Tyrae Robinson started what Tyler Koch finished.

Robinson scored 15 first-half points and Koch scored nine second-half points, both had career-highs in the Ball State men’s basketball team’s 73-52 victory against Central Michigan Wednesday night at McGuirk Arena in front of 1,541 fans.

“Our guys did a great job of recognizing who had the hot hand, trying to get the ball to those guys in scoring positions,” said BSU head coach Billy Taylor.

Robinson and Koch entered the game as the team’s fourth and sixth-leading scorers respectively, but the Chippewas limited the touches for the Eagles leading scorer Jarrod Jones, who finished with four points on 2-of-5 shooting.

The focus on Jones forced the Cardinals to look elsewhere.

“Tyler was able to make shots for us,” Taylor said. “Tyrae Robinson was able to make shots, so fortunately we had some guys step up and make shots since Jarrod didn’t get his normal touches.”

Robinson outscored CMU 15-12 with 6:30 remaining in the first half.

Ball State made it difficult for the CMU leading scorer. It wasn’t until 4:18 remaining in the half before guard Trey Zeigler scored.

He finished with six points on a lackluster 3-of-12 shooting, well below his team-leading 16.4 points per game.

CMU head coach Ernie Zeigler

“He struggled tonight, amongst everyone on our team,” said head coach Ernie Zeigler about Trey. “He just has to be able to continue to work and put himself in position to be more efficient himself as well. He, along with his teammates, have a lot of work to do.”

With 11:33 remaining in the half, it was 15-11. The Chippewas never got closer. They went into the locker room trailing 38-22, just in time for Koch to heat up.

The sophomore forward scored nine points on 4-of-5 shooting in the second half, adding to his eight in the first half.

“Tyler is a key player for us because he can make perimeter jump shots and he’s also a skilled player that can drive the basketball to the paint and make passes,” Taylor said. “Having him on the floor is a big asset for us.”

Taylor felt like his team was ‘very unselfish.’ It was opposite for Ernie.

“Everybody started trying to do it themselves, versus moving the ball, cutting hard and playing off each other as we had been doing previously,” Ernie said.

BSU finished with 18 assists in comparison to four by CMU.

Sophomore guard Derek Jackson didn’t start because he violated team rules. He was the first off the bench, finishing with seven points.

CMU players were unavailable for comment during the post-game press conference.

The Chippewas look to get back to .500 at 2 p.m. Saturday in Kalamazoo against in-state rival Western Michigan.

The Broncos lost 62-59 in overtime against rival Eastern Michigan Wednesday night.

A rare display of the Northern Lights could be seen from the Mount Pleasant area Monday night and early Tuesday morning, painting the sky with auroras of green and red light.

According to the Space Weather Prediction Center, increased solar activity Saturday caused the geomagnetic storm. Northern Lights are caused by charged solar particles colliding with atoms in the upper atmosphere. Photo Editor Jeff Smith captured these images around 1 a.m. on Remus Road 20 miles west of Mount Pleasant.

The CMU women’s volleyball team took on Akron Friday evening at McGuirk Arena, winning in a 3-0 shutout. Photo Editor Jeff Smith was there to capture these images.

Photos of life at Central Michigan University and the Mount Pleasant area between Oct. 17-23, captured by the CM Life photo staff.

The CMU women’s soccer team took on Toledo Friday and Ball State Sunday winning both games 1-0, continuing their unbeaten home record for the second year in a row. Staff Photographer Chuck Miller and Assistant Photo Editor Andrew Kuhn were there to capture these images.

The CMU football team took on Ball State Saturday afternoon in Muncie, Ind., losing 31-27. Staff Photographers Erica Kearns and Kaitlin Thoresen and Assistant Photo Editor Andrew Kuhn were there to capture these images.

The Central Michigan Roller Derby League hosted “Day of the Derby Dead” Saturday night at Spinning Wheels Arena, 1241 N. Mission Road. The Central Michigan derby women split into two squads — zombies and vampires — to duke it out in front of a crowd of more than 200. Photo Editor Jeff Smith was there to capture these images.