Ohio needed a win on Saturday afternoon and got it thanks to its high-powered backcourt. Cece Hooks and Erica Johnson led the charge for the Bobcats in their 79-71 win over Ball State at The Convo.
The win was crucial in keeping Ohio (10-6, 3-2 Mid-American Conference) in the MAC title race. Ohio entered conference play as a favorite to win the conference, but five games in, it finds itself frustrated and in an unfavorable position.
“The challenges and aspirations in this program are to be great,” coach Bob Boldon said. “And all of sudden good doesn’t seem so good anymore.”
Fresh off a one-point loss to Western Michigan, the Bobcats knew before its match-up with the Cardinals (11-6, 3-2 MAC) that they would need to start off strong. Johnson and Hooks ultimately set the pace that left Ball State behind.
The two led Ohio’s offense early with good shot selection. The Bobcats started the game shooting 50 percent from the field, and when they missed, their hustle helped out-rebound the much taller Ball State.
But with the play of Ball State’s Oshlynn Brown (11 points) and Sydney Freeman (13 points) the Cardinals managed to keep Ohio’s lead to three points after the first quarter,
In the second quarter — a stanza that has been bad for the Bobcats this season — Ohio outscored the Cardinals 25-16. Neither Hooks or Johnson had started to slow and the Bobcats entered the half with a 49-37 lead and a side of good spirits.
“Carrying the momentum into the locker room is always good, so yeah it felt great,” Johnson said.
The Bobcats brought that same energy back out in the third quarter and looked like they were on the brink of handing Ball State its eight-straight loss to Ohio in blowout fashion. Hooks and Johnson not only found shots for themselves but for other teammates.
The improved ball moment produced 11 assists as opposed to the three in Wednesday’s loss to the Broncos.
“...I felt like the ball was moving more,” Johnson said. “It didn’t stick and we had less one-on-one and more team play.”
The Bobcats team play ended up resulting in big days for Amani Burke, who contributed 16 points and Deesh Beck (8 points, 3/4 fgs).
Unfortunately for the Bobcats, Ohio eased the pressure off Ball State in the fourth quarter. Ball State outscored Ohio 20-11, and still showed signs of a glaring problem the Bobcats have had this season; an inability to play four quarters.
“We know oftentimes we don’t play all four quarters,” Johnson said. “We’re not we’re we want to be at but we made an effort to get there.”
That’s not the only place the Bobcats don’t want to be.
After Saturday’s win the Bobcats still have some catching up to do if it hopes to win the MAC regular season title. The Bobcats are currently in a three-way tie for first place in the East Division, but West Division opponent Central Michigan is 5-0 and first place in the conference.
The Bobcats will have a chance to shrink that deficit against the Chippewas when the two play in Mt. Pleasant on Feb. 1. But until then, Ohio will run a steady race with wins over upcoming opponents Northern Illinois, Bowling Green and Akron.
“Our goal is to win every game,” Johnson said “Whether our backs are against the wall we want to win every game we play.”
