A game won and lost from the free-throw line, the Ohio Bobcats (13-11, 7-4 Mid-American Conference) beat out the Bowling Green Falcons (9-15, 3-8 MAC) on Tuesday night.
Shereef Mitchell led the Bobcats in scoring with 17 points, followed by AJ Brown, AJ Clayton and Jackson Paveletzke with 16,15 and 14, respectively. The Bobcats outscored the Falcons at the line 30-16, giving Ohio the edge in its 86-81 win in Bowling Green, Ohio.
The game began with the Falcons taking advantage of home court, getting off a quick 3-pointer and going on an early 10-2 lead. The Bobcats clawed their way back, bringing the game to 12-10, with Ohio’s Elmore James tying the game 13-13 with a 3-pointer.
The Bobcats went up 24-18 at around 8 minutes left, but Bowling Green fought back. The Falcons went on a 6-0 run, with Marcus Johnson hitting a buzzer-beater 3-pointer. Johnson currently leads the MAC in scoring at 16.6 points per game. He was the deciding factor in Bowling Green’s second-half performance, as both teams headed into halftime with Bowling Green up 34-32.
The second half opened up with Bowling Green chalking up a 7-2 run, building on the momentum of Johnson’s 3-pointer. They then went on another 5-0 run, eventually leading 48-38. A team effort devised by Ohio’s offensive players Clayton, Brown, and Paveletzke allowed Ohio to go on a monstrous 17-6 run, giving them the lead with just under 10 minutes to go.
The game was a dogfight, and both teams made and missed one after the other. Both teams never seemed to be in control, with 101 of the total 167 points coming from the second half.
With two minutes remaining, it was a tie game. The ball went to Mitchell, who shot 2 of 3 from deep so far. He sank it, giving the Bobcats a promising edge. Johnson ended the game with the following sequence: his fourth foul, a missed 3-pointer, and his fifth foul, with the free throws from Paveletzke serving as the dagger to end the game in favor of Ohio.
Despite Johnson’s missteps in the final moments, he scored 21 points. His teammate Derrick Butler gave the Bobcats an efficient 18 points off the bench.
Ohio had a rough time against its MAC opponent, and for good reason. Ohio has struggled this season on the boards and continued to struggle against Bowling Green, losing the rebound battle 35-31 and only recovering three offensive boards to Bowling Green’s nine.
Despite this, the Bobcats was more than a team built on the boards. Their scrappiness and 13 forced Bowling Green turnovers gave them the edge.
Ohio faces Kent State (16-8, 6-5 MAC) at 7 p.m. ET Friday on ESPN+.
Bowling Green takes on Buffalo at 2 p.m. ET Saturday on ESPN+.
