Five minutes into the home exhibition game, the Ball State women’s basketball team was tied at 6-6. Visiting Oakland City University had already hit two of its four three-pointers and held Ball State to just three-of-eight shooting.
Then the tempo changed.
The Cardinals went on a 13-point run fueled by three-pointers from junior Brittany Carter and freshman Jill Morrison, along with a lay up from freshman center Renee Bennett. Ball State did not slow down as it opened up a 23-point lead at the half.
Often facing a full-court press look from the Oaks, the Cardinals were forced to push the ball over the top. Head coach Brady Sallee was glad to see his team effectively control the tempo throughout the game as they went on to win 109–58.
“Philosophically, if teams are going to press us, I just want to throw it over the top and let it fly,” Sallee said. “We’re not going to get it and set up and all that if you’re going to press us, we’re just going to let it fly.”
The team scored 10 points on fast breaks, and registered 31 team assists. Sallee said the team’s good decision making was key in scoring off of transition plays.
Sophomore guard Nathalie Fontaine, who led the Cardinals with 24 points on 12-for-16 shooting, said the fast pace benefited her ability to finish at the rim.
“I think a lot of the lay ups I got was from our guards just passing it up and me running,” she said. “Missed some easy ones in the first half, but I feel good about the game.”
Though she was on the court for just 13 minutes, senior Katie Murphy led Ball State with nine rebounds. The Cardinals out rebounded the Oaks 53–27 on the night.
Bennett pulled in eight rebounds of her own, and added 14 points on 7-of-10 shooting. The 6-foot-5 center highlighted the Cardinals’ noticeable height advantage over the Oaks.
They didn’t seem to have an answer for the size difference as the Cardinals scored 24 second-chance points. Bennett felt as though her ability to score on rebounds was the biggest part of her contributions.
“More of my points came off of rebounds tonight, not as much as it would have if I was actually posting up, but I still feel pretty confident with the way everything went,” she said.
Carter scored 17 points and added a team-high nine assists. Senior point guard Brandy Woody added four assists as well.
Woody went three-for-three from behind the arc, leading the way for Ball State as they shot 45 percent from deep. Morrison was 3-for-5 from three-point range, adding to an effort that prevented the Oaks from playing zone defense.
After the game, Sallee said he was happy with the play from his freshmen and is happy with the team’s start.
“We definitely didn’t play with our foot on the brake, and on October 30, if you can say you’re playing that way… that’s pretty good,” he said.
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