Ball State RPI ranking: 45
Ohio RPI ranking: 35
Ball State field-goal percentage (rank in MAC): 43.7 percent (1st)
Ohio field-goal percentage defense (rank in MAC): 33.7 percent (1st)
The two teams will face off at 4 p.m. on Jan. 30 at Worthen Arena.
Both teams are ranked in the top 50 in the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s RPI rankings, and Cardinal head coach Brady Sallee said it would also be a game of conflicting styles.
“There’s no doubt it’s going to be a game of, 'Can our inside play beat their perimeter play?'” he said. “We’ve got to be better at what we do than they are at what they do.”
Ball State focuses on interior play — the Cardinals lead the MAC in both shooting percentage (43.7 percent) and rebounding margin (plus-seven rebounds per game).
Ohio, on the other hand, has attempted 585 3-point shots this season, 135 more than any other team in the MAC and 236 more than Ball State. Sallee said it can be difficult to prepare for such a unique system.
“It’s kind of like playing against the option in football,” he said. “You practice one way the whole season and then you gotta kind of get out of that mode when they spread it out.”
In their last meeting in Athens, Ohio, on Jan. 6, the Bobcats beat Ball State 73-48. The Cardinals turned the ball over 26 times in the game and only forced 11 from Ohio.
Sallee said he thinks Ball State needs to be “the best Ball State we can be” in order to beat the Bobcats.
“We’ve gotta find our way to get more possessions, but I don’t know that turnovers is it,” he said. “The key is going to be us taking care of it and then getting to the offensive boards a little more, and hopefully getting more possessions because of that.”
Over the last few games, a few different Cardinals have stepped up outside of their usual roles. Freshman guard Carmen Grande averages 5.4 points per game but led the team with 18 against Bowling Green. While sophomore forward Frannie Frazier averages 3.2 rebounds per game but led the Cardinals with nine rebounds coming off the bench against Eastern Michigan.
Sallee said the well-rounded performances are, hopefully, a glimpse of the near future.
“Honestly, that’s what we’re trying to look like in March,” he said. “It’s a work in progress, and if we do ever get it there, I think we’ve got as good of a chance as anybody to win [the MAC].”
Still, Sallee said before they can focus on March, the Cardinals have to get past Ohio University.
“You just lose sight on what’s important," he said. "This game counts the same as all of the other ones. ... Ohio’s just the next opponent, albeit a really good one.”
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