Ohio's Jaaron Simmons has carried the Bobcats in Paradise Jam Tournament.
Ohio coach Saul Phillips has reiterated it often this season: He's going to lean on point guard Jaaron Simmons.
Phillips isn't lying.
Simmons double-double in Ohio's 93-71 win against Norfolk State on Saturday and 30 points and eight assists during its 90-88 loss to Tulsa Friday, reciprocated Phillips' point, as the Houston transfer has played 35-plus minutes for three consecutive games.
"Jaaron is going to be leaned on to do a lot for this program over the next three years," Phillips said in a post game radio interview with Ohio announcer Russ Eisenstein. "I’ve coached some great point guards. He’s as good as any of them that I’ve coached."
"We’ve got to find a way, we’ve got to find a way to get some people around him to maybe take care of the ball a little better to take some of the pressure off him because I’m going to run him into the darn ground here at some point," Phillips added in the interview.
Simmons has been an integral part in controlling Ohio's offense this season, as his court vision and drives to the paint have helped Ohio jump out to a 3-1 record. His 33 assists and 24 turnovers in four games only adds to Phillips' reliance on the redshirt sophomore.
"He's just a special player to play with," freshman Gavin Block said after Ohio's win against Norfolk State. "I just have to find the open spot; Jaaron is doing the hard work."
Against Norfolk State, Simmons contributed 11 points and 13 assists, aiding Gavin Block (19), Treg Setty (16) Antonio Campbell (13) and Kenny Kaminski (13) to double digit scoring outings. Simmons 30 points against Tulsa is a team-high.
Against Tulsa, Simmons' 30 points helped Ohio hold a lead for 36 minutes before sacrificing it with 2:24 to go in the second half.
"Twenty-three turnovers. That's how it got away," Phillips said. "What's sad is we put ourselves in position to get a really good win. It's disappointing. It came down to a failure to take care of the ball and being able to defend without fouling."
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Simmons and the Bobcats will finish out the Paradise Jam Tournament held in St Thomas, Virgin Islands and where they've been since Thursday, against the Florida State Seminoles on Monday.
Florida State (3-1) is coming off a 83-67 win over DePaul Saturday. Seminoles freshman Dwayne Bacon scored 19 points in the win.
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