Forward Leon Williams stepped up and made his presence felt in the Ohio men's basketball team's most heated game of the year.
After failing to score in last week's loss at Bowling Green, Williams came back to lead all scorers with 16 points and also post five rebounds in the victory against Mid-American Conference rival Miami.
I just played more physical and with more energy this time around
Williams said.
Joining Williams with an outstanding offensive performance was forward Terren Harbut. For Harbut, Saturday was the last chance to prove himself against rival Miami in regular-season play.
He contributed 15 points in Ohio's win, 11 during the opening half. He also added two early blocks in his effort to defeat the RedHawks.
He was terrific coach Tim O'Shea said. Seven-for-11 (from the field) ... he was just going great.
Grand theft Ohio
Forcing turnovers has been the key for Ohio's defensive success. Ohio continued to force double-digit turnovers in Saturday's key win against Miami.
Five Ohio players had at least two steals against Miami during the weekend. Leading the defensive attack this season have been Sonny Troutman and Jeremy Fears. Fears led the team with three steals Saturday while Troutman added two.
We are an attacking team Fears said. We press
and we try to force as many turnovers as possible.
I just wanted to make sure we pressured them the whole game. O'Shea said.
Troutman's steals are steadily moving him up Ohio's all-time steals chart. With his performance Saturday, Troutman now has 49 for his career, placing him in a tie for 10th place all-time. Troutman is 25 steals away from first place with at least seven games left in only his second season.
Home-court advantage
Ohio defeated Miami Saturday in front of the largest audience in The Convo this season. Final figures accounted for 8,942 fans at the game. Saturday's crowd was about 1,000 more than the previous season high of 7,900 against Kent State.
The large crowd also followed last week's victory against Western Michigan during Sibs Weekend, which was played in front of 7,200 fans, the third-largest crowd of the year.
The rising number of fans has gone hand-in-hand with Ohio's recent success as they climb the MAC standings.
The fan support was great
Harbut said. You know when we're back at home it's a big momentum (swing) to have the sixth man on the side
this being the crowd. I appreciate all the fans coming out and supporting us
and that was a big lift in the game.
Ohio streaking
After Ohio's win in The Convo Saturday, the Bobcats extended their home winning streak to 11 games. Ohio now moves into a tie with Miami at 16th place nationally.
Currently there are six teams with home winning streaks of 20 or more. Oklahoma State leads the nation with 27 straight home wins.
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Nick Brockman
