Ohio snapped its two-game losing skid with a victory over Alcorn State on Saturday.
Ohio hadn’t won since before Thanksgiving when it got to The Convo on Saturday.
Although the Bobcats had only lost the past two games, they’ve been playing on Saturdays and admitted the time between losses has been messing with some players' heads because they’re anxious to get back on the court.
“Coach talked about it early, ‘let’s just go out here and play hard and let’s win this game and let’s get this sour taste out our mouth’,” senior guard Stevie Taylor said. “With not playing for a whole week, from Saturday to Saturday, it can really get to you mentally.”
That anxiousness, however, is gone for Ohio, which defeated Alcorn State 66-55 to move its record back to the .500 mark to end a four-game homestand.
“The world’s longest duration two-game losing streak is over,” coach Saul Phillips said.
Senior forward Maurice Ndour set the tone from the start by scoring the Bobcats’ first seven points. He ended up with a game-high 20 points and six rebounds in 38 minutes.
The Bobcats’ bigger players paced Ohio offensively, as sophomore forward Antontio Campbell finished with 12 points and 12 rebounds for a second consecutive double-double. Campbell made his first start of the season in place of fellow sophomore Wadly Mompremier.
“It’s never different. Coming off the bench, making the starting lineup — I think it’s all the same,” Campbell said.
Ohio (3-3) played without freshman guard Ryan Taylor, who has been battling mononucleosis. Phillips said after the game Ryan Taylor’s “been playing with mono," but has been cleared to return next weekend if he feels healthy.
The Bobcats held the Braves (1-7) to 34 percent shooting, but weren’t able to pull away until the games final minutes. Ohio led by just one point with less than five minutes remaining.
Despite winning without Ryan Taylor, who was averaging 11 points, Phillips said he is hoping for a more complete game from the Bobcats. He said the good things Ohio does often are overshadowed by mistakes that are usually a result of miscommunication.
“We’re on the verge of being a supermodel, but the problem is we’ve got an extra ear coming out the side of our head,” Phillip said. “We’re slightly off so we’ll go nip and tuck that thing away and hopefully we’ll be beautiful sooner than later.”
The Bobcats will have more time the next few weeks to keep improving, as the players don’t have any classes to attend during winter break. Under NCAA rules, they’re granted more time to practice and can spend more time receiving instruction from coaches.
Ohio, however, will be in Hawaii for the Diamond Head Classic in 10 days, which Stevie Taylor said could be a distraction before the Evansville game next Saturday.
“We’ll nip that in the butt real early, probably on the way there,” Stevie Taylor said. “You can’t look forward to Hawaii or we’ll catch an ‘L’ before we get to Hawaii.
“At the end of the day, we got a W. That’s something to look at so we can make changes, but also feel good about ourselves because we won.”
@chadlindskog
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