LOUISVILLE, Ky.?Brandon Ballard scored 19 points in his first career start for Arkansas State and helped lead the Indians to a 56-37 win over Richmond in the first game of the Colonial Classic.
Ballard, a freshman from Leachville, Ark., got the starting nod in place of an injured Jerry Nichols and made the most of his chance, hitting 6 of 8 shots from the field and 5 of 7 from behind the arc. Ballard was the only player in the game to score in double figures and set a new career high in points.
ASU (2-3) was facing a slow-down offense of Richmond (3-2) that head coach Chris Mooney played when he was at Princeton in the early 1990's. But the Indians managed to dictate the tempo for enough of the game to build a lead early and keep it.
The Spiders jumped out to a 6-0 lead when Kevin Steenberge connected on a 3 from the top of the key. Ballard then followed that with his first 3 on the night. Including Ballard's first points of the night for the Indians, ASU went on a 14-2 run over the next four minutes. Ballard had a pair of 3's during that run while Isaac Wells had an impressive dunk and another bucket.
ASU never trailed in the game against after that as the Spiders had difficulty getting the ball in an offensive rhythm. ASU's smaller lineup created havoc for the larger Spiders, forcing Richmond into 19 turnovers on the night. The Spiders had more turnovers than field goals.
The Indians, meanwhile, blistered the nets in the first half, shooting 52 percent from the floor and 48.8 percent for the game. Wells added eight points, Jim Jones score nine and Kitus Witherspoon added eight in the low scoring contest. Leading the way for the Spiders was Steenberge with nine points.
ASU has little time to celebrate snapping a three game skid because of the impending game on Sunday against Louisville at 6:00 p.m. Central. The Cardinals, host of the Colonial Classic, are ranked seventh nationally and are coming off a Final Four appearance last season.
