Sports
Ohio Men’s Basketball races past Austin Peay, 78-58, to avenge last season’s loss
By: Marc Goldstein
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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) — Some wins mean more in basketball. After last season’s loss on the road, Ohio wanted to get one back from Austin Peay. Ohio (5-6) was able to dominate Austin Peay (4-7) in the return of the home-and-home at The Convo, 78-58. Ohio was led by 40 points from AJ Clayton and Jackson Paveletzke in the wire-to-wire victory.
The game got off to a torrid start from behind the arc for both teams as the first five field goals were threes. Fortunately for the Bobcats, four of those shots made were from them and three of those were sunk by Clayton, who punctuated the early run with a four-point play. With a 13-5 lead following a layup by the Governors, the teams combined for a scoreless drought over the next minute and a half.
At the 15:24 mark of the first half, Ohio welcomed Shereef Mitchell off the bench, marking his first game action in nearly a month following more than two weeks off. Mitchell’s return from injury gives Ohio even more depth in the backcourt following Paveletzke’s emergence as a scorer. Mitchell went 0/1 from the floor but hit a pair of free throws in his 12 minutes of action.
With 10:23 remaining in the first half, Clayton made a shot in the paint to give him 15 points in the first ten minutes of action. Clayton’s 15 points were the difference in the game as Ohio held a 24-9 lead.
Ohio continued to rain down the threes in the first half, getting out to a 49-22 lead at halftime. Ohio outshot Austin Peay from deep in the first half, going 9/14 from three while Austin Peay only went 2/11 during the opening 20 minutes of play.
The second half was more of the same in terms of the level of dominance from the Bobcats. Despite the Bobcats cooling off from the three-point line, they were able to continue to maintain a sizable lead. For the Governors, Sai Witt began to score at will in the post, scoring eight of the first 11 points in the second half.
Ohio slowed down offensively to start the second half, but eight points from AJ Brown and Paveletzke allowed Ohio to keep its lead above 25 points. Ohio and Austin Peay would trade points for the next couple of minutes, getting the score to 64-40 after another Clayton triple.
From the 9:34 mark in the second half, the teams went cold from the field, combining to score just 22 points down the stretch. Just before the final buzzer sounded, Ayden Evans punctuated the victory for Ohio with a thunderous jam, ending the 78-58 romp for Ohio.
The Bobcats were able to dominate the Governors in a variety of categories, including fast-break points and points off turnovers; the Bobcats outscored their opponent 15-3 on the break and 27-14 off turnovers. That being said, it was not all positive for the Bobcats. Foul issues and turnover problems continued to terrorize the Bobcats.
Ohio was able to execute its game plan very well during the game, shooting a scorching 50% from deep while holding Austin Peay to 27.8%. Ohio’s ability to make and defend from long range has become the tell-tale factor in its team success so far this season. With one more tuneup before MAC play begins in the new year, Ohio attempts to regain consistency as the calendar flips to the most pivotal time of the campaign.