By: Justin Borowitz
The Ball State men’s basketball team rides a three-game winning streak into 2025 and opens Mid-American Conference play at 2 p.m. on Saturday at Kent State.
The game will be streamed on ESPN+ with Dane Richardson and Jana Ashley on the call, while Mick Tidrow and David Eha handle the radio broadcast on WMUN 1340AM – 92.5FM.
Kent State leads the all-time series between the two programs 50-43 and holds a 33-11 record in home games against the Cardinals. Ball State 76-69 last March 5 at Worthen Arena in the most recent meeting.
Jermahri Hill (25 points, eight rebounds) and Payton Sparks (23 points, 16 rebounds) led the Cardinals to an 89-76 win over Anderson on Tuesday afternoon to enter MAC play with a 6-6 record. Sparks scored his 1,000th career point in the New Year’s Eve contest at Worthen Arena.
Kent State (9-3) most recently beat Heidelberg 84-80 on Dec. 29 to end the 2024 part of the season with most wins in the MAC. The Golden Flashes were picked to finish third in the MAC preseason poll after advancing to the 2024 MAC Tournament title game from the No. 8 seed.
Kent State paces the league and ranks No. 26 nationally in scoring defense, allowing 63.6 points per game so far this season. The Golden Flashes are second in the conference in turnover margin (+3.5), 3-pointer defense (30.9 percent) and field goal percentage defense (40.8).
Senior center Cli’Ron Hornbeak is second in the MAC in both total rebounds (86) and rebounds per game (7.2), while redshirt senior forward VonCameron Davis paces Kent State in scoring at 14.9 points per game.
Up next for Ball State is the MAC home opener at 7 p.m. on Tuesday against Miami (OH).
1,000 FOR SPARKS: Senior center Payton Sparks scored his 1,000th career point late in the second half of the New Year’s Eve win against Anderson on his way to a 23-point, 16-rebound double-double.
The 16 boards matched his career-best, while the 23 points were one shy of tying his career-high, as the big man recorded his first double-double of the year.
ONE-TWO PUNCH: Sparks and junior guard Jermahri Hill combined for 48 points, 24 rebounds and three steals against Anderson.
The performances were Ball State’s first game of the season with multiple 20-point scorers.
BEGINNING THE YEAR AT KENT: The Cardinals play their first game of the calendar year at Kent State just like 2024 when the teams faced each other on Jan. 2, 2024 in Northeast Ohio.
The Golden Flashes are also Ball State’s most recent Mid-American Conference visitor to Worthen Arena, as the Cardinals claimed a 76-69 decision last March in Muncie in the home finale.
DOMINANT DEFENSE: Ball State limited Evansville to 43 points and 29.1 percent shooting from the field on Dec. 21. Those were the lowest tallies the Cardinals had allowed an NCAA Division I opponent to get since March 11, 2019 against Eastern Michigan.
The Cardinals limited the Purple Aces to their fewest points in the 58-game series history since 1935, and the 37-point margin of victory was the second-highest for Ball State ever vs Evansville.
MICKEY MONEY FROM THE CHARITY STRIPE: Mickey Pearson Jr. went 12-for-12 at the free throw line in Ball State’s win at Bellarmine on Dec. 14 including sinking two foul shots with six seconds to play to secure the 86-82 decision.
Pearson’s 12 free throws made were the most by a Ball State player since Taylor Persons also sunk a dozen on Nov. 18, 2018 vs App State. Pearson is the only Cardinal with multiple career games making at least 10 free throws without a miss in the last 10 seasons (10-for-10 vs Central Michigan on Jan. 6, 2024).
GORO-THREE-TO: Junior guard Juanse Gorosito was named the Mid-American Conference Player of the Week after hitting seven 3-pointers for 21 and adding four assists and three steals on Dec. 14 at Bellarmine.
Gorosito is second in the conference in 3-pointers made (37) and leads the league while ranking No. 11 in NCAA Division I in shooting percentage (47.4) from distance.
MILESTONE WATCH: After Sparks (1,005 points) reached the milestone last Tuesday afternoon, Jeremiah Hernandez (911) and Pearson Jr. (845) are each closing in on scoring 1,000 points in his Division I career.
Ethan Brittain-Watts recently made his 100th career 3-pointer, while Sparks (598 rebounds) is currently No. 18 in Ball State program history for a career.
KEEPING UP WITH KENTUCKY SCHOOLS: The win at Bellarmine moved the Cardinals to 2-0 this year against teams from the Bluegrass State.
The Cardinals defeated Eastern Kentucky 63-61 on Nov. 25 in the first game of the Gulf Coast Showcase in Estero, Fla.
TOP OF THE HILL: Junior Jermahri Hill was named the Mid-American Conference Co-Player of the Week on Dec. 2 after averaging 21.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game in three games at the Gulf Coast Showcase.
Hill had assists on three-point plays to Mickey Pearson Jr. and Payton Sparks in the final minute of the 63-61 win over Eastern Kentucky in the opener on Nov. 25. The guard ranks seventh in the MAC with 15.7 points per game on the year.
I REMEMBER YOU: Ball State has played seven different players this season who were on MAC rosters during the 2023-24 season. SIUE’s Darrion Baker (from Akron) was the seventh. The full list is below.
Darrion Baker (Akron to SIUE)
Legend Geeter (Eastern Michigan to Detroit Mercy)
Markus Harding (Central Michigan to Indiana State)
Orlando Lovejoy (Eastern Michigan to Detroit Mercy)
Cyril Martynov (Eastern Michigan to Eastern Kentucky)
Zarique Nutter (Northern Illinois to Georgia State)
B. Artis White (Western Michigan to Richmond)
GETTING TO THE LINE: The Cardinals pace the Mid-American Conference in both free throw attempts per game (27.7) and free throws made per game (19.3) through the season’s first 12 games.
Ball State ranks No. 5 and No. 9 in those categories in NCAA Division I, respectively. The total tallies (332 attempts and 231 makes) outpace the next-closest MAC team (Buffalo) by 80 attempts and 58 makes.
PEARSON POUNDING THE GLASS: Pearson Jr. tied his career-best with 13 rebounds in the season opener at Georgia State before grabbing 11 against Detroit Mercy on Nov. 20.
The forward also notched 13 boards on Nov. 7, 2022 against Earlham at Worthen Arena. Pearson Jr. ranks sixth in the MAC in total rebounds (71) and seventh in rebounds per game (5.9).
HOME STATE HEROES: Brittain-Watts (2019), Zane Doughty, Joey Hart and Jones (2023) were each named Indiana High School All-Stars, while three more Cardinals also had ties to the state before arriving in Muncie.
Ball State has the second-most players from Indiana high schools among Indiana-based Division I teams behind Purdue.
WORLD FLYERS: The 2024-25 Ball State roster consists of student-athletes from three different countries in addition to the United States of America.
Juanse Gorosito (Argentina), Hendriks (Canada) and Jurica Zagorsak (Croatia) are international Cardinals this season. Interestingly, Juanse, Ben and Jurica were born on different continents, so Ball State has student-athletes from North America, South America and Europe on the team.
TRANSFERS FROM ALL OVER: Each of Ball State’s seven student-athletes who have transferred into the program have come from different college basketball conferences.
The list includes Brittain-Watts (Patriot League, Boston), Gorosito (West Coast Conference, Portland), Hart (SEC, Kentucky), Hernandez (Ohio Valley Conference, USI), Pearson Jr. (Big 12, TCU), Sparks (Big Ten, Indiana) and Hill who played junior college ball at South Plains in Levelland, Texas.
The Golden Flashes will be facing off against their conference rivals in what promises to be an exciting and intense game. With a strong roster of talented players and a solid coaching staff, Kent State is ready to take on the competition and fight for a victory on their home court.
So grab your gear, rally your friends, and come out to support the Golden Flashes as they start their journey through MAC play. Let’s pack the stands and show our team some love as they battle it out on the court. Go Golden Flashes! #MACtion #KentStateBasketball #GoFlashes
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