Ohio finished off the 2022-23 regular season Friday by blowing out Bowling Green 92-58 to improve to 14-1 in The Convo and clinch the No. 5 spot in the Mid-American Conference.
After going behind 1-0 on a Falcons free throw, the Bobcats never trailed again. They slowly built the lead, until a 21-3 run to end the first half turned the game into a rout.
Ohio came into the regular season finale with little to gain. It was all but locked into the fifth spot and a matchup with Ball State in the MAC Tournament. Bowling Green, on the other hand, needed a win and some help to scrape into the top eight.
The Falcons got the help they needed, but by the time the other MAC games were over, they trailed by 28 at the half and the Bobcats had all but ended their chances.
Ohio may not have needed this game in the standings, but coming off a pair of losses, it needed some confidence heading into the MAC Tournament.
“I think it was big,” Ohio head coach Jeff Boals said. “We had the maturity and the mindset, and sometimes it’s tough when you’re up 28 points at halftime. I was just proud of our guys for the focus and maturity they had.”
On a night when Ohio honored its three seniors, it was appropriate that Dwight Wilson III gave The Convo one last excellent performance.
The graduate student put up 20 points and 7 rebounds on 8-of-10 shooting in his final game at The Convo, displaying once again how important he has been for the Bobcats this season, and for his three years in Athens.
“It was very emotional,” Wilson said. “This was my mom’s first game in The Convo, so it was emotional, her getting to see the love we get on a nightly basis.”
While it may have been senior night for Ohio, one of the most impressive performances of the night came from freshman A.J. Brown, who scored 14 points and hit three 3-pointers, all of which came in a 90-second span in the second half.
It was a display of talent that led to Brown receiving offers from Clemson, Penn State and Alabama. It was also an example of the boost that Brown can provide for the Bobcats when he is playing well.
“I’m proud of him,” Boals said. “He’s been through it. He’s had a couple of injuries this year and missed probably two months total without practicing. It’s tough to get a rhythm when you’re not lifting the way you should and not practicing, but he’s a worker.”
After Friday’s win, the Bobcats are now 9-4 this season when Brown scores in double figures, and have won four of the last five in which he has done so.
For the most part, Ohio knows what it is going to get from Wilson, Jaylin Hunter, Miles Brown and Ben Roderick, but A.J. Brown has the potential to completely change the game.
With the MAC Tournament on the horizon, Ohio is going to need players like A.J. Brown and A.J. Clayton, who scored 12 points on four made 3-pointers Friday, to step up.
The Bobcats have a good chance to make some noise in the postseason, and Friday’s win was a blueprint for how they can do so.
