UT opens MAC season with victory Rockets win Mid-American Conference season opener with 58-54 win over Ball State at home

By Jason Mack The Independent Collegian

January 7, 2008

Toledo, OH (UWIRE) -- The Rockets' men's basketball team extended its winning streak against Mid-American Conference West Division teams to 18 games and improved to 4-1 at home this season with a 58-54 victory over Ball State University yesterday as the Rockets began the defense of their MAC regular-season title.

"We had a lot of ups and downs, but overall, we pulled it out, and that's the most important thing," said senior forward Jerrah Young. "Hopefully, we can keep this winning streak going."

Senior guard Tyrone Kent and junior guard Jonathan Amos, UT's top two scorers with 18.8 and 12.3 points per-game respectively, struggled in the game and were the focal point of the Cardinals defense.

Kent shot just 3-14 for 12 points with zero rebounds and five turnovers. Amos shot 3-7 for six points with four rebounds and was limited to just 20 minutes of action because of two early fouls.

"I thought we started to get emotionally drunk," said Head Coach Stan Joplin. "When Tyrone Kent and Amos didn't play very well, we're going to struggle."

The defensive attention on Kent and Amos freed Young, junior guard Ridley Johnson and freshman guard Corey Bingham to step up big for the Rockets.

Young shot 6-11 for 15 points with 10 rebounds, two assists, two blocks and four steals.

"It was nice Jerrah Young got a double-double," Joplin said. "That's good to see. He's starting to come into his own."

UT opened the game on a 7-4 run highlighted by a Kent three-pointer, but the Cardinals responded with a 5-0 run to take its first lead of the game 3:09 into the first half.

After a layup by Young tied the game just 21 seconds later, BSU went on a 10-0 run to take a 19-9 lead with 13:03 remaining in the half. As was the case for most of the game, junior forward Anthony Newell and senior guard Peyton Stovall scored all of the Cardinals' points on the run, with Stovall hitting two three-pointers and a layup.

Stovall was a perfect 6-6 from the free-throw line and shot 5-12 for 18 points with four rebounds. In just his second game back from injury, Newell shot 8-19 for 22 points with eight rebounds.

"We struggled without having Anthony on the floor," said Cardinals Head Coach Bill Taylor. "A lot of the scoring burden was on Peyton Stovall. Now, we have Anthony who provides an inside presence along with Peyton, who scores on the perimeter and can drive to the basket. We just have to have other guys step up around them to provide some scoring options for us."

The Rockets clawed back within one of the lead on a 10-1 run on two jumpers by Young and six points from Johnson before Newell ended the run with 8:31 remaining in the half on a jumper.

After a free throw by Young brought the score within two, freshman Mohammed Lo came into the game. On the ensuing Cardinal possession, Lo blocked a shot, grabbed the rebound and passed the ball down court to Kent. Kent missed the layup but Lo hustled down for the tip in to tie the game at 22-22 with 7:30 remaining in the half.

"It was nice that Corey came in and gave us a shot in the arm and Mohammed, so hopefully that can continue," Joplin said.

Both offenses looked sloppy the rest of the half as the Cardinals took a 27-26 lead into the locker room.

The Rockets took the lead on the opening possession of the second half on a layup by junior guard Anthony Byrd, but the Cardinals went on a 12-3 run to take a 39-31 lead with 11:19 remaining in the game.

Amos ended the Cardinals' run with a driving layup, and two consecutive three pointers by Bingham tied the game at 39-39 as the crowd of more than 5,000 erupted.

"When I hit the threes, it was a big momentum change for us," Bingham said. "We kind of needed it. Everybody was playing well, but the threes just sparked us and gave us more energy."

Four lead changes later, UT broke a 45-45 tie with a 7-0 run capped off by Young slamming down a rebound.

The Cardinals' pressure in the final minute nearly sank the Rockets as a miscommunication led to an out-of-bounds pass by Byrd and Kent was called for blocking, but Stovall traveled with under 20 seconds to go and a Cardinal three-pointer by Melvin Goins did nothing but pad the stats as UT improved to 1-0 in the MAC with the 58-54 win.

During winter break, the Rockets suffered two road losses but gained a home victory.

The team lost to the University of Massachusetts 68-61 on Dec. 15 followed by a 66-56 loss at the University of Chicago-Illinois on Dec. 19.

The Rockets were able to defeat Oakland University 58-54 on Dec. 29 at Savage Hall.

The Rockets first MAC road test will be on Jan. 13 when the team takes on Northern Illinois University. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m.

The team's next home game is scheduled for Jan. 16 when the team hosts Central Michigan University at Savage Hall at 7 p.m.