Ohio remains unbeaten in MAC play.
An 18-2 Ohio run, that stretched into the fourth quarter, sealed a 72-57 away victory over Bowling Green on Saturday.
"I think that (third quarter defense) was the difference between winning and losing this game,” coach Bob Boldon said.
Ohio (11-3, 3-0 Mid-American Conference) came into the second half with a completely different mindset then when it left the court for halftime.
The Bobcats defense was the difference.
During the long run, the Bobcats forced several turnovers and shot-clock violations to keep the Falcons off the scoreboard.
It was Ohio's ability to take advantage of Bowling Green's shooting woes that gave the Bobcats a double-digit lead in the second half: They scored 27 points off 17 turnovers and dominated inside.
Ohio, known for its three-point shooting, racked up 26 points inside. The Bobcats also outrebounded Bowling Green 42-37, grabbing 18 offensive rebounds.
The stat that sticks out the most is the second chance points; Ohio had 22 of them.
And at the helm of Ohio’s scoring was senior guard Kiyanna Black. Black finished the game with 18 points, with 12 coming from behind the arc.
“(Black) works relentlessly on her game,” Boldon said. “She hasn’t been real happy about her offensive output these past couple of games, but she’s kept herself in it.”
But everything wasn’t all positive for Ohio as it found struggles at the free throw line, which played a role in the first half for Ohio, whose lead could have been slightly larger.
The game didn’t come down to free throws, though, and a strong third quarter for Ohio was the final piece to its 15-point victory.
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Ohio travels to Ypsilanti to play Eastern Michigan on Wednesday night.
“We know they are a tough opponent,” Black said. “We battled it out for the MAC Championship last year. It’s two great teams going at it. (It) will be exciting to play against them next week.”
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