Semeka Randall breathed a sigh of relief after her team squeaked out a 65-60 overtime win over Akron in The Convo yesterday.
Ohio led by 11 points midway through the second half, but turnovers and hot shooting by Akron's Kara Murphy helped
the Zips creep back into the game.
But Jenny Poff nailed a 3-pointer on Ohio's first possession in overtime and the Bobcats never looked back. They avoided losing their second straight Mid-American Conference game at home.
A win's a win
said Randall as she walked into the postgame press conference.
It was Ohio's 16th straight win over Akron.
This one, however, wasn't the prettiest.
The Bobcats came in averaging more than 20 turnovers a game, and Akron exploited their ball control problems. The Zips upped the pressure with seven minutes to go trailing 47-38.
A bad pass, double-dribble and steal later, Akron had shaved Ohio's lead to two.
Ayla Guzzardo snatched a lazy pass in Ohio's backcourt with 20 seconds left and dished to Murphy under the basket to knot the game at 53. Jennifer Bushby's 3-pointer at the other end missed.
The Bobcats handled the pressure better in overtime, though, giving up the ball just once.
We freaked out when they pressured us the first time Bushby said. We weren't under control.
Randall thought her team needed to slow down after it broke the press instead of forcing the fast break. Ohio scored just five points in transition.
We took quick shots she said. We needed to set it up and run our sets.
Murphy had a career night, but Ohio shut her down when it mattered most.
She scored 30 points in regulation, but the Bobcats held her scoreless in overtime thanks to the defense fronting her in the post.
Ohio knew it needed to make a change, Lauren Hmiel said, after Murphy scored 14 points in Akron's second-half comeback.
She was hot
said Hmiel, who rebounded from a tough game against Bowling Green with a career-high 21 points. We knew we had to limit her touches.
Hmiel led Ohio's attack.
She backed down Amber Witt in the post and scored three points the hard way to put Ohio ahead by five late in overtime to put Ohio up for good.
But the numbers don't matter, Hmiel said, outside the final score.
If I had 20 points and we lost
I'd be pissed
she said.
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Sports
Dylan Scott
