Post by redfeather on Mar 14, 2018 17:44:22 GMT -6
Ball State huddles up during the Mid-American Conference Tournament quarterfinals Thursday against Kent State.
Ball State huddles up during the Mid-American Conference Tournament quarterfinals Thursday against Kent State.
JEFF HARLWELL/BALL STATE ATHLETICS
RYAN O'GARA | THE STAR PRESS
0 minutes ago
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Ball State finishes James Whitford's fifth season at 19-13.
Ball State loses seniors Francis Kiapway and Sean Sellers to graduation.
Ball State will add SEC transfers KJ Walton and Brachen Hazen to the rotation next season.
MUNCIE, Ind. — The last two years, Ball State’s season hasn’t ended after the Mid-American Conference Tournament as the Cardinals have played in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament (CIT).
That will not be the case this season, James Whitford told the Star Press on Friday. Ball State is opting to forgo a postseason tournament this season, which means the 2017-18 season is officially over.
The Cardinals (19-13) do not have the resume to qualify for the NCAA Tournament or NIT, but they could have played in the CIT or the College Basketball Invitational (CBI). Those games cost money to host, though, so Ball State would have to go on the road or lose money.
"The primary reason is that it’s been a very long, emotionally taxing year for us," Whitford said of not playing. "Because of that, I thought it was in our best interest to pass…. It’s too much to go on the road for every single game of the tournament after everything we’ve been through. If we advance, we’re all on the road. I didn’t feel like that was in our best interest."
Two years ago, it made sense to do a postseason tournament because the program was in an entirely different place. The 2015-16 squad was coming off a five-win season and a seven-win season, and the Cardinals wanted to reach 20 wins and gain some more experience. They won two games in the tournament that year. Last year, Ball State lost its opener to Fort Wayne.
The Cardinals are now 73-88 in Whitford's five seasons, including 61-40 in the last three. They lose only Sean Sellers and Francis Kiapway next season while gaining SEC transfers Brachen Hazen and KJ Walton.
As for this year, a draining season is over. The Cardinals have been through a lot.
"In many respects, I’m really proud of the group that finished up that game, on so many fronts," Whitford said. "Just dealing with that adversity. The guys in that locker room for the final game dealt with everything incredibly… in a way that speaks volumes of who they are as people. They dealt with it with incredible poise, incredible class. Our resilience and cohesiveness, ability to stick together through it all, that speaks to who we are."
So much happened surrounding the Ball State basketball program on and off the court that made for an unforgettable season. Here’s a look back at everything that happened:
A timeline of the 2017-18 season
Aug. 22, 2017: Zach Hollywood passes away – The coaching staff expected the redshirt freshman to be in the rotation this season. Hollywood’s death sent shockwaves throughout the Ball State community.
Nov. 10, 2017: Ball State loses season-opener on buzzer beater – It was a heartbreaking start to the season as Tayler Persons gave Ball State the lead with 3.9 seconds left, only to see Dayton win at the buzzer. Still, Ball State showed promise in playing in front of 13,350 fans.
Nov. 15, 2017: Jeremie Tyler suspended – Before the Oklahoma game, reserve guard Jeremie Tyler was suspended three games for a violation of team rules.
Dec. 5, 2017: Ball State upsets No. 9 Notre Dame – The Cardinals traveled to South Bend and delivered one of the best wins in program history against one of the top teams in the country. Ball State led most of the game and Persons sank the game-winning 3-pointer with one second left for a 80-77 win.
Dec. 9, 2017: Another game-winner from Persons – Four days after the Notre Dame game, Persons hit another game-winning 3-pointer from the exact same spot, this time with 3.3 seconds left against Valparaiso in front of 5,009 fans at Worthen Arena.
Jan. 2, 2018: Ball State on one of nation’s longest win streaks – The victory over Eastern Michigan in the MAC opener pushed the Cardinals’ winning streak to nine, which was the fifth-longest in the country at the time.
Jan. 6, 2018: Jontrell Walker suspended indefinitely – As Ball State was about to play eventual regular season champion Buffalo, the team announced that starting guard Jontrell Walker was suspended indefinitely for a violation of team rules. The team had been 9-0 with Walker in the starting lineup. He would not return this season.
Jan. 27, 2018: Tyler dismissed from the team – Three weeks later, Ball State lost another guard as Tyler was dismissed from the team for a violation of team rules. In the midst of all of that, Ball State somehow pulled out a thrilling 111-106 victory over Akron.
Feb. 6, 2018: Persons does it again – NCAA.com nicknamed Persons "Dr. Dagger" after he hit yet another game-winning 3-pointer with 1.3 seconds left to lift Ball State over Bowling Green 59-56.
Feb. 20, 2018: Ball State earns final win of season – The Cardinals beat Northern Illinois for their fifth straight win and seventh in their last eight games. It seemed like a postseason run was in the cards, but who would’ve thought that this would be their final win of the season?
Feb. 23, 2018: Sellers breaks 3-point record in front of huge crowd – Ball State’s biggest crowd since 2013 packed Worthen Arena to see Sellers make his 225th career 3-pointer to set the all-time mark (he would go on to finish with 229). The 5,924 fans for the loss to Western Michigan gave Ball State 59,534 for the season, the most in 11 years.
March 1, 2018: Whitford comments on Sean Miller, Arizona – The FBI's investigation into college basketball has been a hot topic all season. Though Ball State has no connection to any of the reports, James Whitford used to coach at Arizona and knows Sean Miller well. He said, "The allegations that are out there are completely inconsistent with the Sean Miller I know."
March 8, 2018: Ball State's season ends in MAC Tournament quarterfinals – A once-promising season came to a sputtering finish as the Cardinals lost their final four games, including a 76-73 defeat to Kent State in the quarterfinals. Ball State led late in three of those four final games.
Ryan O’Gara is a sports features writer at the Star Press. Contact him at (765) 213-5829, rogara@muncie.gannett.com or @ryanogara.
Ball State huddles up during the Mid-American Conference Tournament quarterfinals Thursday against Kent State.
JEFF HARLWELL/BALL STATE ATHLETICS
RYAN O'GARA | THE STAR PRESS
0 minutes ago
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Ball State finishes James Whitford's fifth season at 19-13.
Ball State loses seniors Francis Kiapway and Sean Sellers to graduation.
Ball State will add SEC transfers KJ Walton and Brachen Hazen to the rotation next season.
MUNCIE, Ind. — The last two years, Ball State’s season hasn’t ended after the Mid-American Conference Tournament as the Cardinals have played in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament (CIT).
That will not be the case this season, James Whitford told the Star Press on Friday. Ball State is opting to forgo a postseason tournament this season, which means the 2017-18 season is officially over.
The Cardinals (19-13) do not have the resume to qualify for the NCAA Tournament or NIT, but they could have played in the CIT or the College Basketball Invitational (CBI). Those games cost money to host, though, so Ball State would have to go on the road or lose money.
"The primary reason is that it’s been a very long, emotionally taxing year for us," Whitford said of not playing. "Because of that, I thought it was in our best interest to pass…. It’s too much to go on the road for every single game of the tournament after everything we’ve been through. If we advance, we’re all on the road. I didn’t feel like that was in our best interest."
Two years ago, it made sense to do a postseason tournament because the program was in an entirely different place. The 2015-16 squad was coming off a five-win season and a seven-win season, and the Cardinals wanted to reach 20 wins and gain some more experience. They won two games in the tournament that year. Last year, Ball State lost its opener to Fort Wayne.
The Cardinals are now 73-88 in Whitford's five seasons, including 61-40 in the last three. They lose only Sean Sellers and Francis Kiapway next season while gaining SEC transfers Brachen Hazen and KJ Walton.
As for this year, a draining season is over. The Cardinals have been through a lot.
"In many respects, I’m really proud of the group that finished up that game, on so many fronts," Whitford said. "Just dealing with that adversity. The guys in that locker room for the final game dealt with everything incredibly… in a way that speaks volumes of who they are as people. They dealt with it with incredible poise, incredible class. Our resilience and cohesiveness, ability to stick together through it all, that speaks to who we are."
So much happened surrounding the Ball State basketball program on and off the court that made for an unforgettable season. Here’s a look back at everything that happened:
A timeline of the 2017-18 season
Aug. 22, 2017: Zach Hollywood passes away – The coaching staff expected the redshirt freshman to be in the rotation this season. Hollywood’s death sent shockwaves throughout the Ball State community.
Nov. 10, 2017: Ball State loses season-opener on buzzer beater – It was a heartbreaking start to the season as Tayler Persons gave Ball State the lead with 3.9 seconds left, only to see Dayton win at the buzzer. Still, Ball State showed promise in playing in front of 13,350 fans.
Nov. 15, 2017: Jeremie Tyler suspended – Before the Oklahoma game, reserve guard Jeremie Tyler was suspended three games for a violation of team rules.
Dec. 5, 2017: Ball State upsets No. 9 Notre Dame – The Cardinals traveled to South Bend and delivered one of the best wins in program history against one of the top teams in the country. Ball State led most of the game and Persons sank the game-winning 3-pointer with one second left for a 80-77 win.
Dec. 9, 2017: Another game-winner from Persons – Four days after the Notre Dame game, Persons hit another game-winning 3-pointer from the exact same spot, this time with 3.3 seconds left against Valparaiso in front of 5,009 fans at Worthen Arena.
Jan. 2, 2018: Ball State on one of nation’s longest win streaks – The victory over Eastern Michigan in the MAC opener pushed the Cardinals’ winning streak to nine, which was the fifth-longest in the country at the time.
Jan. 6, 2018: Jontrell Walker suspended indefinitely – As Ball State was about to play eventual regular season champion Buffalo, the team announced that starting guard Jontrell Walker was suspended indefinitely for a violation of team rules. The team had been 9-0 with Walker in the starting lineup. He would not return this season.
Jan. 27, 2018: Tyler dismissed from the team – Three weeks later, Ball State lost another guard as Tyler was dismissed from the team for a violation of team rules. In the midst of all of that, Ball State somehow pulled out a thrilling 111-106 victory over Akron.
Feb. 6, 2018: Persons does it again – NCAA.com nicknamed Persons "Dr. Dagger" after he hit yet another game-winning 3-pointer with 1.3 seconds left to lift Ball State over Bowling Green 59-56.
Feb. 20, 2018: Ball State earns final win of season – The Cardinals beat Northern Illinois for their fifth straight win and seventh in their last eight games. It seemed like a postseason run was in the cards, but who would’ve thought that this would be their final win of the season?
Feb. 23, 2018: Sellers breaks 3-point record in front of huge crowd – Ball State’s biggest crowd since 2013 packed Worthen Arena to see Sellers make his 225th career 3-pointer to set the all-time mark (he would go on to finish with 229). The 5,924 fans for the loss to Western Michigan gave Ball State 59,534 for the season, the most in 11 years.
March 1, 2018: Whitford comments on Sean Miller, Arizona – The FBI's investigation into college basketball has been a hot topic all season. Though Ball State has no connection to any of the reports, James Whitford used to coach at Arizona and knows Sean Miller well. He said, "The allegations that are out there are completely inconsistent with the Sean Miller I know."
March 8, 2018: Ball State's season ends in MAC Tournament quarterfinals – A once-promising season came to a sputtering finish as the Cardinals lost their final four games, including a 76-73 defeat to Kent State in the quarterfinals. Ball State led late in three of those four final games.
Ryan O’Gara is a sports features writer at the Star Press. Contact him at (765) 213-5829, rogara@muncie.gannett.com or @ryanogara.