Ohio’s seniors have cut down the net together twice before — both times after the Mid-American Conference Championships in Cleveland — but have never gotten out the scissors on their home floor.
They did for the first time in almost two decades Saturday, as they ended a streak of 19 years without a regular-season conference title by besting Miami 58-54 at The Convo.
The Bobcats (23-8, 14-2 MAC) split the conference title with Akron, which fell in two of its final three regular-season games after winning its first 13 in MAC play.
The road there wasn’t exactly how they drew it up.
Ohio came out of the gates shakily and permitted the RedHawks (8-21, 3-13 MAC) a six-point lead heading into halftime.
Miami played relatively well in the opening half, but its bright spots seemed to radiate compared to Ohio’s atrocious offensive effort early on.
Ohio shot 18.8 percent of its field goals in the first half — its worst showing of the season — and its scoring leader, senior guard D.J. Cooper, converted only three of his 10 attempts from the floor.
Beyond what shows on the score sheet, little clicked for the Bobcats.
“(We) didn’t have any flow or rhythm to what we were doing,” Ohio coach Jim Christian said.
The Bobcats neutralized Miami’s guards, who made only one of their 11 field goal attempts before the break, but the RedHawks’ strength was in their class of forwards.
Miami junior forwards Will Felder and Jon Harris were the catalysts behind the RedHawks’ early lead, as they combined for 75 percent of the team’s first half offense.
Ohio’s forwards combined for only five points in the first half but connected for 19 after the break, signaling a shift in pace for the Bobcats.
Redshirt junior forward Jon Smith, who scored all of his nine points in the second half, said the forwards’ uptick in production can be attributed to a focus on locking down defensively and letting their offensive play follow suit.
“Coach in the locker room was like, ‘Just play,’ ” Smith said. “So I figured, ‘Hey, just listen to him. Go out there and play.’ I didn’t really think; I just went out and just tried to have a high motor.”
Smith and Ohio sophomore guard Stevie Taylor played an integral part in the Bobcats’ comeback, as they sparked a 15-0 Ohio run in the heart of the second half.
They combined for 10 points during the run, after which Ohio didn’t relinquish the lead.
“I just did my role tonight,” said Taylor, who finished with eight points in 16 minutes. “I just wanted to send the seniors out on a good note, and I wanted the championship so bad.”
Cooper walked off the court at The Convo smiling, with the net draped over his head. Taking a regular-season title was one of the goals he and his teammates set out to accomplish before the season began.
The fact that the crown is shared with Akron doesn’t diminish its sweetness.
“We didn’t plan on sharing (the title) with anybody, but, I mean, we took care of business,” he said. “We’re 14-2 in the league, so it feels good.”
Next on the Bobcats’ list of goals is a MAC Championship and ensuing NCAA berth. Ohio’s senior class has two of each and knows what it takes to add another to its repertoire.
Every goal the Bobcats have set is bred from previous achievement and assumed expectations.
With a regular season conference championship under its belt, Christian said Ohio’s regular season run set a benchmark for the program.
“There’s a big difference between expectation level and accomplishment,” he said. “I think sometimes people confuse the two. Expectation levels are high, but what this team accomplished was really unprecedented in this league.”
But the Bobcats are far from finished.
“We have more goals,” Smith said.
jr992810@ohiou.edu
