Ohio (13-8 Overall, 7-4 Mid-American Conference) is back in The Convo this Saturday after its dominant win against Western Michigan for an interconference matchup against the Old Dominion Monarchs (14-10 Overall, 6-6 Sunbelt Conference).
Both teams are coming off big conference wins to get back on the right track as they are trying to stay tight in the race for their respective conferences. Currently, the Bobcats sit at 5th in the MAC, while the Monarchs are 6th in the Sun Belt.
This is Old Dominion's second straight away game. Despite its road win just a few days ago, it has struggled on the road this season, as it boasts an away record of 3-4. The Monarchs started very strong on the road, winning their first two games, but since conference play has opened, they are a poor 1-4 on the road, with their road win on Wednesday breaking a four-game road losing streak.
They have been very dominant at home this season with one of the best home records in this conference, but they are still struggling to figure it out on the road as the season winds down.
Ohio has been very good at taking care of business in The Convo with a home record of 8-4. Its home record just over a week and a half ago was a dominant 7-2, but they unfortunately ran into two top MAC teams at home.
The Bobcats were able to break their two-game home losing streak and three-game overall losing streak Wednesday as they showed no mercy toward the Broncos, as they took all their frustration out on them. The dominant 40-point win is what Ohio needed to get its confidence back, especially at home.
Old Dominion has struggled this season with offensive dominance, but one player has been very good. This player is Senior guard Simaru Fields, who stands at just 5 feet 6 inches. So far this year, she has averaged 13.5 points per game, which puts her at 12th overall in the SBC, but she has been on fire from the three-point line as she is 8th in the SBC with three per game, with an average of 2.2.
On the other side of the ball, the Monarchs have some very strong weapons. Their guard En’Dya Buford is 5th in the Sunbelt in steals as she averages 2.3 per game, but then there is junior forward Riley Stack, who stands at 6 feet 4 inches and leads the whole SBC in blocks with 2.6 per game.
The Bobcats weapon, junior guard Bailey Tabeling, has been killing opponents on both sides of the ball. Offensively, she is 13th in the MAC in scoring as she averages 13.5 points per game, while also having 2.3 three-pointers per game, which puts her at 2nd in the MAC in that category.
Defensively, Tabeling has been very good at forcing turnovers as she is 4th in the MAC in steals with 2.4 per game. She is not the Bobcats' only defensive weapon. Ohio also has junior guard Antonicia Moultrie, who is 9th in the MAC in blocks, as she averages almost a block a game.
Both teams excel on opposite sides of the ball, as Ohio is 2nd in the MAC in scoring, while Old Dominion has very strong defensive weapons. Ohio’s offense especially excels when it moves the ball around a lot and mixes up its shot selection.
