1985–86 Ball State Cardinals men's basketball team

American college basketball season March 2026 August 2023 1985–86 Ball State Cardinals Basketball Ball State Athletics wordmark.png 250 Mid-American Conference MAC 21–10 11–7 Al Brown Dan Palombizio Irving Gymnasium MAC tournament champions NCAA tournament The 1985–86 Ball State Cardinals men's basketball team represented Ball State University as a member of the Mid-American Conference during the 1985–86 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Cardinals were led by head coach Al Brown and played their home games at Irving Gymnasium in Muncie, Indiana. After finishing in third place during the MAC regular season, Ball State won the MAC tournament to receive the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. As No. 14 seed in the Southeast region, the Cardinals were beaten by No. 3 seed Memphis State in the opening round, 95–63. The team finished with a record of 21–10 (11–7 MAC). Roster 1985 Ball State Cardinals y y Dan Palombizio 5 F 6 8 SR C Larry Reed SR C Chris Shelton SR C Al Brown https://ballstatesports.com/sports/mens-basketball/schedule/1985-86 Schedule and results 1985-86 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings 1986 yes |- !colspan=9 style=Ball State Cardinals| Non-conference regular season Dec 3, 1985 yes 1985 men Oakland Golden Grizzlies Oakland Irving Gymnasium Muncie, Indiana 82–69 1–0 Dec 7, 1985 yes 1985 men Butler Bulldogs Butler Irving Gymnasium Muncie, Indiana 64–61 2–0 Dec 11, 1985 yes yes 1985 men Indiana State Sycamores Indiana State Hulman Center Terre Haute, Indiana 57–56 3–0 Dec 14, 1985 yes yes 1985 men Valparaiso Crusaders Valparaiso Athletics-Recreation Center Valparaiso, Indiana 84–63 4–0 Dec 18, 1985 yes 1985 men Delaware State Hornets Delaware State Irving Gymnasium Muncie, Indiana 91–69 5–0 Dec 19, 1985 yes Mississippi Valley State Irving Gymnasium Muncie, Indiana 73–63 6–0 Dec 21, 1985 yes 1985 men Western Illinois Leathernecks Western Illinois Irving Gymnasium Muncie, Indiana 82–75 7–0 Dec 27, 1985 yes yes UNLV 12 Thomas & Mack Center Las Vegas, Nevada 71–88 7–1 Dec 28, 1985 yes yes 1985 men TCU Horned Frogs TCU Thomas & Mack Center Las Vegas, Nevada 64–81 7–2 |- !colspan=9 style=Ball State Cardinals| MAC regular season Jan 2, 1986 1985 men Eastern Michigan Hurons Eastern Michigan Irving Gymnasium Muncie, Indiana 70–59 8–2 1–0 Jan 4, 1986 yes 1985 men Toledo Rockets Toledo John F. Savage Hall Toledo, Ohio 68–70 8–3 1–1 Jan 8, 1986 1985 men Northern Illinois Huskies Northern Illinois Irving Gymnasium Muncie, Indiana 84–74 9–3 2–1 Jan 11, 1986 yes 1985 men Kent State Golden Flashes Kent State Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center Kent, Ohio 70–61 10–3 3–1 Jan 15, 1986 yes Ohio Convocation Center Athens, Ohio 77–73 11–3 4–1 Jan 18, 1986 Miami (OH) Irving Gymnasium Muncie, Indiana 59–73 11–4 4–2 Jan 22, 1986 yes 1985 men Western Michigan Broncos Western Michigan University Arena Kalamazoo, Michigan 64–67 11–5 4–3 Jan 25, 1986 1985 men Central Michigan Chippewas Central Michigan Irving Gymnasium Muncie, Indiana 58–56 12–5 5–3 Jan 29, 1986 yes 1985 men Bowling Green State Falcons Bowling Green State Anderson Arena Bowling Green, Ohio 76–71 13–5 6–3 Feb 1, 1986 yes Toledo Irving Gymnasium Muncie, Indiana 67–57 14–5 7–3 Feb 5, 1986 yes Northern Illinois Chick Evans Fieldhouse DeKalb, Illinois 58–66 14–6 7–4 Feb 8, 1986 Kent State Irving Gymnasium Muncie, Indiana 65–70 14–7 7–5 Feb 12, 1986 Ohio Irving Gymnasium Muncie, Indiana 61–64 14–8 7–6 Feb 15, 1986 yes Miami (OH) Millett Hall Oxford, Ohio 77–103 14–9 7–7 Feb 19, 1986 Western Michigan Irving Gymnasium Muncie, Indiana 82–63 15–9 8–7 Feb 22, 1986 yes Central Michigan Rose Arena Mount Pleasant, Michigan 71–68 16–9 9–7 Feb 28, 1986 Bowling Green State Irving Gymnasium Muncie, Indiana 85–78 17–9 10–7 Mar 1, 1986 yes Eastern Michigan Bowen Field House Ypsilanti, Michigan 81–80 18–9 11–7 |- !colspan=9 style=Ball State Cardinals| MAC tournament Mar 6, 1986 yes yes Western Michigan Rockford MetroCentre Rockford, Illinois Quarterfinals 87–76 19–9 Mar 7, 1986 yes yes Ohio Rockford MetroCentre Rockford, Illinois Semifinals 93–69 20–9 Mar 8, 1986 yes yes Miami (OH) Rockford MetroCentre Rockford, Illinois Championship game 87–79 21–9 |- !colspan=9 style=Ball State Cardinals| NCAA tournament Mar 13, 1986 yes yes 14 SE Memphis State 12 3 SE LSU Assembly Center Baton Rouge, Louisiana First Round 63–95 13,749 21–10 yes AP Poll Eastern Time SE Southeast SourceRecord Book http://static.ballstatesports.com/custompages/mbb/pdfs/record-book.pdf Ball State University Athletics April 30, 2022 References Category:1985–86 Mid-American Conference men's basketball season 1989-90 Category:1985 in sports in Indiana Category:1986 in sports in Indiana Category:1986 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament participants