said guard Justin Orr, who scored 13 points. It definitely created an advantage for us.
The Bobcats' shooting didn't turn the lights off, but it might as well have.
The Convo's lights were turned off during pre-game introductions for the first time in recent memory to motivate Ohio's fans. It worked as the Bobcats rode that momentum to a lights out shooting night and a 75-56 victory over Miami yesterday.
The win completed the Bobcats' first sweep of their rival since the 1999-2000 season.
It definitely got our team going said guard Justin Orr, who scored 13 points. It definitely created an advantage for us.
Ohio shot 53 percent from the field and 53 percent from 3-point range against the Mid-American Conference's best defensive team.
The Bobcats shot especially well in the first half, nailing 7-of-8 from beyond the arc.
Steven Coleman led the way for Ohio, scoring 21 points. He was one of five Bobcats to score in double figures.
I can't believe the shots they made in the first half Miami coach Charlie Coles said. That is some of the finest shooting I've seen in years on our team.
In the Bobcats' victory against Miami earlier in the season, Jerome Tillman scored 35 points.
Tillman scored just 13 points this time around, but was a major factor in Ohio's offensive explosion. Miami's Tyler Dierkers said the RedHawks were almost daring Ohio's other players to shoot.
Coleman, Orr and the rest of the Bobcats took that dare and ran with it.
I thought our guys were just really locked in
coach John Groce said. We know it starts and stops with Jerome.
(Our guys) were just making the simple plays.
But as good as Ohio's offense was
its defense was even better in the second half.
After giving up 37 first half points
the Bobcats held Miami to 19 points and 29 percent shooting from the field in the second half. The RedHawks missed all six of their 3-point attempts.
That allowed Ohio to play more of an up-and-down game. With Miami's Eric Pollitz sidelined because of a first half knee injury
Ohio was just too much for them to keep up with.
We prefer to play up-tempo, Groce said. We were able to get those stops, which ignited out offense.
The Bobcats led 41-37 at the half and were up 51-46 with 12:41 to play when they began to shut Miami down.
Coleman scored eight points on a 14-1 run during the next six minutes to give Ohio an insurmountable 65-47 lead with 6:11 to play.
I'm always telling (Coleman) to be more aggressive, Groce said. He really played well
and balanced.
The win was a big one for the Bobcats as they crept within one game of fourth place and are just two games out of first with three games to play.,,2,Sports,Matt O'Donnell,27308b.jpg,Ohio guard Steven Coleman puts up a shot in the second half of Ohio
Miami blood battle called a tie,Organizers of the blood battle between Ohio University and Miami University declared the competition a draw at the OU basketball game yesterday after confusion arose over the battle's rules.
,Organizers of the blood battle between Ohio University and Miami University declared the competition a draw at the OU basketball game yesterday after confusion arose over the battle's rules.
Both schools measured the results of their blood drives differently
leading both to believe that they had won. OU collected more blood overall
but Miami had a higher percentage of student participation.
Organizers proposed both of those measurement methods
but neither had been specifically chosen as of the battle's start in early January.
It wasn't outlined clearly from the beginning, said Rodney Wilson
