Sports
Ohio Drops Seventh Straight Against Eastern Michigan
< < Back to ohio-drops-seventh-straight-against-eastern-michiganThe Bobcats’ losing streak continued as the offense fell flat in the second half. Ohio couldn’t hit anything down the stretch and continued to be incapable of playing 40 minutes of solid basketball. The Bobcats’ inability to move offensively led to their seventh loss in a row, this one coming at the hands of the Eastern Michigan Eagles 68-55.
The ‘Cats started the second half with a quick tempo and they looked like a team that had a chip on their shoulder. They knocked down seven of their first 10 shots but finished the half hitting only four of their next 18 shots. The long shots continued to be a crutch as Ohio chucked up 26 shots from beyond the arch.
The long ball seemed to become more common as the ‘Cats stopped moving their feet. Ohio’s offense ran out the entire shot clock on a plethora of possessions in the first half. Ohio even committed two shot clock violations because of their inability to find any open shots.
The flashes of good basketball are something the ‘Cats haven’t seen much throughout their losing streak. However, they were easy to overlook with all of the other mistakes.
“We’re just not good enough. That’s why we lose,” Ohio head coach Bob Boldon said.
The Eagles’ trap defense gave the Bobcats fits all afternoon as the they coughed up the ball 19 times. The Bobcats lost the points off turnover battle 19-9, showing their inability to take advantage of any Eagle mistakes.
"We've practiced their zone. We knew what they were going to do. We just weren't focusing enough," a defeated Destini Cooper said.
One positive Ohio can take away from the game is Mariah Byard was dressed and did see a couple seconds of floor time before the end of the first half. Byard was the team’s third leading scorer in terms of points per game. With the ‘Cats bench being as short as it is, any player they can get back is crucial.
For a team that is struggling the flashes of brilliance are an optimistic sign. If the Bobcats can string together those streaks, their first win in over a month might not be as far away as it seems.
The ‘Cats will continue to look for a way out of the rut when they travel to Toledo. Ohio needs to go to Toledo ready to play a full 40 minutes of basketball if they want to get out of their losing streak. The loss drops Ohio to 8-14 (3-8) on the year. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 15.