Ohio’s season has been riddled with unfortunate injuries. It feels like every game has been affected one way or another by a player absent for any number of reasons. Against Appalachian State, that was the story again.
In the lopsided 72-59 loss, Ohio rotated only eight players. Of those eight players, four scored 55 of the Bobcat’s 59 points. The Ohio bench produced just 2 points in the game.
In another low-scoring output by Ohio, the team needed more offensive production from pieces it simply does not have. Without Aidan Hadaway and with AJ Clayton being restricted, Ohio’s offense was diminished to only four consistent stat producers.
In the first half against the Mountaineers, the Bobcats were able to produce in the paint, scoring 22 of its 34 points down low. Despite a lopsided final, Ohio went into the half with a 6-point lead.
Even though the team had a halftime lead, Ohio’s three bench players combined for 25 minutes played and 0 points scored in the period. What the team had done was enough, but it wasn’t sustainable for 40 minutes.
Ohio’s starters were forced to play more minutes in the second half than usual. After being outscored 44-25 in the second half, it's hard to point blame at any one party in particular. However, it’s also hard to believe that things wouldn’t have gone differently if Ohio had more suitable options.
Guard Ajay Sheldon was one of three players to come off the Ohio bench and provide little production in either half. Sheldon took five shot attempts in the game, all of which were missed 3-pointers. Ohio was outscored by 10 total points when Sheldon was on the floor in the second half.
The other Ohio guard to come off the bench, Elmore James, had an equally uninspiring game. In 17 minutes played, James recorded no points, no assists and no rebounds while committing one foul and a turnover.
Ohio’s eighth man off the bench, transfer forward Vic Searls, was responsible for the only 2 points the bench could produce against Appalachian State. At 6-foot-9-inches, Searls couldn’t haul in a rebound in 9 minutes.
After the game, Ohio coach Jeff Boals claimed Appalachian State’s size under the basket was a leading factor for Ohio’s inability to score in the second half. The Mountaineers starting lineup features two players who stand taller than 6–foot-8-inches, the height of Ohio’s tallest starter.
Boals also said the Bobcats were getting the shots they wanted, they just weren’t falling. Ohio shot 4-of-23 from the 3-point line as a team despite getting a handful of open looks.
The loss to Appalachian State doesn’t really mean anything in terms of how the season ends for Ohio. A nonconference game at the beginning of February won’t have any impact on the final standings, but Ohio still needed to show more than what it did.
If Ohio wants to come out victorious in the MAC by the middle of March, it’s going to have to start getting production from more than four or five players every night. Someone has to step up off the bench for Ohio to have a sustainable method of success.
