussion, Ball State University's men's basketball team needed everyone else to step up in his absence. Anthony Newell had a career high 21 points and earned his fifth career double double with 12 rebounds to lead the Cardinals to a 57-55 victory over Northern Illinois University Tuesday night.
"Anthony Newell has a tremendous upside and he showed that tonight in a big way," coach Ronny Thompson said.-á"He can score on the block and from the perimeter.-áWe went to him in the second half and he delivered."
Junior guard Peyton Stovall added 17 points and shot 9 of 10 from the free-throw line as Ball State won only its second road game of the season. The win moved them into sole possession of seventh place in the Mid-American Conference.
The Huskies did not have a signifigant home court advantage, however, an announced attendence of 475 fans braved the weather to head the Convention Center in DeKalb, Ill.
The Cardinals (9-16, 5-7 in the MAC) dominated the first half, leading 40-31 at halftime and Newell and Stovall were already in double figures. The defense picked up in the second half, which led to the Cardinals shooting 2 of 18 to end the game but the Huskies (6-17, 3-9 MAC) could not capitalize.
Ball State held Northern Illinois' starters, who average 42.2 points per game, to 21 points and only one Huskie, Quintan Lipkins, in double figures. Ball State also had 10 steals and forced 17 Huskie turnovers.
The Cardinals led by as much as 11 before Northern Illinois made a run late in the second half. The Huskies were able to score a 12-4 run to cut the lead down to 53-52 with 3:18 remaining but couldn't pull any closer.
"We did a tremendous job in making plays when we needed them," Thompson said. "We were able to get stops and make plays with the game on the line."
With 45 seconds remaining the Huskies missed three consecutive shots in one possession down only two points.
Without Mills in the lineup, Jarelle Redden returned to the starting lineup since November and Ahmaad Cook got his first career start as Steve Horton did not start for the Cardinals. Horton saw only two minutes of playing time for the Cardinals.
Mills did not dress for the Cardinals and will be re-evaluated after returning to Muncie.
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