After winning one of its biggest games of the season last Friday, Ohio notched its third-straight win by blowing out Ball State 87-63 in The Convo on Tuesday night.
The Bobcats (17-3, 8-1 Mid-American Conference) closed the first half on a 21-0 scoring run and hammered the Cardinals after halftime. They never trailed in the second half and had one of their best nights for shooting all season.
Here are a few quick reactions to Ohio's win over Ball State:
Best way to end a half
Ohio held a slim lead early in the first half, and it never garnered more than a five-point lead through the first 10 minutes of the game. Ball State even managed to tie the game after Tyler Cochran sank a routine layup with eight minutes left in the half.
Ohio made sure Ball State never caught up again.
The Bobcats ended the first half on a 21-0 scoring run. Over the last eight minutes of the half, the Cardinals ground to a halt. They went 0-of-12 from the floor and gave up six turnovers. In that same span, the Bobcats were 6-of-11 from the field and turned the ball over once.
Accurate shooting
The Bobcats had one of their best shooting nights in weeks. They ended the night 30-of-59 from the field and 10-of-23 from beyond the arc, their best shooting performance since they beat St. Francis in early December.
3-pointers were limited compared to previous games. Ohio made just nine attempts from beyond the arc in the first half, but it sank five of those shots. Ohio played conservatively from 3-point range, and it paid off.
Bench players getting time
Midway through the second half, coach Jeff Boals pulled three of his starters off the court. Ohio was up by almost 30 points, and he opted to bring in a handful of Ohio's bench players to kill time.
I.J. Ezuma, who averaged less than four minutes per game ahead of Tuesday, spent a large chunk of the second half on the court and ended the night with six points. A.J. Clayton, a recurring off-the-bench presence for the Bobcats, sank two 3-pointers in his 16 minutes on the court.
Both Ezuma and Clayton are still freshmen, but they earned valuable court time against the Cardinals they don't often get.
