Cincy Sporting News » MAC East

Ohio 81, Akron 75

admin — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 02:25:24 +0000

Associated Press

Akron's Jimmy Conyers (32) goes in for a shot between Ohio's Reggie Keely and Tommy Freeman, right, in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in the Mid-American Conference men's finals Saturday, March 13, 2010, in Cleveland.

CLEVELAND — Freshman D.J. Cooper scored 23 points and made three big plays in overtime as Ohio capped a stunning run through the Mid-American Conference tournament by beating defending champion Akron 81-75 in the final Saturday night to earn an NCAA tourney bid.

The ninth-seeded Bobcats (21-14) became the lowest-seeded team to win the MAC title. They did it by knocking off top-seeded Kent State, fourth-seeded Miami (Ohio) and finally the third-seeded Zips (24-10).

This wasn’t supposed to be Ohio’s year, yet the Bobcats overcame injuries, player suspensions and rash of close losses to win their first title since 2005.

Ohio’s Armon Bassett scored 25 to earn tournament MVP honors. He finished with 116 points in four games.

Jimmy Conyers led Akron with 19 points and 12 rebounds, and Chris McKnight scored 18 with 10 boards. The Zips were making their fourth straight title game appearance.

As is almost always the case, the MAC final delivered.

There were 13 ties, 24 lead changes, countless crucial plays and five extra minutes of heart-pounding action.

Bassett’s two free throws gave Ohio a 68-65 lead with 13.5 seconds to go in regulation, but just as he did in the Zips’ double-overtime win in the quarterfinals against Eastern Michigan, Akron junior guard Steve McNees came down and buried a 3-pointer from the top of the key to tie it.

Ohio had the last shot, but Cooper was long with a 12-foot jumper as the horn sounded.

He more than made up for it in overtime.

The MAC’s freshman of the year drained a 3-pointer to give Ohio a 73-70 lead, and moments later, he blocked a layup by McNees under the basket. McNees did make another 3 to tie it 75-all, but Bassett hit a soft bank shot, and after a missed 3 by Akron, Cooper drained two free throws to make it 79-75 with 24.9 seconds left.

Down by four and out of timeouts, the Zips were forced to launch from the outside but badly missed both attempts. The loose ball found its way into the hands of Bassett, who went in for a dunk, providing an exclamation point on Ohio’s improbable title.

When the horn sounded, Ohio’s players swarmed in front of their bench, celebrating something only they thought was possible.

The Bobcats opened the tourney on the road at Ball State, where they found themselves trailing by 10 with 10 minutes to go. They rallied to win that one in overtime, earning a trip to Cleveland. In three days inside Quicken Loans Arena, they defied the odds by upsetting three of the league’s top four seeds.

Ohio’s conference season began with four consecutive losses, and there were other obstacles along the way. Steven Coleman, the team’s top returning player, broke his hand in December and didn’t play again. Forward DeVaughn Washington was suspended for five games in midseason for team violations. Freshman guard Jay Kinney was suspended twice and dismissed from the team by coach John Groce last month.

When the tourney began, the Bobcats, with only one senior on their roster, were an afterthought.

Now, they’re champions.

Ohio 85, Ball St. 77

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 01:32:31 +0000

Associated Press

MUNCIE, Ind. — Armon Bassett scored 25 points, including the layup that sent the game into overtime, and Ohio defeated Ball State 85-77 in the first round of the Mid-American Conference tournament Sunday.

The Bobcats (18-14), who will face top-seeded Kent State on Thursday in the quarterfinals, rallied from a six-point deficit in the final five minutes of regulation to force OT.

After a layup by D.J. Cooper tied the score at 67-all with 1:44 to play, capping an 8-2 run, Jarrod Jones briefly gave the Cardinals (15-15) a two-point lead with a layup.

Bassett answered with his game-tying shot, was fouled on the play but missed the free throw.

Ohio then opened overtime with a 7-3 run and led the rest of the way.

Tommy Freeman and DeVaughn Washington each scored 15 points for the Bobcats.

Randy Davis led Ball State with 21 points, and Jauwan Scaife added 17.

Bowling Green 60, Ohio 82

admin — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 13:14:34 +0000

Associated Press

Bobcats off to Ball State for MAC Tournament First Round on Sunday

ATHENS, Ohio — Armon Bassett scored 17 points as Ohio cruised to an 82-60 win over Bowling Green on Thursday night in the regular-season finale for both teams.

D. J. Cooper had his fifth double-double of the season with 11 assists and 10 rebounds, plus seven steals to set a single-season record for steals (85) for the Bobcats (17-14, 7-9 Mid-American Conference), who split the season series with the Falcons. Tournament play begins Sunday.

Kenneth van Kempen, who had eight points and eight rebounds, became Ohio’s all-time leader in games played (128).

The Bobcats, who were 9-for-18 from 3-point range, also set a school record for 3-pointers (230).

Ohio didn’t score until 3:34 into the game. Trailing 7-5, the Bobcats closed the final 11:50 of the first half with a 28-8 run and led by as many as 35 in the second half.

Scott Thomas led the Falcons (14-15, 6-10) with 17 points.

Ohio 69, Buffalo 72

admin — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 15:30:47 +0000

Associated Press

BUFFALO, N.Y. – The Buffalo men’s basketball team overcame a 10-point deficit with less than seven minutes remaining to nip visiting Ohio 72-69 Saturday evening at Alumni Arena.

Ohio was powered by double-double efforts from D.J. Cooper (12 points, 11 assists) and Kenneth van Kempen (16 points, 10 rebounds). Cooper also added eight rebounds. Buffalo improved to 17-10 overall and 9-6 in the Mid-American Conference, while Ohio dropped to 16-14 and 6-9 in the league. It was also the ninth consecutive win on Senior Day for the Bulls.

“This was not for lack of effort tonight,” Head Coach John Groce said. “We competed and for 30 minutes of this game I thought you could consider us the better team on the floor. We just did not execute at the beginning and end of the ballgame.”

The Bulls were led by Rodney Pierce’s 26 points (11-17 FG) and five steals, while John Boyer added 16 points, 13 in the second half, and seven assists. Jawaan Alston had a team-high six rebounds.

“Rodney Pierce was the best player on the floor tonight,” Groce said. “He’s been a great player these last couple of years and we’re finally glad to see him go because he played great for them tonight and made big shots down the stretch.”

The Bobcats outrebounded Buffalo 35-28, but their 19 turnovers turned into 15 Buffalo steals.

Trailing 15-12, Ohio went on an 11-2 run, seven from Cooper, to go up 23-17 with 10:06 in the half. They would maintain the lead for the remainder of the stanza and took an 11-point lead on a three-pointer by Tommy Freeman with 4:32 remaining. Buffalo managed to score the final five points before the break to cut the lead to 44-38.

KVK and Armon Bassett each had 10 points to lead the Green & White at intermission. The team as a whole shot 55 percent and drilled five three-pointers while going a perfect 7-7 from the charity stripe. Pierce led Buffalo with 15 points as the Bulls shot 48.6 percent for the half.

The second half went back-and-forth as Buffalo quickly cut the deficit to one only to see Ohio respond and hold a seven-point advantage with 14:59 to go. Once again, Buffalo trimmed the lead to one wth 11:08 to go before an 8-0 Bobcat run, five from DeVaughn Washington, pushed the lead to nine, 59-50, with 8:59 remaining.

The lead hit 10 for Ohio with 7:46 on the clock and Buffalo was forced to take a timeout. An 14-4 Bull run was capped by a Pierce three-pointer with 2:23 left that tied the score at 67.

With 40 seconds to go, Bassett hit a cold-blooded jumper from the free-throw line for a two-point lead for Ohio. However, Pierce hit a trifecta on the other end out of a timeout to answer and give Buffalo their first lead of the second half, 70-69 with 28 seconds on the clock.

The Bobcats return home this week for their final regular season game. The contest will be against Bowling Green on Thursday, March 4 at 7 p.m. inside the Convo. Prior to tip-off, the team will recognize their seniors in a small ceremony.

Wright State 59, Ohio 64

admin — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 04:03:18 +0000

Associated Press

ATHENS, Ohio — Armon Bassett scored 26 points, 20 in the second half, to lead Ohio University to a 64-59 win over Wright State on Saturday.

A 3-pointer by Bassett, who didn’t start but played 36 minutes, gave the Bobcats (15-13) a 53-50 lead with 4:07 left. Bassett hit another 3-pointer to make it 56-52 with 1:32 left after N’Gai Evans made two free throws for the Raiders (18-10).

A 3-pointer by Vaughn Duggins with 7 seconds left brought Wright State within three, 62-59, but Bassett hit two free throws with 3 seconds left for the final margin.

Duggins, who finished with 15 points, had 10 in the first half, which ended with Wright State ahead 25-24 after leading by as many as eight points.

DeVaughn Washington added 16 points and seven rebounds for the Bobcats of the Mid-American Conference.

Todd Brown scored 11 points and Cory Cooperwood 10 for the Raiders of the Horizon League.

Tennessee-Martin 52, Ball St. 68

admin — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 21:46:28 +0000

Associated Press

MUNCIE, Ind. — Terrence Watson and Malik Perry scored 15 points each and Ball State defeated Tennessee-Martin 68-52 Saturday.

The nonconference game was part of the BracketBusters series.

Ball State (15-11), of the Mid-American Conference, made 14 of its 25 shots in the second half — 56 percent — to break away from a 26-22 halftime lead. The final score was the Cardinals’ biggest lead of the game.

Jarrod Jones had 13 points and eight rebounds for Ball State, and Randy Davis had 10 points and seven rebounds.

Marquis Weddle led Tennessee-Martin (4-23) with 15 points. Reuben Clayton added 11 points and Benzor Simmons 10 for the Skyhawks, members of the Ohio Valley Conference.

Tennessee-Martin is 0-14 on the road this season.

Ohio 67, Kent State 74

admin — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 20:58:17 +0000

Associated Press

Kent State beats Ohio 74-67

KENT, Ohio — Chris Singletary and Justin Greene each recorded double-doubles, leading Kent State to a 74-67 win over Ohio on Wednesday night.

Singletary scored 17 points and grabbed 10 boards while Greene had 15 points and 11 rebounds for the Golden Flashes (19-8, 10-3 Mid-American Conference), who remain tied with Akron for first place in the conference. The win puts Kent State one game closer to a possible showdown for the MAC crown in the season final at Akron on March 5.

The Golden Flashes trailed the Bobcats as late as 7:31 remaining when Armon Bassett’s free throws put Ohio up 59-54. But Anthony Simpson’s dunk and Mike McKee’s 3-pointer sparked a 14-2 Golden Flashes run and they never trailed again.

Simpson also finished with 15 points and Rodriguez Sherman added 11 for Kent State.

D.J. Cooper had 23 points and 10 rebounds to lead Ohio (14-13, 5-8).

Ohio 88, Akron 91

admin — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 15:13:55 +0000

Associated Press

Ohio's Valiant Effort Falls Just Shy at Akron

AKRON, Ohio — Jimmy Conyers scored 20 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and hit two free throws with 3 seconds left in the second overtime in Akron’s 91-88 win over Ohio on Sunday.

The Zips (19-7, 9-3 Mid-American Conference), who won their fourth straight, trailed 89-88 after Ohio’s D.J. Cooper hit a jumper with 1:19 left in the final overtime.

Akron’s Brett McKnight then missed a jump shot and grabbed his own rebound. But Conyers’ 3-pointer missed the mark with 17 seconds to go.

Driving to the lane with 6 seconds left, Cooper was called for traveling and Ohio (14-12, 5-7) sent Conyers to the line.

Chris McKnight scored 25 points and grabbed 18 rebounds for Akron, which went 10 of 12 from the free throw line in overtime.

Cooper, whose jumper with 38 seconds left sent it into overtime, finished with 33 points.

Reggie Keely had 20 rebounds and 16 points for the Bobcats.

Central Michigan 76, Ohio 89

admin — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 14:52:54 +0000

Associated Press

The Bobcats made the inaugural Be Blue event a memorable night in the Convocation Center Thursday, playing well across the board for an exciting 89-74 win over the visiting Central Michigan Chippewas

ATHENS, Ohio — Armon Bassett scored 25 points and DeVaughn Washington added 24 in Ohio’s 89-76 win over Central Michigan on Thursday night.

The Bobcats (14-11, 5-6 Mid-American Conference) led 40-37 at halftime, but the Chippewas (11-12, 6-5) pulled within one point on Brandon Ford’s layup with 14 minutes to go.

The Bobcats then went on a 13-2 run and led 64-52 on Bassett’s 3 with 10:27 left.

Ohio led by as many as 79-63 on Washington’s free throws with 3:39 remaining.

Washington made a career-high 14 free throws out of 19 attempts as Ohio was 35 of 48 from the foul line (72.9 percent).

The Bobcats shot 57.1 percent in the second half (12 of 21), compared to 31.6 percent shooting (12 of 38) by the Chippewas after halftime.

Robbie Harman had a career-high 31 points and nine 3-pointers for Eastern Michigan. Harman became the school’s all-time leader in 3s with 208.

Western Michigan 74, Ohio 90

admin — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 12:36:35 +0000

Associated Press

Tommy Freeman tallied a career-high 30 points on 11-15 shooting and 6-9 from 3-point range to lead the host Bobcats past Western Michigan 90-74 Tuesday evening in the Convocation Center.

ATHENS, Ohio — Tommy Freeman scored a career-high 30 points and tied a career-best with six 3-pointers, leading Ohio past Western Michigan 90-74 on Tuesday night.

Armon Bassett added 21 points, including five 3s, and a career-high nine assists for the Bobcats (13-11, 4-6 Mid-American Conference), who hit a season-high 14 of 23 3-pointers (60.9 percent) in the win. The Broncos finished just 8 of 23 from long range (34.8 percent).

Kenneth Van Kempen finished with 12 points and D.J. Cooper added 11 for Ohio.

Western Michigan got a pair of early 3s for a 6-2 lead, but Freeman hit his first 3-pointer of the game for Ohio, sparking a 10-0 run, and the Bobcats didn’t trail again.

Ohio led by 20 points at halftime and held on despite being outscored by the Broncos 49-45 in the second.

Martelle McLemore tied his career high with 24 points for the Broncos (13-11, 5-6).