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Ohio women’s basketball head coach Bob Boldon became the winningest coach in program history (124) with Ohio’s 70-66 win over the Miami RedHawks Wednesday March 6th, 2019. (Bryan Kurp WOUB)

Ohio Women’s Basketball: Boldon breaks record, Bobcats clinch bye with win at Miami

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OXFORD, Ohio – It’s always a big game when Ohio and Miami face off in “The Battle of the Bricks”.  However, Wednesday night’s game at Millett Hall had a little more significance to it than just a rivalry game – the top of the MAC east division and a first-round bye in the MAC Tournament were on the line.

After the RedHawks overcame a 23-point deficit to tie the game midway through the fourth quarter, Ohio (24-4, 13-4 MAC) fought their way to a 70-66 victory over Miami (21-7, 12-5 MAC).  The win snapped Ohio’s four-game losing streak to Miami.

“Ending that losing streak to (Miami) was important,” head coach Bob Boldon said.  “Getting the first-round bye was important.  To me, those two things take precedent.”

Additionally, Bob Boldon is now the winningest coach in program history with 124 wins, but he didn’t reach this milestone by himself.

“I think that was a great accomplishment,” Ohio sophomore guard Erica Johnson said.  “He can’t do that without us and we can’t do it without him.”

Boldon knew there was more than the record on the line.

“The pep talk wasn’t ‘hey come on guys, get me another win’,” Boldon said.  “It was ‘hey, you got a chance to win the MAC east.’  That’s what this team can do and that’s my job to get this team to the best they can do.”

“I think that was a great accomplishment,” Ohio sophomore guard Erica Johnson said.  “He can’t do that without us and we can’t do it without him.” (Bryan Kurp WOUB)
Bob Boldon mourned the loss of his grandfather Tuesday night before coaching in Wednesday night's game. "I think my grandfather would be very proud of me right now. But I couldn't have gotten here without the support of my family and my coaching staff." (Bryan Kurp WOUB)
With the win, Ohio can clinch the MAC East title on Saturday against Bowling Green and the No. 2 seed in the MAC tournament next week. (Bryan Kurp WOUB)

Erica Johnson led the Bobcats with 22 points and eight rebounds.  CeCe Hooks and Amani Burke had 19 points and 16 points, respectively.  As a team, Ohio shot only 34.5 percent from the field.

The game started out closely contest with the Bobcats holding an 18-13 lead after one quarter.

Ohio absolutely dominated the second quarter – outscoring Miami 22-4. The RedHawks did not score until the 2:50 mark in the second quarter and were 1-of-13 from the field in the quarter.  Ohio went to the locker room with a 40-17 lead.

However, basketball is a game of two halves, and Miami proved that.

The Redhawks outscored the Bobcats 27-10 in the third quarter to make it a six-point game after three quarters.

A Kristen Levering basket tied the game at 55 with 6:57 remaining in the game, but that was the only time the game was tied, as the Bobcats clawed their way to a victory in the closing minutes.

Ohio wraps up the regular season at The Convo Saturday when they welcome Bowling Green.  With an Ohio win and a Central Michigan loss to Toledo, the Bobcats will have a share of the MAC regular season title.

“To get a chance to be the first best team (in the MAC) is pretty exciting,” Boldon said.  “It’s something that we’ll take very seriously heading into BG.”