CLEVELAND-The Ohio Bobcats faltered in the Mid-American Conference Tournament semifinals last night against the Kent State Golden Flashes, ending Ohio's hopes of reaching the MAC Championship for a second year in a row.
Dominating nearly every aspect of play in the second half, Kent State (24-8) rolled to a 72-59 defeat of Ohio (19-11).
There's a reason they (Kent State) were the No. 1-seed and I think they demonstrated that today
Ohio coach Tim O'Shea said. We fought but I think the better team won tonight ... It just didn't seem like we had quite enough in our tank.
The Bobcats' showed great intensity in the beginning minutes as Ohio worked an effective inside-outside game while Kent battled through many early foul calls.
A 9-0 Golden Flash run late in the first half turned three-point Ohio lead into a 24-18 Kent advantage.
I really thought we had a chance to win it a legitimate chance
Ohio senior forward Jeff Halbert said. We played pretty well in the first half except for that 9-0 run and I think if we had just could have scored a couple baskets the game might have went a different way
he added.
Ohio's defense held Kent guard and MAC player of the year DeAndre Haynes in check, allowing him only four points on 2-for-5 shooting in the first half. The same could not be said about his teammate Jay Youngblood, who totaled a game-high 12 points in the first-half.
While Youngblood and the Kent State seniors ignited, Ohio's shooting fell flat as the first half continued. The Bobcats finished the first twenty minutes shooting 34.8 percent (8-of-23) from the floor as Kent took a 33-26 lead into the break.
I thought we got some good looks
Halbert said. We just weren't hitting them the way we were the last couple games. Kent was locking down on us a little more
he added.
The Bobcats began the second half with another burst of energy on a Leon Williams slam and a Halbert three-pointer to cut the lead to five. However, the depth of Kent State stifled thoughts of Ohio's attempts at a second-half comeback with the Golden Flashes spreading the ball and increasing their advantage to 45-33 with 14:33 left to go.
Obviously this is a game we had to win with depth
Kent State coach Jim Christian said. I can't say enough good things about the guys who came off the bench.
Not giving up its reigning MAC champ crown without a fight, Ohio fought to close the gap once again. With 12:10 left, free throws from sophomore Antonio Chatman and senior Mychal Green slashed the deficit to seven following two fouls on Nate Gerwig, including one technical. Ohio failed to cut into Kent's lead any further as the Golden Flashes pulled away for good.
Over the next three minutes the 'Cats missed five straight shots and committed two turnovers. Kevin Warzynski's jumper with nine minutes remaining increased the score to 60-40, Kent State's largest lead of the game.
Facing elimination, Ohio kept fighting, led by the play of Green who scored 12 points in the final nine minutes. Green finished as the game's leading scorer with 21 points.
Sometimes I catch myself being too passive on the offensive end
Green said. I just wanted to try and be aggressive
just try to score and bring the ball to the hole and just do something to try and bring us back.
A Chatman basket brought Ohio within 12 with 3:47, but Ohio failed to score over the next two and a half minutes, sealing the Bobcats' fate.
With Ohio's failure to guarantee a postseason bid, the Bobcats now must await the decision of the NIT selection committee to determine if Ohio's season will continue.
