At times this season, Ohio has struggled offensively, but Sunday’s loss to Toledo reached a new level of futility.
The Bobcats allowed their opponents to begin the game on a 10-0 run and never led in the 52-33 loss. Ohio had not scored 33 points or fewer since the 1975-1976 season. The performance tied the record for least points scored at home in team history.
“Right out the gate they just outworked us, and when you’re down 10-0 there’s nothing much you can do when you’re getting great looks,” Ohio coach Semeka Randall said.
The Bobcats (9-11, 2-4 Mid-American Conference) were pressed for buckets in the loss, but open shots at the basket were easier to come by.
Ohio shot 21 percent from the field — far and away its worst outing of the season offensively. The poor shooting stung even more considering the Bobcats had shot 40 percent in their last outing.
“There’s nothing really to say,” Randall said. “Shoot the ball, make some layups, knock down some of the open shots and maybe this could be possibly a different basketball game.”
Ohio was tasked with going toe-to-toe with Rockets’ center Yolanda Richardson, who poured in 18 points on 9-of-11 shooting. Her point total was only four less than Ohio’s starting five combined.
She also picked up 15 rebounds, seven of which came on the offensive end.
“We knew we had really no answer for the big kid inside,” Randall said. “We knew she was going to take up a lot of space and we were willing to give her points.”
The 6-foot-2 center executed her job well, drawing additional Ohio defenders at times. That, in turn, opened up opportunities from beyond the arc, where Courtney Ingersoll was in a groove. She hit four 3-pointers on the day.
Forward Inma Zanoguera accounted for most of the Rockets’ remaining offense, with 11 points on 5-for-8 shooting.
Toledo (11-7, 4-2 MAC) shot nearly twice as well as the Bobcats from the floor. The results were obvious.
“It’s really frustrating,” said freshman guard Mariah Byard, who led Ohio with nine points. “I felt like we kept attacking, it’s just that our shots weren’t falling.”
There was an evident void on the offensive end, as senior guard Tenishia Benson had an off night, shooting 0-for-8 from the field. She finished with three points.
It was only the second game Benson has played this season in which she did not reach double figures.
“She had some great looks, just kind of shot the ball upright. They had no legs in ’em,” Randall said. “If you watched her shots, they were all off the front of the rim, and then at times she took it too deep trying to get a foul call.”
One bright spot for the Bobcats was the return of junior forward Porsha Harris, who had not played since injuring her knee against Buffalo Jan. 4. She had four points and as many rebounds in 16 minutes for Ohio.
“She creates so much attention when we give her the ball down low because she’s just that inside presence that the defense has to worry about,” sophomore guard Shavon Robinson said. “So it was really good to see her back out there and starting to get her flow back and whatnot. We need that.”
jr992810@ohiou.edu
