Chippewas drop eighth straight, eliminated from MAC Tournament contention
Muncie, Indiana has historically been a challenging city for the Chippewas to play in.
Saturday’s 97-91 Mid-American Conference loss to Ball State in Worthen Arena was no exception as CMU is now 7-42 all-time in against the Cardinals’ home city and now trail the all-time series 68-31.
The Chippewas (6-15, 2-12 MAC) have now lost eight consecutive games and dropped 11 of their last 13 following the six-point loss at BSU (9-11, 7-8).
Despite the continued losing skid, head coach Keno Davis has never been prouder of a team than he was following Saturday’s defeat, dressing only nine players for the third straight game.
“I think our fans are finally starting to see why I was so excited about the talent on this team,” Davis said. “I wish they could’ve seen us at full strength because there’s nobody in (the MAC) that we can’t compete with and can’t beat when we’re at full strength.
“These last couple of games we’ve played as hard as we can, but we’re just too shorthanded to be able to overcome a great shooting night by Ball State.”
Saturday’s loss eliminates CMU from earning an automatic berth into the 2021 MAC Tournament. However, according to the MAC‘s contingency plan, the Chippewas could still play in the tournament should two teams already qualified opt-out or are unable to make the trip.
KEY MOMENTS
Trailing 40-36 with 1:11 left, junior forward Ralph Bissainthe went on a 6-0 run of his own to give CMU a 42-40 lead with 48 second until intermission. Ball State’s Luke Bumbalough nailed a 3-pointer with four seconds remaining to give the Cardinals a 43-42 lead at the half.
Bissainthe started CMU’s second half scoring with a 3-pointer to tie the game at 45 apiece. BSU responded with a 12-3 run to take a 57-48 lead with 15:08 remaining. BSU opened a 10-point lead with 12:09 remaining.
Bissainthe responded with a ferocious put back dunk met with a free throw to give the Chippewas the spark they desperately needed, igniting a 14-6 Chippewa run to pull within two points with 6:10 remaining. The Cardinals responded with a 13-4 run of their own, featuring 11 points from Jarron Coleman to claim an 84-73 advantage with 2:39 remaining.
KEY PERFORMERS
Bissainthe earned his second career double-double with 27 points and 12 rebounds, both team bests. Meikkel Murray and Caleb Huffman added 24 points each.
Ball State’s Ishmael El-Amin earned a game-best 33 points.
KEY STATS
The Cardinals finished 33-of-59 from the floor and 13-of-27 beyond the arc. The Chippewas won the turnover battle 16-11 and tied the rebounding battle, 33-33.
Sixteen of Murray’s 24 points came in the first half where both teams shot a combined 53 percent from the floor and 43 percent from 3-point range.
The Chippewas are now 0-12 against MAC opponents outside of Washentaw County.
WHAT’S NEXT
The Chippewas return to McGuirk Arena for the final two games of the 2020-21 campaign. CMU clashes with Toledo on Tuesday and Northern Illinois on Friday with tipoff for both games slated for 5 p.m.
STANDINGS
Standings are up to date at the time of publication.
*Toledo 13-3 18-6
*Akron 12-4 14-6
*Kent State 11-5 14-6
*Ohio 7-4 12-6
*Buffalo 8-5 10-7
*Bowling Green 9-7 13-9
*Miami 8-7 11-9
Ball State 7-8 9-11
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Western Michigan 3-10 4-14
Central Michigan 2-12 6-15
Eastern Michigan 2-8 5-9
Northern Illinois 1-11 2-15
*Clinched 2021 MAC Tournament berth
