Central Michigan and Ball State face off in conference showdown

Published Feb. 27, 2024 3:43 a.m. ET

Associated Press

Ball State Cardinals (13-14, 5-9 MAC) at Central Michigan Chippewas (16-11, 10-4 MAC)

Mount Pleasant, Michigan; Tuesday, 7 p.m. EST

FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK LINE: Chippewas -3; over/under is 136

BOTTOM LINE: Brian Taylor and the Central Michigan Chippewas host Basheer Jihad and the Ball State Cardinals.

The Chippewas are 9-2 on their home court. Central Michigan ranks ninth in the MAC with 8.4 offensive rebounds per game led by Markus Harding averaging 2.2.

The Cardinals are 5-9 against conference opponents. Ball State is third in the MAC giving up 70.4 points while holding opponents to 44.7% shooting.

Central Michigan is shooting 42.6% from the field this season, 2.1 percentage points lower than the 44.7% Ball State allows to opponents. Ball State averages 73.3 points per game, 3.2 more than the 70.1 Central Michigan allows to opponents.

TOP PERFORMERS: Anthony Pritchard is averaging 13.5 points, 4.4 assists and 1.7 steals for the Chippewas. Derrick Butler is averaging 10.2 points over the last 10 games for Central Michigan.

Jihad is averaging 19.1 points and eight rebounds for the Cardinals. Davion Bailey is averaging 2.4 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games for Ball State.

LAST 10 GAMES: Chippewas: 8-2, averaging 65.5 points, 41.1 rebounds, 9.8 assists, 6.1 steals and 4.7 blocks per game while shooting 40.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 64 points per game.

Cardinals: 4-6, averaging 72.1 points, 35.8 rebounds, 14 assists, 5.5 steals and 2.6 blocks per game while shooting 42.7% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 71.8 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.