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Ohio takes advantage of BG's slow start |
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Written by Jack Carle - Bowling Green Sentinel-Tribune
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ATHENS — With both teams struggling to score in the early going, it was Ohio University which found its shooting touch first.
As a result, the Bobcats took a 33-15 halftime lead over Bowling Green on the way to an 82-60 Mid-American Conference men’s basketball victory Thursday. The game was the regular-season finale for both teams.
The Falcons, 14-15 overall, finished 6-10 in the MAC and are the No. 10 seed for the post-season tournament. BG plays at No. 7 Western Michigan Sunday in a first-round game at 2 p.m.
“This is one of those games we’ve got to put behind us. It’s obvious we didn’t play well,” BG head coach Louis Orr said. “We’ve got to shake this game off and get ready for the game on Sunday.”
The Bobcats took an 8-7 lead on an Armon Bassett 3-pointer with 10:23 to go in the first half and the Bobcats never trailed again.
“Initially, our defense was getting stops, but we had too many empty possessions on the offensive end. Instead of playing inside out, we played outside in,” Orr said. “We had too many turnovers and they fed off our turnovers. We knew once they got in transition that they were a dangerous team. You allow a team to get their confidence, give them easy baskets while you have empty possessions on the offensive end and you can’t take advantage of the slow start ... They got it going and kept it going.”
A Scott Thomas jumper brought BG back within four with 3:42 to go, but Ohio took over from there. The Bobcats closed with a 15-1 run to take a 33-15 lead into the break. BG was 4-of-22 (18.2 percent) from the field in the first half, missing all four of its 3-pointers, and turning the ball over 14 times.
“The thing I’m most proud of is when both teams combined for 6-for-32 to start the game, I felt like our defense didn’t flinch, and that is a great sign this time of year,” Ohio head coach John Groce said. “hat was probably the longest stretch of time that we maintained that level of defense all season.”
BG was never able to make much of a dent into the deficit during the second half but both freshmen, Luke Kraus and Thomas, caught fire offensively. The pair combined for 28 points in the second half, making 12-of-18 shots including four 3-pointers. Marc Larson added 10 points off the bench in the final 20 minutes.
Thomas led BG with 17 points and nine rebounds and Kraus scored a career-high 16 points. Larson finished with 12 points and six rebounds. Joe Jakubowski had eight assists to go with four points, four rebounds and four steals.
Playing a career-high 18 minutes, Kraus was 7-of-11 from the field, including 2-of-4 on 3-pointers, scoring all 16 of his points in the second half.
“I want to give credit to Luke Kraus. He really brings some fire and some grit to our team. He played well tonight, and I’m happy for him,” Orr said.
Ohio shot 53 percent for the game and made 9-of-18 three-pointers. BG had 20 turnovers and Ohio picked up 15 steals.
BG shot 54 percent from the field in the second half but just 40 percent for the game. The Falcons were out-scored in the paint 38-30 and gave up 18 fast break points.
“Any time you step on the court, you’ve got to compete. Ohio didn’t have a problem competing ... Any time you step on that floor, you’ve got to embrace that competition and fight fire with fire. It’s obvious that’s something that was missing,” Orr said.
NOTES: Ohio is 17-14 overall and finished 7-9 in the MAC and is the No. 9 seed for the tournament ... Ohio’s D.J. Cooper had six points, seven steals, 11 assists and 10 rebounds ... BG dropped a 65-64 decision at Western Michigan on Feb. 6 in the only meeting this season between the two teams. The Broncos got a steal and a hoop from David Kool in the final 10 seconds to edge BG in the Feb. 6 game ... The BG-WMU winner will play No. 2 seed Central Michigan in Cleveland on March 11 in the tournament quarterfinals.
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