Ohio picked up a huge win over Northern Illinois Tuesday night, leaving DeKalb with an 82-76 win, its first Mid-American Conference road win of the season.
This win, combined with a Bowling Green loss to Kent State, means Ohio moves out of the final qualification spot for the MAC Tournament, and given how tight the MAC standings are, wins like these against its direct rivals are pivotal for Ohio.
Here are the numbers to know from Tuesday’s win:
1
As mentioned above, this is Ohio’s first road win in MAC play and just its third road win overall, and Ohio is now 10-1 at home and 3-9 on the road this year.
Replicating their home form on the road is something that Bobcats head coach Jeff Boals has harped on all season, and Tuesday could be the first step in that direction.
45.5%
One key for Ohio all season has been 3-point shooting, and that was no different Tuesday. Ohio made 10-of-22 3-pointers, including three each from Miles Brown and Jaylin Hunter.
Elmore James and Ben Roderick hit two each as well, giving Ohio four players with multiple 3-pointers. This is exactly the kind of balanced 3-point attack that Ohio needs.
Hitting ten threes without a single one coming from A.J. Clayton, who ranks third on the team in 3-pointers made, is especially impressive from the Bobcats.
19
One of the most surprising decisions of the game came before tip-off, as Boals made a major change to the starting lineup, bringing in Ajay Sheldon for Hunter.
Hunter responded with one of his best games of the season. He scored 19 points on 8-of-13 shooting and went 3-of-7 from 3-point range. As per usual, Hunter was productive in more areas than just scoring, as he added seven rebounds, five assists and a steal in 31 minutes.
If this new role becomes the key to unlocking Hunter, it could be a huge move for Ohio. With A.J. Brown sidelined for the moment, Boals seems to be looking to Hunter to replace that bench production.
Hunter was coming off back-to-back 20-point performances, so it remains to be seen how he will be handled moving forward
