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[Joshua Jacob | WOUB]

Ohio Women’s Basketball commits 31 turnovers in loss to Buffalo

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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) — Despite a strong first half, 31 turnovers plagued the Ohio Women’s Basketball team. Buffalo played a consistent four quarters and did not allow the Bobcats to complete the upset. The Bulls won the game 79-67. 

The game was a part of the Play4Kay foundation, which raises awareness for breast cancer.  

The Bobcats were playing in their first home game of the month. After a long road trip, where the Bobcats picked up no wins, they looked to get the upset over Buffalo.  

The Bulls also looked to get back on track after losing to Coastal Carolina in the MAC-Sun Belt challenge. 

These teams faced off earlier in the season at Buffalo. That game was memorable for Kennedi Watkins, who eclipsed 1000 career points. The Bobcats lost the game 72-55. 

About halfway through the first quarter, with the shot clock nearing zero, Bailey Tabeling chucked up a deep three and cashed it in to tie the ballgame at six. 

Even with seven first quarter turnovers, the Bobcats were on fire from behind the arc. They made five threes in the period, giving them an early lead of 20-17. 

Buffalo was doing everything right, they limited turnovers, dominated the boards, and had efficient scoring. They did not account for Ohio going unconscious from the field. Halfway through the second quarter was shooting 55% from the field. 

The biggest problem for Ohio all season has been their shooting. Coming into the game they ranked 317th in NCAA Division One for three-point percentage. 

Ohio guard Anyssa Jones sets up a play against Buffalo on Feb. 15. [Reece Merkel | WOUB Public Media]
It was a shootout all the way to halftime. Every shot for both teams was falling. Even with forcing 15 turnovers, the Bulls could not pull away. Ohio would go on to shoot an impressive 51.9% from the field at the half.  

The pace of play started to slow down and shooting cooled off a bit. Buffalo found their offensive success in the paint. Fifth-year player Chellia Watson was the leading scorer for the Bulls she ended the night with 21 points. 

Buffalo got a late 9-0 run to extend their lead to 11. The Bobcats’ struggle with ball safety continued as they added another 10 turnovers in the third quarter. They trailed 65-54 going into the final 10 minutes.  

The offenses went ice-cold in the final quarter. In the first 5 minutes, there was only a combined 6 points. The Bobcats needed a run late, but they never found the momentum they were looking for. 

Buffalo held on to claim victory with a final score of 79-67. They improved to 20 wins on the season. 

“I thought we executed well, when we didn’t turn the ball over, we looked good. Those turnovers really prohibited us from scoring at times,” said Ohio head coach Bob Boldon.

Each team will play their next game at home on Wednesday. Buffalo will host Kent State, who beat them the first they played 82-73. 

Ohio will play their only other home game of the month against Northern Illinois, a team that they got one of their four wins against and will look to complete the season sweep.