Ohio didn’t expect to still be playing at The Convo this late in March.
Missing its stated goal of an NCAA Tournament appearance, Ohio is settling for a bid in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament and is hosting an opening round game against Cleveland State on Wednesday.
And because the Bobcats missed out on that coveted spot in the “Big Dance,” some players are less than enthused about the prospects of settling for the CIT.
“We didn’t reach our goal,” junior forward Maurice Ndour said. “Our goal was to go to the NCAA (Tournament) and we didn’t reach it. This is a good tournament for us, obviously, but nobody’s really enthusiastic.”
According to a source close to the team, senior forward Jon Smith unpacked his locker Sunday night and called coaches Monday morning to say he is not returning for any of Ohio’s remaining games.
Weighing on Ohio is the expectation of reaching the pinnacle of all college basketball tournaments after reaching the Sweet Sixteen and playing North Carolina to an overtime loss only two seasons ago.
Junior guard Stevie Taylor said that playing in the NCAA Tournament so early in his career may have spoiled him a little bit.
“With that being my first year and being in the (Mid-American Conference) Championship last year, I was like, ‘Well, we should be in the championship every year,’ ” Taylor said. “It’s tough.”
Taylor understands why some of his teammates aren’t excited about the CIT, but he said that it doesn’t mean they should fold up after losing to Akron in the MAC Tournament.
“Of course you’re going to have (a lack of enthusiasm),” Taylor said. “This isn’t the thing we wanted to do. But at the end of the day, we’re still going to play the game. I feel like we’re not going to have any hangover from the Akron game.”
Building on Taylor’s point, Ndour said that he and his teammates still have something to play for.
“This game is about keeping the program going,” Ndour said. “We’ve got some young guys who need to keep playing, and our seniors, too. We don’t want them to end their career on a losing game, so this is a chance for them to play their last games and have fun.”
Facing Ohio is a Cleveland State team that is familiar with MAC foes after faring 2-3 against five teams from the conference this season.
Although Ohio didn’t play the Vikings this season, Taylor said the way they play is similar to other teams in the MAC.
“They run some good stuff,” he said. “They run a similar offense to some teams in our league, so we’ve just got to guard that well and communicate, and we’ll see where the chips fall (Wednesday).”
ch203310@ohiou.edu
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