2/13/2023

OHIO BOBCATS GAME NOTES

https://ohiobobcats.com/documents/2023/2/13/21423_Ohio_Buffalo_Notes.pdf

BUFFALO BULLS GAME NOTES

https://ohiobobcats.com/documents/2023/2/13/22-23_gamenotes_ohio2.pdf

LISTEN

https://thevarsitynetwork.com/audioapplink/source/oas-1965/content/ohiouni:allaccess-Live-142

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ATHENS, Ohio — The Ohio men’s basketball team (14-11, 5-6 MAC) is back in Athens on Tuesday, Feb. 14 when they host Buffalo (12-13, 6-6 MAC). Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. inside the Convocation Center. The Bobcats matchup will be seen on ESPN+ where Russ Eisenstein and Rob Cornelius will have the call. 

The Bobcats’ matchup can also be heard on the Ohio Sports Network from Learfield with Marty Bannister on the call. WXTQ (Power 105) in Athens returns as the 11-station network’s flagship.  

STORYLINES
• Ohio is coming off a 90-81 win against Akron last Friday. 
• This is the 56th all-time meeting between Ohio and Buffalo.
• Ohio leads the all-time series, 35-20.
• The two teams met in the conference opener on Jan. 3, with Ohio falling, 75-72 in Buffalo. 
• The Bobcats and the Bulls meet one time last season, with Ohio defeating Buffalo, 74-53 in Buffalo.
• Ohio is 4-3 against Buffalo since Jeff Boals took over in 2019-20.
• Ohio has registered an impressive 550-179 (.756) all-time record at the Co1vocation Center, which opened in 1968.
• Ohio is 11-1 in the Convo this season.
• Last season Ohio finished 15-2 in the Convo. 
• Ohio is ranked 145th in the latest NET Rankings, with Buffalo ranked 179.
• In the NCAA, Ohio ranks 41st in total rebounds per game, 103rd in defensive rebounds per game and 43rd in offensive rebounds per game.
• Ohio also ranks 38th in three point percentage, 54th in three pointers made and 37th in scoring offense. The Bobcats also rank 48th in bench points per game. 
• Dwight Wilson III is 12th in the NCAA in field goal percentage, 13th in offensive rebounds per game and 21st in rebounds per game. He also ranks 35th in double doubles and 35th in total rebounds. 
• Jaylin Hunter ranks 97th in the NCAA in assist/turnover ratio.
• Dwight Wilson III leads the MAC in field goal percentage and is third in rebounding, while Miles Brown ranks third in the league in three-point field goal percentage. 
• Jaylin Hunter is third in the MAC in assist/turnover ratio. 
• The Bobcats picked up their first MAC road victory on Feb. 7 at NIU.
• Jaylin Hunter set a new career-high of 25 points against Akron on Feb. 10. 
• Jaylin Hunter was named the MAC Co-Player of the Week on Feb. 13 for his performance the previous week.  

SCOUTING BUFFALO
Buffalo enters the matchup with Ohio with a 12-13 record and a 6-6 mark in MAC play and is coming off an 72-65 loss against Kent State on Friday. 

Overall, Buffalo averages 79.6 points a game, while shooting .465 from the field, .336 from three and .694 from the line. Buffalo also averages 38.2 rebounds a game, 15.6 assists and 8.2 steals a game. Buffalo also forces 12.9 turnovers a game. 

Meanwhile, Opponents average 77.6 points and 35.2 rebounds a game. Opponents also shoot .444 from the field, .342 from three and .697 from the line. Opponents also dish out 14.6 assists and grab 6.8 steals a game, while also forcing 14.7 turnovers a game. 

Individually, Curtis Jones averages 15.6 points and 5.1 rebounds a game, while shooting .426 from the field. Zid Powell adds 13.0 points a game, while Isaiah Adams averages 11.2 points and 4.8 rebounds a game. 

SCOUTING OHIO
Ohio enters the matchup with Buffalo with a 14-11 record and a 6-6 mark in MAC play after defeating Akron, 90-81 Friday night in Athens. 

As a team, Ohio is averaging 78.6 points and 37.8 rebounds a game, while opponents average 73.9 points and 34.6 rebounds a game. The Bobcats are also shooting .443 from the field, .362 from three and .729 from the line. Ohio also adds 13.1 assists, 6.2 steals and force 11.5 turnovers a game.

Opponents are shooting .443 from the field, .362 from three and .668 from the line, while dishing out 12.9 assists, 6.2 steals and 12.0 turnovers a game. 

Individually, Dwight Wilson III leads Ohio with 15.9 points a game, while shooting .629 from the field, while also averaging 9.6 rebounds a game. Jaylin Hunter adds 12.4 points and 4.2 assists a game, while Miles Brown adds 10.8 points a game. 

ALL TIME VS. BUFFALO
This is the 56th all-time meeting between Ohio and Buffalo.

Ohio leads the all-time series, 35-20.

The two teams met in the conference opener on Jan. 3, with Ohio falling, 75-72 in Buffalo. 

The Bobcats and the Bulls meet one time last season, with Ohio defeating Buffalo, 74-53 in Buffalo.

Ohio is 4-3 against Buffalo since Jeff Boals took over in 2019-20.

LAST TIME AGAINST BUFFALO
Ohio and Buffalo met in the conference opener over six weeks ago, with Ohio falling 75-72 in Buffalo. 

Overall, Ohio shot 37.5 percent from the field, 33.3 percent from three and were 17-of-23 from the line, while Buffalo shot 37 percent from the field, 34.8 percent from three and were 13-of-25 from the line. Buffalo out-rebounded the Bobcats, 52-46, including 20 offensive rebounds. Buffalo dished out 15 assists to Ohio’s five, while the Bulls forced 14 turnovers.

Individually, Miles Brown led with 24 points and six rebounds, while going 7-of-16 from the field, 4-of-7 from three and was 6-of-6 from the line. Jaylin Hunter added 10 points, while Dwight Wilson III scored eight points and grabbed 10 rebounds. AJ Brown also scored eight points for Ohio. 

For Buffalo, four Bulls scored in double figures, with Curtis Jones scoring 20 points and grabbing nine rebounds. LaQuill Hardnett added 15 points and 16 rebounds, while Isaiah Adams scored 14 points, followed by Armoni Foster with 12. 

LAST TIME OUT
Overall, Ohio shot 48.4 percent from the field, 62.5 percent from three and were 20-of-23 from the line, while Akron shot 50.8 percent from the field, 47.8 percent from three and were 10-of-18 from the line. Ohio out-rebounded Akron, 33-32, while the Bobcats dished out 13 assists to Akron’s 11. Ohio also forced 13 turnovers, grabbed seven steals and scored 17 points off the turnovers. 

Individually, Hunter (Manchester, Conn.) led with 25 points, going 7-of-14 from the field, 4-of-7 from three and 7-of-9 from the line, while graduate student forward Dwight Wilson III (Tallahassee, Fla.) added 16 points and eight rebounds, while going 6-of-12 from the field and 4-of-4 from the line. Senior guard Miles Brown (Rochester, N.Y.) added 12 points, followed by senior guard DeVon Baker (Dayton, Ohio) and freshman guard Elmore James (Cleveland, Ohio) with 11 points each. Junior center Gabe Wiznitzer (Walhalla, S.C.) added four points and seven rebounds for the Bobcats. 

For Akron, Xavier Castaneda scored 34 points, followed by Enrique Freeman with 21 points and 10 rebounds.

OHIO IN NET
Ohio is ranked 145th in the latest NET Rankings, with Buffalo ranked 179.

OHIO IN NCAA
In the NCAA, Ohio ranks 41st in total rebounds per game, 103rd in defensive rebounds per game and 43rd in offensive rebounds per game.

Ohio also ranks 38th in three point percentage, 54th in three pointers made and 37th in scoring offense. The Bobcats also rank 48th in bench points per game. 

Dwight Wilson III is 12th in the NCAA in field goal percentage, 13th in offensive rebounds per game and 21st in rebounds per game. He also ranks 35th in double doubles and 35th in total rebounds. 

Jaylin Hunter ranks 97th in the NCAA in assist/turnover ratio.

MAC RANKINGS
Dwight Wilson III leads the MAC in field goal percentage and is third in rebounding, while Miles Brown ranks third in the league in three-point field goal percentage. 

Jaylin Hunter is third in the MAC in assist/turnover ratio.

PROTECT THIS HOUSE
Ohio has registered an impressive 551-179 (.756) all-time record at the Convocation Center, which opened in 1968.

Ohio is 11-1 in the Convo this season. 

Last season Ohio finished 15-2 in the Convo. 

DJ ALL-TIME MARKS
As Dwight Wilson III’s career begins to wind down, he is looking at cementing his mark in a number of spots in the Ohio record book. 

Currently, Wilson III has an Ohio career .645 field goal percentage, which will cement his as Ohio’s all-time leader in field goal percentage. 

MORE JAYLIN CAREER HIGHS
Jaylin Hunter set a new career-high of 25 points against Akron on Feb. 10. 

AJ BROWN MAKES A STATEMENT
Freshman guard AJ Brown showed the type of talent Ohio could see over the next four years against UC Clermont, where he scored a game-high 18 points, went 7-of-11 from the field and dished out four assists in the victory. 

As AJ Brown continues to see more minutes, he continues to get more comfortable, with a stellar game on Dec. 11 at Youngstown State where he scored 16 points, while going 6-of-8 from the field. 

He was also stellar off the bench against Florida, scoring a team-high 14 points in 24 minutes. 

Brown made his first career start on Dec. 17 against Stetson, scoring 13 points, grabbed four rebounds and drained three 3-pointers. 

On Dec. 21 at Delaware, Brown was efficient, scoring 14 points, going 5-of-9 from the field, 2-of-2 from three and grabbed a career-high five boards. 

AJ Brown had a bounce back game on Jan. 24 against WMU, scoring 16 points, going 6-of-10 from the field and 3-of-4 from the line, while also grabbing four rebounds. 

Brown built on that at Akron the following game, scoring 15 points. 

So far this season, Brown is averaging 10.2 points a game and is shooting .430 from the field. 

HUNTER FINDING A GROOVE
Junior guard Jaylin Hunter started to find his groove in the Green and White. 

On Dec. 11 at Youngstown State, Hunter led the Bobcats with 17 points, five rebounds, seven assists and three steals in the victory. 

Hunter led Ohio against Cleveland State, scoring 17 points, grabbing four rebounds and dishing out seven assists in the victory. 

Hunter is had a career-high 23-point performance against Ball State on Jan. 10. Hunter finished the game, 7-of-12 from the field and 4-of-5 from three, while also going 5-of-6 from the line. 

Hunter put together a solid game at Akron on Jan. 28, scoring a team-leading 16 points, while going 4-of-10 from three and dishing out five assists. 

Hunter was solid at EMU on Jan. 31, scoring 22 points, going 8-of-16 from the field and hitting a new career-high of five threes. 

Hunter tied his career-high on Feb. 4 against Miami, scoring 23 points, grabbed seven rebounds and dished out four assists in the win. 

Hunter was stellar on Feb. 7 at NIU, scoring 19 points, while grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out five assists 

Hunter registered a new career-high on Feb. 10 against Akron with 25 points. 

As of Feb. 13, Hunter averages 12.4 points and 4.2 assists a game. 

BROWN SETTING UP FOR CAREER YEAR
Senior guard Miles Brown is already on pace to set new marks in his fourth season in the Green and White. 

After a solid game at Belmont, Brown was clutch against Cleveland State, scoring 14 points and going a perfect 6-of-6 from the line in the victory. 

Brown was also solid against No. 20 Michigan, scoring 11 points and grabbing a season-hight nine rebounds. 

He was back in action during the Bobcat battle where he averaged 16.0 points and set and matched a career-high four made threes before being named the tournament MVP. 

Brown set another career-high on Jan. 3 at Buffalo, scoring a personal best 24 points. Brown went 7-of-16 from the field, 4-of-7 from three and was 6-of-6 from the line. 

Brown reset his career high on Jan. 21, scoring 27 points and hitting six made threes. 

Brown helped the Bobcats to victory Feb. 7 at NIU, scoring 16 points and grabbing seven rebounds in 32 minutes on the court.

Brown averages 10.8 points and 3.2 rebounds a game, while shooting .450 from three, .451 from the field and .750 from the line. 

WELCOME BACK DJ
In his return to the court after missing all of last season due to a knee injury, Dwight Wilson III put on a show. 

Wilson III finished the game with a game-high 20 points, going 8-of-10 from the field and 4of-4 from the line. He also grabbed eight rebounds in 24 minutes of action. 

He then put on a show at No. 20 Michigan, scoring 21 points and grabbing nine boards. 

Wilson III was the hero on Dec. 11 at YSU, hitting the buzzer beater to give Ohio the victory. In that game, he scored 10 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. 

Wilson III recorded another 20-point performance on Dec. 17 against Stetson, scoring 20 points, while going 8-of-9 from the field and 4-of-6 from the line. 

Wilson III was clutch in Ohio’s win at Delaware on Dec. 21, scoring 16 points and grabbing 13 rebounds. Wilson III added another double double on Dec. 30, scoring 12 points and grabbing 10 rebounds against Chicago State. 

Dwight Wilson III is coming off a stellar game at Bowling Green on Jan. 7, scoring 17 points and grabbing 17 rebounds – just one off his career high. He followed that up with a 22 point and 10 rebound performance against Ball State on Jan. 10. 

Wilson III added to his career achievement on Jan. 13, scoring a career-high 27 points against Kent State. Wilson III went 9-of-11 from the field and was 9-of-10 from the line. 

Wilson III continued to build on his career year on Tuesday, setting anew career-high with 31 points, while grabbing 11 rebounds. Wilson III went 13-of-16 from the field and 5-of-7 from the line in the victory. 

Wilson III added another double double to his career total at EMU on Jan. 31, scoring 23 points, while going 10-of-12 from the field and grabbing 12 rebounds. 

Wilson III was another force on Feb. 4 against Miami, scoring 21 points and grabbing nine rebounds. 

Wilson III has continued to dominate, averaging 15.9 points and 9.6 rebounds a game, while shooting .629 from the field. 

BROD’S NEW ROLE
After starting every game last season, senior Ben Roderick is fitting in with his new role off the bench. 

This season, Roderick averages 5.2 points, while shooting .369 from the field and .403 from three, while also recording a .786 shooting percentage from the line in just 18.7 minutes a game. 

QUIET YET MIGHTY 
Freshman guard Elmore James responded well in the Bobcats’ game against Cleveland State. 

James scored eight points, while going 3-of-4 from the field and hitting both of his free throws. James also added one steal and drew a foul in his nine minutes of action. 

James was stellar on Nov. 30 against UC Clermont, scoring 16 points and going 8-of-12 from the field and grabbed three rebounds in the win. 

 James put together a career-high 21 point performance in Jan. 17 at Toledo, going 8-of-10 from the field, 2-of-3 from three and 3-of-4 from the line. 

James made his first career start on Jan. 21 against CMU and has stayed in the starting lineup since. 

James was solid on Feb. 7 at NIU, scoring 13 points, while going 5-of-6 from the line

So far this season, James is averaging 6.2 points and is shooting .520 in 13.3 minutes off the bench. 

SLASH FITTING RIGHT IN
Sophomore AJ Clayton is taking advantage of his new roll. 

After grabbing a career-high nine rebounds at Belmont to open the season, Clayton added on, scoring a career-high 15 points at Detroit Mercy on Wednesday. 

Clayton was consistent again on Dec. 11 at YSU, scoring 10 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. 

Clayton scored a career-high 23 points on Dec. 21 at Delaware, and went 9-for-9 from the line in the victory. Clayton led Ohio against on Dec. 30, scoring 13 points and grabbing six rebounds against Chicago State. 

In his first game on the bench, Clayton recorded a career-high four made threes against Ball State on Jan. 10. 

So far this season, Clayton averages 8.2 points and 5.0 rebounds a game. 

BAKER STARTING TO COOK
Senior guard DeVon Baker has continued to get into the flow of the Green and White. 

After opening the season with a 16-point performance at Belmont, Baker seemed to get on track again at YSU on Dec. 11, scoring 15 points. 

Despite dropping out of the starting lineup, Baker was a playmaker against Stetson on Dec. 17, scoring 12 points, going 5-of-8 from the field, 1-of-1 from three in 18 minutes. 

Baker has continued to make the most of his minutes this season, averaging 6.3 points, while shooting .345 from the field. 

UP NEXT
Up next, the Bobcats are on the road on Saturday, Feb. 18 when they head to Mount Pleasant, Mich. to take on Central Michigan. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. inside McGurik Arena and can be seen on ESPN3. 

COURTESY OHIO ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS