MUNCIE, Ind. -- The Sycamores and Ball State went toe-to-toe in the first half en route to a halftime tie, but the Cardinals used an early second half push to down visiting Indiana State, 86-69 in front of 4,022 fans at John Worthen Arena.

The Sycamores dropped their season opener to fall to 0-1, while Ball State is now 1-0.

Indiana State guards Tyreke Key and Jordan Barnes paced the Sycamores in scoring as they both owned 16 points. Devin Thomas scored inside early for the Sycamores and owned 10 points while Emondre Rickman tallied nine points and seven rebounds. 

The Sycamores finished the game with a 38.8 shooting percentage while Ball State tallied a 49.2 percent mark. Indiana State had a pair of 3-pointers in the opening half including a half court, halftime buzzer beater from Allante Holston. ISU finished the game with a 6-of-12 mark on 3-pointers in the contest as Key hit a pair to lead the Sycamores on a second half run.

Ball State owned a 42-38 edge on the glass and used that to record 24 second chance points. ISu forced nine Ball State turnovers and converted them into 15 points.

Tied at 32, Ball State scored the first seven points after halftime until Barnes became the first Sycamore in double figure scoring with a driving layup at the 16:54 mark. The Cardinals countered with a K.J. Walton 3-pointer at the 16:22 mark to extend their advantage out to 10 points at 44-34 and force an Indiana State timeout.

Rickman grabbed his own offensive rebound at the 15:40 mark and went back up strong to score to draw the Sycamores within nine points at 47-38. Clayton Hughes drilled his first 3-pointer of the season with 14:55 remaining to trim the Cardinal advantage down to 50-41.

Tyreke Key buried a right corner 3-pointer at the 12:21 mark to answer a Cardinal jumper in the paint which whittled the BSU cushion down to 56-46. Out of a timeout, the Sycamore defense stood tall and Key struck again from long range this time from the top of the key and the Sycamores made it a 6-0 run to get within 56-49. Key's second trifecta in as many trips put him into double figure scoring.

Barnes hit his second 3-pointer of the game as the clock ticked under the six minute mark in the second half to get the Sycamores within 68-56. Devin Thomas hit a pair of free throws with just under five minutes remaining to cut the Sycamore deficit down to 71-62. Key picked up a huge offensive rebound with just over four minutes remaining and his lay-up trimmed the Ball State lead down to single digits at 71-62. 

Freshman Blake Brinkmeyer scored twice in the waning moments including a conventional 3-point play with just over a minute remaining to score five points in his collegiate debut.

The Sycamores surrendered the first six points of the game until ISU scored on consecutive possessions to draw within 6-4. Devin Thomas scored in the paint for the first points of the year and after Jordan Barnes hit a pair of charity tosses, Thomas' left wing jumper with 16:30 on the clock knotted the score at six.

Ball State had taken a 12-10 lead before Barnes hit a 3-pointer at the 10:21 mark to give the Sycamores their first lead of the contest -- a one-point advantage. It gave Indiana State a trifecta in each of their last 314 contest which is the third-longest active streak in the Missouri Valley Conference. A steal and fast break lay-up from Bronson Kessinger on the ensuing possession pushed the Indiana State lead out to 15-12. Ball State answered with seven in a row to force a Sycamore timeout before Barnes came back with a floater in the paint and then a steal and score as the clock ticked towards the seven minute mark to knot the game at 19.

The Cardinals used a dribble drive to reclaim a three-point lead before De'Avion Washington scored his first collegiate points with a jumper in the paint as the clock moved under the six minute mark to get the Sycamores within a point. Rickman found his stroke inside and then after a long defensive rebound and fast break, Tyreke Key cleaned up the glass on the offensive end and put the ball back into the net to once again push the Sycamores ahead 25-24 with 3:38 remaining.

Rickman would score with a turnaround jumper in the paint with 13 seconds remaining. The Sycamore defense set up for the last second stop and Allante Holston came away with a steal with three seconds on the clock, took three dribbles and heaved a shot from half court that was true all the way. As the halftime buzzer sounded, Holston's shot fell through the net to send the teams to the locker room tied at 32.

The Sycamores hit 41.9 percent of their shots in the first half as Jordan Barnes led the way with nine points.

Indiana State returns to action on Friday, November 9 as they stay on the road to take on Green Bay. It's an earlier than normal Friday tip-off at 4:30 p.m. (ET) and can be seen live worldwide on ESPN3 as well as locally on the radio via WIBQ 97.9 FM.