Men's Basketball: Ohio hosts Hampton in last game before holiday

Pregame

While the majority of the student body headed home for the holiday, Ohio hit the court for the its third game in five days, taking on Hampton on the hardwood Tuesday.

The Bobcats enter the game perfect on the year, besting their opponents by a cumulative 90 points, while Hampton has fell in both of their matchups this season.

Ohio owns every major statistical category. Its 79.7 points per game are 25 points more than the Pirates' average, and the Bobcats give up 19 points per game less than their opponent.

The most glaring statistical stackup comes in the teams' field goal differential, though, as Ohio's 55 percent mark greatly trumps Hampton's 36 percent average.

Although it hasn't necessarily shown on the court this season, Ohio coach Jim Christian said the Pirates have a lot of young potential to tap into.

"We know they’re very athletic, very long, really good one-on-one type players," he said. "They’re going to try to create a lot of shots for themselves by utilizing their one-on-one abilities and pushing the ball. I think from that perspective, it’s different."

The Pirates' top starters are both underclassmen. Redshirt freshman guard Dwight Meikle leads the team with 10 points and seven rebounds per game, while freshman guard Deron Powers chips in 9.5 points per game as well.

Freshman guard Ke'Ron Brown has also chipped in 10 points per game off the bench this season.

Ohio senior guard D.J. Cooper acknowledged that the Pirates like to push the pace offensively, but he said that plays into the Bobcats' game plan well.

"We feel like we’re pretty well conditioned," he said. "That’s our strength, so we’re going to push the ball and get out in transition."

Ohio senior forward Reggie Keely said one of the Bobcats' focus points will be improving their play on the defensive glass.

"We can always improve on our rebounding," he said. "We have yet to have anybody grab 10 rebounds in a game. That’s been the main focus of our team thus far."

 

Look back at the Bobcats' last game, a 22-point win against Wofford, here. Follow The Post Sports and basketball beat reporter Jim Ryan on Twitter for game updates.

 

First Half

Ohio's starters are as follows: Senior guard D.J. Cooper, redshirt senior guard Walter Offutt, junior guard Nick Kellogg, senior forward Ivo Baltic and redshirt junior forward Jon Smith.

Meikle was the first to make an impact on the stat sheet, finishing off an and-one opportunity on the Pirates' second trip down the floor to give Ohio its second opening deficit in as many games.

Kellogg knocked down another three on the Bobcats' next trip down the floor, but picked up his second foul of the evening on the following play, forcing him to the bench.

Junior forward Travis Wilkins was the first to check in from the Bobcats' bench, and senior forward Reggie Keely made his first appearance less than a minute later. 

It became apparent early that the Pirates were very active defensively, tipping the ball away on several Ohio drives to the basket. 

The Bobcats did, however, cash in their third three-pointer of the game less than six minutes into the game on a right corner teardrop from Cooper, who was fed by Wilkins.

Offutt was the source of Ohio's next two points, as he drove the lane, evaded Hampton defenders and put home two points with a crafty layup. 

Keely was the next to contribute, spinning with his back away from the basket for an easy touch off the glass.

He had the Bobcats' biggest block of the year on the Pirates' ensuing play, as well.

Junior guard Ricardo Johnson was the next Bobcat to check in, making his first appearance with less than 12 minutes remaining in the half.

Sophomore guard Stevie Taylor also took over for Cooper less than a minute later. 

After trading baskets, the clocked ticked down past the nine-minute mark. The score read 19-19 at that point.

Smith was the next Ohio player to score, as he tipped in his own errant shot for an and-one opportunity with 7:46 left in the half, putting the Bobcats ahead 24-21.

Offutt then hit his first three-pointer in three attempts for the Bobcats, then recorded a block on the Pirates next possession.

The Pirates' possession was not fruitful, nor was their next, where WIlkins was granted two attempts from the charity stripe after a steal-and-dish from Offutt near mid-court.

Wilkins was inserted into the game because Kellogg picked up his third foul of the half with less than five minutes remaining. 

The score read 31-25 in Ohio's favor with 3:46 remaining in the half.

Offutt upped his point total to 14 with an and-one layup in traffic, after which he tacked on a pair of free throws inside the half's two-minute mark.

Ohio ended the half with an easy layup from Baltic on a dish from Cooper, a steal and then a corner three from Baltic as time expired.

 

Halftime: Ohio 44, Hampton 27

The Bobcats ended the half on a 20-2 run, capitalizing on 14 turnovers, off which they scored 21 points. 

Ohio had only six points on the fast break, but its interior play accounted for almost a third of its offense.

The first half was the most competitive of Ohio's young season, as the teams traded leads seven times. 

Hampton was the more successful shooting team, knocking down 48 percent of its attempts, as opposed to Ohio's 41.

The Bobcats have averaged more than 50 percent shooting this season.

Offutt and Baltic led the Bobcats into the break, combining for more than half their offensive output on nine-for-13 shooting.

Hampton junior center David Bruce led the Pirates with eight points and three rebounds, though he had a handful of missed dunks and layups.

 

Second Half

The Bobcats started the second half in a bit of a lull, allowing the Pirates three quick points, all from the free throw line, committing a shot clock violation and turning the ball over on the fast break.

Offutt was the first to chip in offensively, notching a pair of free throws two-and-a-half minutes in.

Cooper was the next to score for Ohio, clanking home a layup despite hard contact from Powers. He made the additional foul shot, as well.

Junior forward T.J. Hall, who played only three minutes in the first half, hopped away from his first three-point attempt of the second half awkwardly, looking hesitant to put weight on one leg.

However, Hall, who missed Friday's game because of a left knee injury, stayed in the game for another minute of game play before being replaced by Baltic. 

Keely extended Ohio's lead to 52-37 with 13:30 remaining with a left-handed putback off a deep Cooper three-point attempt — his second offensive rebound and score of the game.

The game got chippy inside the 15-minute mark, as Baltic and Keely were called for technical fouls after the whistle less than two minutes apart. 

Baltic's call was because he continued to block a driving Hampton player after the whistle and Keely's was because of choice words he had with a Hampton player well after he was knocked down in a scramble for the ball.

Baltic got the Bobcats back on track after the mishaps, though, with a baby hook jumper.

The score read 54-43 Ohio with 11:39 remaining. 

Back-to-back buckets from Wilkins and Smith, an emphatic block from Baltic and a pristine pump fake three from Wilkins highlighted the next four minutes of game play.

Then, on the Pirates' next trip down the floor, Wilkins stepped in front of a charging Hampton player and drew a charge, which send him sliding to the base of the basket.

Both teams pushed the pace for the remainder of the game, trading blows in succession. 

Offutt became the Bobcats' first player to score more than 20 points in a game with just more than three minutes remaining, when he knocked down a pair of free throws. 

On the Pirates' next possession, though, Mielke drained his first three of the night to bring the margin within 10 points. 

Bruce hit a free throw to make the score 69-61 with 2:40 remaining. 

The closest the Pirates would come, though, was eight points, as the Bobcats forced a steal with less than a minute remaining to secure the win.

 

Final: Ohio 75, Hampton 67

Despite a late game flurry, Ohio escaped in every sense of the word with a close victory to keep its record perfect heading into its first multiple-day break since the season's opening week.

Ohio shot 43 percent — its worst percentage from the field of the year — besting Hampton, which hit 41 percent of its shots.

The Bobcats converted the Pirates' 24 turnovers into 32 points, but was outgained in points in the paint, second chance opportunities and bench contributions.

They were also outrebounded 43-26 — a potential point of concern for Christian and company.

After building a 17-point lead heading into the break, Ohio allowed Hampton to score 40 points in the second stanza. The Bobcats scored only 31 after halftime. 

 

Statistics

Offutt: 23 points, four rebounds, three assists, three steals

Baltic: 16 points on seven-of-eight shooting, three rebounds, three blocks, two steals

Cooper: 12 points, seven assists, three steals, three rebounds

Keely: Eight points, six rebounds, two blocks

Wilkins: Seven points, assist, steal

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Bruce: 20 points, 12 rebounds, two blocks

Powers: 12 points, three rebounds

Miekle: 11 points, five rebounds, two assists, two steals

 

Reactions

"As I told the team in the locker room, the season started tonight because we got tested. I give Hampton a lot of credit. I thought they out-toughed us tonight on the glass. It wasn’t even close. We weren’t physical enough, but at the same time we executed enough on the offensive end to win the game when we had to." — Christian, on Ohio's execution