Ohio faltered out of the starting blocks and hasn't regained its footing yet.
Two weeks ago, after a tough home loss to Central Michigan, Ohio coach Semeka Randall talked about the Bobcats taking ownership of their play. It was a critical point in Ohio's season; the loss had just dropped them to 3-4 in the conference.
On Wednesday, after another demoralizing loss in The Convo to Western Michigan, Randall hasn't seen any progress.
We haven't gotten out of the gates
said a reserved Randall after the 74-56 disaster, her team's fourth loss in five games. No one's come to the front.
The players looked equally bewildered about how to energize the Bobcats.
Lauren Hmiel, who missed the first half of Wednesday's loss after violating unspecified team rules, credited Randall for her efforts and went as far as saying, She's worked her butt off. The senior acknowledged that the change had to come from the locker room.
It falls on us Hmiel said. We have to find the motivation in ourselves.
Ohio has to turn around quickly, as it heads to Ball State for a meeting with the Cardinals tomorrow.
Randall said the team was learning the hard way about taking responsibility. The loss of major contributors like Lauren Kohn (15 points per game) and Quintana Ward (7.8 points and 3.8 assists per game) put a lot of pressure on Ohio's new leadership.
I don't want to sound like they're not trying Randall said, but it's part of growing up.
But Hmiel, who scored just two points in her 19 minutes of action, said the first step was not giving up.
We can't buckle down and say we're done
she said. We know we can hang with a lot of people.
But the team that barely lost to No. 18 Florida in early January didn't resemble the Bobcats who gave up 18 offensive rebounds and 20 second chance points to the Broncos at home.
Forward Kamille Buckner said intensity on the boards would feed into the other parts of the court, but it's been missing.
We can't let this faze us
said the sophomore, who averages 6.4 rebounds per game. We need a team effort on rebounding.
Although Ohio turned the ball over just 17 times Wednesday, the turnovers came at inopportune moments. Western Michigan scored 28 points off turnovers and fast break opportunities.
We've got to take it more to heart
Hmiel said of the constant turnover problem. We've got to treat the ball like it's gold.
Ball State won't be an easy customer. The Cardinals lead the Mid-American Conference West Division and have won five of their last six.
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Dylan Scott
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