Ohio pulled off an upset over Bowling Green 92-87 in overtime on Friday night behind 23 points from Jason Carter and 17 from Teyvion Kirk.
The Bobcats (12-14, 4-10 Mid-American Conference) found themselves tied with Bowling Green (19-8, 11-3 MAC) at the half for the second time this season, and Kirk’s layup with under 10 seconds to play in regulation sent the game to overtime, where the Bobcats found a way to shock the Falcons and shake up the MAC.
Here are four stats that mattered:
6
The Bobcats snapped their six-game losing streak with the win.
50 percent
Entering Friday night’s game, Ohio was 340th of 351 teams in Division I in made 3-pointers, but the Bobcats knocked in nine 3s, keeping the game close. The Bobcats have been a terrible shooting team all season; they’re shooting just 29 percent from 3 all season, but shots beyond the arc were friendly to them.
Ohio’s inability to confidently shoot from the outside has hurt it through conference play, but Friday night, those shots helped Ohio pull off the upset.
25
On Thursday at practice, coach Saul Phillips discussed juggling his lineup until he found the right blend of starters. The starting lineup was different against Bowling Green than it was Tuesday at Buffalo, and it paid off. Phillips’ bench made shockwaves in the first half, scoring 14 points. The second half wasn’t as bench-heavy, but it helped. Ohio finished with 25 bench points.
53.8
The Bobcats shot 53.8 percent from the field in the first half, a stark contrast compared to their 42.9 percentage per game. The sharp shooting first half allowed the Bobcats to chip away at an early Bowling Green lead and tie the game right before halftime. Ohio scored 40 points in the first half for just the second time in MAC play.
