Sports
Ohio Women’s Basketball rattles Florida A&M to get over .500
By: Ayden Crowley
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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) — Ohio (3-2) tied a school record with 45 attempted three pointers Monday as it shot its way to a dominant 53-point victory, 98-45.
“I thought the quality of the shots we took were great,” head coach Bob Boldon said. “The quality of the shots were fine, but sometimes they just weren’t going in. If that is the case, we just have to keep shooting them and trusting the process. And our process is to shoot a lot of threes.”
The game was a metaphor to the Bobcats season. They came out of the gates sluggish, surrendering a three-point deficit midway through the second quarter. Ohio struggled shooting the basketball to start the game. At the end of the first quarter the Bobcats were just 1-of-13 from behind the arc. Senior guard Cece Hooks contributes some of the slow start to the nine-day break between games, but knows that it cannot persist.
“I could say it kind of affected us,” Hooks said. “Having nine days off and then playing a 7 p.m. game, I felt like we were kind of sluggish. But we have got to get out of that. … We just have to learn how to break through that.”
Break it they did.
After the media break in the second quarter the Bobcats came to life. Ohio went on a 26-5 run to go into the locker room with a 20-point advantage, 42-22, thanks in large part to their shots dropping.
In the second quarter, OU improved to 4-of-11 from behind the arc. Hooks led the Bobcats with 11 points and five boards at the break.
“You are going to miss shots,” Hooks said. “But you have to keep shooting. You can’t let it take you out of your game.”
Another factor for the improved shooting for Ohio was the sheer number of attempts. The Bobcats got 30 more shots than the Rattlers thanks to their work on the other end. Ohio was active on the defensive side of the ball forcing 28 turnovers. That has been the recipe for success recently for the Bobcats.
Improved consistency on defense has allowed Ohio to climb back above .500.
“I thought we had some really good stretches on defense,” Boldon said. “You know you are not going to shut anybody out but 45 is a number that we are pretty happy with. … I think we are a much better defensive team now then we were to start the season.”
Once the Bobcats took the lead they never looked back. Each quarter Ohio extended their lead thanks to turnovers and the three ball. In the third quarter the Bobcats shot the best from three, going 5-of-9 from behind the arc.
All five starters were in double figures for Ohio as they shared the wealth against the 2-3 zone.
With the win, Ohio improves to 3-2 on the season to stay above the .500 mark.
The next test for the Bobcats is against the Richmond Spiders this Saturday at the Convo.
“We will be tested in a different way,” Boldon said. “On Saturday, it’s a different type of offense. It will be interesting to see if we can go back to guarding the motion. But I just feel like we are in a better spot.”