Ohio (12-11, 6-4 Mid-American Conference) hasn’t lost by more than 13 points in The Convo since its Jan. 21, 2022, matchup against Toledo, which at the time featured a backcourt of future NBA talents in Ryan Rollins and RayJ Dennis.
Since that matchup, Ohio had gone 37-6 at home, never losing by double-digits. That run ended as Appalachian State added a seventh loss to that tally in its 72-59 dismantling of the home team.
Despite the final score, the game remained relatively even for the opening 20 minutes. Ohio’s scoring was focused solely on its starting guard foursome: Shereef Mitchell, Jackson Paveletzke, AJ Brown and Elijah Elliott, who scored all 34 of the team’s points as it took a 34-28 lead into halftime.
Inversely, the Bobcat big man duo, senior AJ Clayton and graduate student Vic Searls, contributed just 4 points in the game, while the backup Bobcat backcourt, juniors Ajay Sheldon and Elmore James, were unable to score entirely. Ohio coach Jeff Boals chalked the lack of scoring diversity up to Appalachian State’s defense.
“There’s going to be certain shots you get based on how they guard,” Boals said. “I thought, in the second half, we didn’t do near as good as the first half.”
The second half was plagued by an over-seven-minute stretch where the Bobcats went scoreless. At the start of the stretch, the game was tied at 44 apiece, with 13:51 left in the second half. By the time Ohio found nylon again, the clock showed 6:25, ending a 13-0 run.
The Bobcats finished shooting 4-of-23 from 3-point range, with three of the team’s makes coming on the same number of attempts from Mitchell and Elliott. Elliott was a bright spot for Ohio in the loss, pouring in a career-high 14 points.
“(Elijah Elliott) got the ball into the paint early in the first half … he did a good job of creating offense for us,” Boals said. “It was good to see him have that type of game.”
On the other end, directing the offense for the Mountaineers was Myles Tate, finishing with 27 points and seven assists, both game-highs. When Tate transferred from Butler at the close of the 2022-23 season, Boals admitted he was on Ohio’s target list before choosing Appalachian State.
“I’m not sure if Myles Tate is the best player we’ve played up to this point, but he’s definitely up in that conversation,” Boals said. “I thought he controlled the whole game.”
Overall, the statistics showed an even game across the board. Ohio and Appalachian State finished the game even in rebounding, turnovers and steals, as well as within two in assists. However, Ohio’s lack of scoring versatility and inability to make shots from the outside or get to the free-throw line for easy points was what made the difference.
