Thursday’s win against Akron might have marked a new chapter in Ohio’s 2011-12 season.
Senior guard Tenishia Benson was a force for the Bobcats in their second overtime victory of the season, netting a season-high 23 points. She secured Ohio’s ninth win with a dagger from the free-throw line with just 0.7 seconds on the clock in overtime.
The real story of the night did not unfold on the court, but in the team’s mentality.
“There was just something different — she did have that look in her eye,” sophomore guard Shavon Robinson said. “She wanted to win the game and that’s what fueled me.”
The extra boost paid off for Robinson, who added 16 points of her own — her most since a 14-point showing against Kent State in early January.
“I came out for the game wanting to really stir up my defense,” Robinson said.
“Defense was definitely a focus (Thursday) for me because I’ve kind of phased in and out on defense, but I knew my offense would come along because of my defense.”
If the win was a new chapter in the Bobcats’ book, their previous game was a page that they would like to rip out.
Ohio fell to rival Miami by 20 points the previous Saturday in a disappointing performance that left coach Semeka Randall looking for more out of her team. The coach was visibly fired up following the Akron game, knowing that she got what she asked for.
“Our team is resilient,” Randall said. “This team is not like the teams in the past. They come here with the right attitude. Obviously you have to get down after a stretch of losing, but we had pretty good, solid practices these past two days and they were really focused. So we just needed to get out of that column and get back into the win column and hopefully we can carry some of momentum as we get ready for a good basketball team coming in here on Sunday.”
The Bobcats will wrap up their three-game homestand Sunday against Toledo, a team that is fresh off a 63-42 win against Ball State Thursday. The Rockets (10-7, 3-2 Mid-American Conference) will be Ohio’s first bout against the MAC West this season.
Toledo has won the last four meetings between the two teams.
“We’re going to face a lot of athletic teams, I think, really, on the west,” Randall said. “We’re going to take it one game at a time right now — we cannot get ahead of ourselves.”
The Rockets feature a four-pronged attack led by sophomore guard Andola Dortch, who averages more than 13 points per game. Senior guard Courtney Ingersoll also reaches double figures routinely.
jr992810@ohiou.edu
