Mitch Ballock

American basketball player
Mitch Ballock
Ballock with Creighton in 2019
Free agent
PositionShooting guard
Personal information
Born (1998-07-02) July 2, 1998 (age 25)
Eudora, Kansas
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Listed weight205 lb (93 kg)
Career information
High schoolEudora (Eudora, Kansas)
CollegeCreighton (2017–2021)
NBA draft2021: undrafted
Playing career2021–present
Career history
2021–2022Cleveland Charge
2022–presentMitteldeutscher BC
Career highlights and awards
  • Big East All-Freshman Team (2018)
Stats Edit this at Wikidata at NBA.com
Stats Edit this at Wikidata at Basketball-Reference.com

Mitchell Ballock (born July 2, 1998) is an American basketball player who last played for the Cleveland Charge of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Creighton Bluejays.

High school career

Ballock played basketball for Eudora High School in Eudora, Kansas. In his varsity debut, he scored 40 points.[1] As a freshman, he played alongside his older brother, Andrew, and led his team to the Class 4A-II state title.[2] Ballock missed most of his junior season with a torn labrum in his left shoulder.[3] As a senior, he averaged 25.4 points, 8.6 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 2.1 steals and 1.8 blocks per game, helping his team reach the Class 4A sub-state title game. Ballock was named Kansas Gatorade Player of the Year.[4] A four-star recruit, he committed to play college basketball for Creighton over offers from Kansas, Kansas State and Oklahoma, among others.[5]

College career

On November 20, 2017, Ballock scored a freshman season-high 22 points in a 100–89 win over UCLA.[6] As a freshman, he averaged 7.3 points and 2.9 rebounds per game, earning Big East All-Freshman Team honors.[7] In the following season, Ballock moved into a starting role. On March 9, 2019, he scored a career-high 39 points, shooting 11-of-12 from three-point range, in a 91–78 victory over DePaul. He broke the program record and tied the Big East record for three-pointers in a game, while setting the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) single-game record for three-point percentage with at least 12 attempts.[8] As a sophomore, Ballock averaged 11.1 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game.[9] On January 1, 2020, he scored a junior season-high 24 points in a 92–75 win over Marquette.[10] As a junior, he averaged 11.9 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. Ballock led Creighton in three-pointers made with 95 and three-point percentage with 43.5 percent.[9][11] He averaged 9.9 points per game as a senior, shooting 38.9 percent from behind the arc. Ballock opted to pursue professional opportunities after the season rather than take advantage of the extra year of eligibility.[12]

Professional career

After going undrafted in the 2021 NBA draft, Ballock joined the Philadelphia 76ers for the 2021 NBA Summer League.[13] On September 27, 2021, he signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers,[14] but was waived on October 16.[15] On October 23, he signed with the Cleveland Charge as an affiliate player.[16]

Career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

College

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2017–18 Creighton 33 5 21.4 .421 .326 .808 2.9 1.9 .7 .2 7.3
2018–19 Creighton 35 35 33.0 .455 .419 .762 4.4 3.2 .8 .2 11.1
2019–20 Creighton 31 31 36.0 .439 .435 .744 5.3 3.1 .8 .3 11.9
2020–21 Creighton 31 31 33.6 .435 .386 .571 3.2 2.6 .9 .2 9.9
Career 130 102 30.9 .439 .398 .734 3.9 2.7 .8 .2 10.0

Personal life

Ballock's older brother, Andrew, played college basketball for Missouri Southern, Cloud County Community College and Drury.[17] His sister, Emily, ran track for Wichita State before transferring to Pittsburg State, where Ballock's other sister, Megan, and brother, Justin, also ran track.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b Nightengale, Bobby (February 21, 2014). "Kin-tested baskets: Ballock brothers push each other, Eudora hoops to success". Lawrence Journal-World. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  2. ^ Nightengale, Bobby (March 16, 2014). "Eudora boys take state". Lawrence Journal-World. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  3. ^ Gier, Kathleen (September 30, 2015). "Eudora basketball star Mitchell Ballock will miss upcoming season". The Kansas City Star. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  4. ^ Nyatawa, Jon (March 20, 2017). "Recruiting: Creighton signee named Kansas player of the year; CU target also honored". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  5. ^ Bedore, Gary (April 28, 2020). "KU versus Creighton in Allen Fieldhouse is a dream matchup for Eudora's Mitch Ballock". The Kansas City Star. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  6. ^ McDowell, Sam (November 21, 2017). "Mitch Ballock, who chose Creighton over KU, has breakout game in KC". The Kansas City Star. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  7. ^ Krivanek, Jason (November 10, 2018). "Creighton looks to prove Big East critics wrong". The Reader. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  8. ^ Nyatawa, Jon (March 10, 2019). "Mitch Ballock breaks school record with 11 3-pointers as Creighton holds off DePaul". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  9. ^ a b "Mitch Ballock". Creighton University Athletics. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  10. ^ "Ballock carries Creighton past Marquette 92-75". USA Today. Associated Press. January 1, 2020. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  11. ^ Tait, Matt (April 28, 2020). "Former Eudora High standout Mitch Ballock reflects on weird ending to lost season at Creighton". Lawrence Journal-World. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  12. ^ "Creighton 3-point sharpshooter Mitch Ballock 5th starter to leave". NBC Sports. Associated Press. April 16, 2021. Retrieved June 22, 2021.
  13. ^ "Ballock & Mahoney Earn NBA Summer League Invites". GoCreighton.com. July 31, 2021. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  14. ^ "Cavaliers Add Four to Training Camp Roster". NBA.com. September 27, 2021. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  15. ^ "Cavaliers Convert the Contracts of Tacko Fall and RJ Nembhard into Two-way Contracts". NBA.com. October 16, 2021. Retrieved October 23, 2021.
  16. ^ "Cleveland Charge 2021-22 Training Camp Roster". NBA.com. October 23, 2021. Retrieved October 23, 2021.
  17. ^ "Andrew Ballock heading to D-II power Drury University". Cloud County CC. April 10, 2017. Retrieved October 19, 2020.

External links

  • Creighton Bluejays bio