Seven games ago, Ohio looked to be ahead of the curve in learning and interpreting first-year coach Bob Boldon’s new style of play.
But since the onset of the Bobcats’ seven-game losing streak, Boldon is the first to say that there is plenty of ground to cover in their week away from game competition.
“We need practice,” he said. “A lot of times when you’re playing good basketball you just want to play games because you’re playing well and you are doing things correctly. You can see we do a number of things incorrectly, and the only way to fix that is by practice. Game experience is good, but we need practice. This will be a very valuable week for us.”
Ohio (8-14, 3-8 Mid-American Conference) last played Sunday against Eastern Michigan and doesn’t hit the hardwood for game action until Saturday when it faces off against Toledo.
In the meantime, Boldon is trying to flip the script on the season as his young, battered team is battling through, by far, its lowest point of the season.
At times, members of Ohio’s seven-player freshman class have excelled, but they have taken usual freshman lumps in other instances, learning on the fly.
The Bobcats have been hampered by the loss of junior guard Mariah Byard, who went down with a hand injury nine games ago. Her calming presence on the floor has been missed and her return to action may serve well for Ohio. She saw a total of two seconds on floor against Eastern Michigan and has yet to fully heal.
“The only thing she can do right now is shoot,” Boldon said. “She can’t guard, she can’t rebound and she can’t really pass. ... We’re not going to put her out there until she’s physically 100 percent, and as soon as she is, we’ll start implementing her in the game plan.”
Byard’s return would bolster an offense that has been plagued by poor shooting this season. The Bobcats are the worst in the MAC in shooting percentage at 34.7 percent from the field. Ohio’s defense also allows a MAC-worst 43.4 shooting from its opponents.
Ohio has been able to find success by anticipating passes and generating quick transition offense — something Ohio sophomore forward Lexie Baldwin said the Bobcats need to get back to after their loss to Eastern Michigan.
“We have to feed off our defense,” she said. “In this game that was kind of hard, but switch to what we can do.”
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This article originally appeared in print under the headline "Week of practice welcome during seven-game skid"
