Sports
Ohio takes down CMU with tough schedule looming
By: Andrew Bowlby
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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) – Ohio opened Mid-American Conference play with a 57-55 road win over Central Michigan back on Jan. 4. A month and a half later, the Bobcats (14-12, 8-5 MAC) defended their home court against the Chippewas (11-15, 4-9 MAC) in a high-scoring game 84-82.
Ohio opened the game with a triple from AJ Brown, the make was quickly answered Cayden Vasko, and the contest was off to a 3-3 start. A beginning indicative of what was to come.
The Chippewas got their second score of the game when Jakobi Heady made a driving layup. Heady was dominant for CMU leading the team in scoring.
A few minutes into the game AJ Clayton knocked down his first shot of the game. Although he only scored three points in the first half, the Bobcats big man got some confidence back in the second.
As the Central Michigan offense started to get going, a clear point of emphasis was to get the ball inside with Ugnius Jarusevicius. He was another in a long line of MAC top scorers that Ohio has faced. Jarusevicius finished the first half with 11 points, but only three rebounds.
That battle was heavily improved upon by the Bobcats after the first meeting. In the early January collision Ohio was outrebounded by 14, on Tuesday they lost the battle by just one.
“We need five guys to do it, we’re not very big,” head coach Jeff Boals said. “We can’t expect Clayton and Vic [Searls] to battle Jarusevicius and come up with it. We need somebody else to come up with it.”
Ohio also limited CMU to just eight offensive rebounds and only eight second chance points. A back-and-forth first half ended in favor of the Chippewas 41-38.
Central Michigan led the points in the paint 18-8 after the opening 20 minutes, but Ohio forced a change in the second half. The Bobcats utilized their guards driving and capitalizing in the paint to take over the game.
AJ Brown, Shereef Mitchell and Jackson Paveletzke combined to score 60 points, 20 of which came from Paveletzke in the second half. That guard trio also led the Bobcats grabbing boards with 21 total.
“When you have two guys who can make plays in different capacities, that’s big,” Boals said.
The second half became physical with both teams reaching the free throw line constantly. Final totals from the charity stripe favored CMU as it made 27 and Ohio sank 14.
Boals was frustrated throughout because of the inconsistency on what was called a foul.
“It’s difficult because what’s a foul what’s not a foul? That’s the biggest thing as a coach, all you want is consistency,” he added.
Ohio pushed through a demanding second half, and although CMU remained close, they were never able to get over the hump.
Heady did everything he could to keep the Chippewas within striking distance. On a night when he dropped 35 points, and drew comparisons to Stephen Curry by the Bobcats’ coach, Central Michigan still fell short.
“I feel like we can’t really take a breath, we’ve got Akron coming Saturday,” Shereef Mitchell said.
Mitchell added that Saturday’s game will be a ‘war’ when the Bobcats host the Zips. Akron remains undefeated in MAC play after squeaking out a win over Norther Illinois on Tuesday.
Saturday’s game remains one of the biggest on the Ohio schedule and will be televised on ESPN2 at 6 p.m.