It's got to be good to be a Ball State University basketball fan these days. Both the men's and the women's programs have been on the rise and both have had great seasons this year.
By now most of you have heard about the women's upset of two-time defending champion University of Tennessee Sunday night. The Cardinals not only beat the team that has never missed an NCAA Tournament nor a Sweet 16, but they did it in blowout fashion. The game was close at halftime with the Cardinals holding a one-point advantage but they came out of halftime firing on all cylinders and eventually winning by 16.
It's a win many pundits are calling the biggest upset in women's basketball history and it's a win that serves as the statement the Ball State women's basketball team has been trying to make for a few years.
Meanwhile, the men's basketball team went 14-17, shared the Mid-American Conference West Division title and won a game in the MAC Tournament. That may not seem to compare with what the women's team has done this season, but consider where the men's program was two years ago.
For those of you who can't remember ... two years ago Ball State's nationally-known head coach quit and accused the university of racism due to notes with racist slurs slid under the coaching staff's doors. National columnists from Ball State graduate Jason Whitlock to "Pardon the Interruption's" Michael Wilbon wrote about this story and a very dark cloud was cast upon the men's program.
Athletics Director Tom Collins then hired Billy Taylor away from Lehigh University. Taylor cleared the skies and in two short years has the program winning MAC titles again. That's an accomplishment very few thought would be possible so quickly.
Like the men's team, the women's team has had a bit of controversy involving its head coach. Last year longtime coach Tracy Roller left the team midway through the season for what the university claimed was a case of mononucleosis. Later she left the program for good for after being diagnosed with manic depression. The team endorsed Lisa McDonald to be head coach after she led the Cardinals to a 12-8, 11-5 MAC record while filling in for Roller.
The athletics department in what was seen as a controversial decision, decided to not hand the job to McDonald but rather allow aspiring coaches to apply for the position. Eventually Kelly Packard was hired and now, in her first season, has led the Cardinals onto the national scene with the upset of Tennessee.
One coach inherited an already stacked program and proceeded to take it higher than ever before. The other coach inherited a program that had hit its lowest point in history and proceeded to build it up to a conference contender in two years.
Boy, it must be good to be a fan of Ball State basketball these days, but you better enjoy while it lasts because neither coach is likely to be around too much longer before a major conference team comes a-knocking.
Write to Levin at ltblack@bsu.edu
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