A 6-24 record in 2007-08: long gone.
A 9-22 record in 2006-07: forget about it.
The Ball State University men's basketball team earned its 10th win of the season on Saturday by defeating visiting Ohio University 51-44, throwing the past two seasons of new coaches and losing records off the Worthen Arena court like a blocked shot from freshman center Jarrod Jones.
"It's a great win for our guys, for our program," coach Billy Taylor said.
The win against the Bobcats had more attached to it than the historical perspective. The Cardinals' victory, coupled with Western Michigan University's 65-47 home loss to Kent State University, catapulted Ball State to sole possession of first place in the Mid-American Conference West Division with a 5-2 MAC record.
On Saturday, the Cardinals (10-9 overall) and their No. 1 MAC defensive attack keyed in on Ohio's three offensive threats: 3-point shooting, free throw shooting and senior forward and MAC Player of the Year candidate Jerome Tillman.
The Bobcats (10-10, 3-4 MAC) - the MAC's top 3-point shooting and second-best free throw shooting team - shot 1-of-19 (5.3 percent) from beyond the 3-point arc and 7-of-13 (53.8 percent) at the free throw line while Tillman - the MAC's leading scorer and rebounder - was held to 10 points on 3-of-16 shooting and nine rebounds.
"I thought Ball State defended us well," Ohio coach John Groce said. "[They] made it difficult to get great shots."
The Cardinals led 21-20 with 2:57 remaining in the first half following a free throw from Ohio freshman guard Steven Coleman. From there, Ball State used a vice-versa attack from senior guards Brandon Lampley and Laron Frazier to gain momentum going into halftime.
Frazier found Lampley for a 3-pointer with 2:30 left to make the lead 24-20, and after a missed layup from Tillman, Lampley found Frazier in transition for a 3-pointer to give Ball State a 27-20 lead at the half.
"Those [were] big shots," Frazier said. "I penetrated and hit him up for a 3, and he came back and rewarded me with a 3. It was a big shot, put us on a little run, gave us a little momentum."
With Jones on the bench getting rest for the Cardinals, the Bobcats tied the game at 38-38 with 6:42 remaining in the second half. To put the game away from that point, Ball State used the double bonus at the foul line.
From that point, the Cardinals hit 9-of-12 free throw shots, and, Taylor said, had key defensive stops to earn their first win against a MAC East opponent this season.
"Getting in that double bonus really takes some pressure off your shooters late in the game so you know you have two shots, and we have guys step up and make them," Taylor said. "On the flip side of it, our defense stood really strong, so when we did miss some free throws, we came back and we really defended, and we made it tough for them to score."
Jones led three Ball State scorers in double-digits with 13 points while adding a team-high eight rebounds and a game and career-high four blocks. Frazier had 11 points and three assists, and Lampley had 10 points and three assists in the win.
Sophomore forward Malik Perry recovered from a left ankle injury halfway through the second half to collect a game-high 10 rebounds for Ball State.
For Ohio, senior forward Justin Orr had a game-high 14 points and added seven rebounds and three assists. Sophomore forward DeVaughn Washington added 10 points on five-of-seven shooting.
Ball State returns to play on Wednesday as it travels to Miami University (12-7, 5-2 MAC) for a 7 p.m. tipoff.
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