MUNCIE, Ind. — Ball State played its first home game in two weeks Saturday as it faced Northern Illinois in the second of their two regular season matchups this season.
The Cardinals came into the Mid-American Conference contest with an opportunity not just to sweep the regular season series with the Huskies, but win back-to-back games overall. BSU coach James Whitford’s squad had not lost to NIU since March 2019. And after a 40-minute game in which Ball State never trailed, Whitford and company treated Cardinals fans to a 78-58 win inside of Worthen Arena.
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BSU (6-5, 4-2 in MAC) opened the game with a dominating performance in the first half, leading 34-19 after the first 20 minutes in large part because of a relentless defensive effort.