Bowling Green senior guard Jordon Crawford scored 17 points, several of which were the result of a slick step-back jumper, against Ohio on Saturday.
D.J. Cooper, Ohio’s senior guard, made it perfectly clear that none of his four conversions from beyond the arc were sent sailing over his outstretched fingertips.
“I don’t really recall him hitting a step-back on me, but he’s a quick little guy,” he said.
Crawford’s offensive contribution, even when combined with 19 scored by A’uston Calhoun, a senior forward, was not enough to keep Bowling Green (9-14, 4-6 Mid-American Conference) within striking distance down the stretch Saturday. The Bobcats (17-6, 8-1 MAC) pulled away thanks to a strong second half.
After heading into the halftime break leading by only one point, Ohio advanced its lead to 11 five minutes into the second half because of a 13-3 run.
Bowling Green coach Louis Orr said though the Falcons came out with enough intensity to match the Bobcats early on, it faltered in the second half.
“I think we started it and they finished it,” he said.
From his view on the bench opposite Orr, Ohio coach Jim Christian said he saw a significant boost after the break for the Bobcats and was not particularly pleased with their defensive play to open the game.
Bowling Green doubled the Bobcats’ 10 points in the paint in the first half and turned their seven turnovers into 11 points.
Ohio forced an equal amount of miscues but yielded only one basket as a result.
“I thought that we were lacking (effort) in the first half and came out sleepwalking a little bit,” Ohio senior forward Reggie Keely said.
Keely was consistent throughout the game, as he finished the first half with six points and as many rebounds en route to a 15-point, 10-grab performance — the Bobcats’ second performance of 10-plus points and rebounds this season.
Although the Bobcats’ first-half showing might not have been up to par, Christian said his team turned up the heat in the paint when it mattered most, despite getting out-rebounded by nine and doubled on the offensive end.
“Sometimes it’s not necessarily numbers, it’s opportunistic and doing what you need to do,” he said, noting the Bobcats earned several key extra possessions because of grabs off the offensive glass.
With just more than five minutes to play and Ohio ahead by nine, junior forward T.J. Hall made good of such a play. After missing a layup, he rose to the occasion, grabbed his own rebound and was sent to the line, from which he made both shots.
After starting his first-career game Wednesday against Ball State, Hall settled into a groove over time Saturday, as he scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half.
He also steered clear of foul trouble, which held him to nine minutes against Ball State.
Emotions boiled over for both teams late in the game, however.
With just more than 2:30 remaining, Cooper stole the ball from Crawford near the three-point line in front of the O Zone. Consequently, he was fouled. The players exchanged words, were separated and led toward their respective benches. That did little good, though, as the emotions spilled over to the rest of the team and each was assessed a technical foul in addition to those received by both players.
Cooper attributed the exchange to the heat of the moment and schema of late-season play.
“We’re going for the same thing, seeding, so nobody likes to lose,” he said. “I feel like they got a little bit of chippiness at the end. It happens.”
Tensions mounted again during the postgame handshake line but fizzled out relatively quickly.
If nothing else, it set the table for an impassioned rematch when the Bobcats make their trip to Bowling Green’s Stroh Center five games from now.
jr992810@ohiou.edu
