OHIO GAME NOTES

https://ohiobobcats.com/documents/2023/2/17/21823_Ohio_CMU_Notes.pdf

CENTRAL MICHIGAN GAME NOTES

https://ohiobobcats.com/documents/2023/2/17/Game_27_Notes_Ohio_021823.pdf

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https://thevarsitynetwork.com/audioapplink/source/oas-1965/content/ohiouni:allaccess-Live-144

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ATHENS, Ohio — The Ohio men’s basketball team (15-11, 7-6 MAC) returns to action on Saturday, Feb. 18 when it heads to Mount Pleasant,  Mich. to take on Central Michigan (10-16, 5-8 MAC). Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. inside McGurik Arena. The Bobcats matchup will be seen on ESPN3. 

The Bobcats’ matchup can also be heard on the Ohio Sports Network from Learfield. Russ Eisenstein returns for his 15th season as the “Voice of the Bobcats” and will be joined by Ohio alum Rob Cornlius, who has been a part of the broadcasts for two decades. WXTQ (Power 105) in Athens returns as the 11-station network’s flagship.  

STORYLINES
• Ohio is coming off an 85-61 win over Buffalo on Tuesday. 
• This is the 85th all-time meeting between Ohio and Central Michigan.
• Ohio leads the all-time series, 51-33. 
• Ohio and CMU met earlier this season, with Ohio winning, 96-68 on Jan. 21 in Athens. 
• The Bobcats and CMU met twice last season, with Ohio winning both matchups. 
• The Bobcats took the first game, 81-72 at CMU, and then took game two, 76-50 in Athens.
• Ohio is 10-7 against CMU since 2009-10, while the Bobcats are 6-0 against CMU under Jeff Boals.
• Ohio has registered an impressive 552-179 (.756) all-time record at the Co1vocation Center, which opened in 1968.
• Ohio is 12-1 in the Convo this season.
• Last season Ohio finished 15-2 in the Convo. 
• Dwight Wilson III is currently five rebounds away from 1,000 for his career. He currently sits at 995. 
• It would make him the fourth Bobcat in program history to record 1,000 career rebounds and the fourth to have at least 1,000 points and a 1,000 rebounds. 
• Ohio is ranked 136th in the latest NET Rankings, with CMU ranked 304.
• In the NCAA, Ohio ranks 34th in total rebounds per game, 77th in defensive rebounds per game and 43rd in offensive rebounds per 42nd.
• Ohio also ranks 43rd in three point percentage, 59th in three pointers made and 31st in scoring offense. The Bobcats also rank 47th in bench points per game. 
• Dwight Wilson III is 13th in the NCAA in field goal percentage, 13th in offensive rebounds per game and 22nd in rebounds per game. He also ranks 38th in double doubles and 34th in total rebounds. 
• 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.

SCOUTING CENTRAL MICHIGAN
CMU enters the matchup with Ohio with a 10-16 record and a 5-8 mark in MAC play and is coming off a 77-74 win against Bowling Green on Tuesday. 

Overall, CMU averages 66.7 points a game, while shooting .421 from the field, .301 from three and .683 from the line. CMU also averages 36.0 rebounds a game, 11.2 assists and 6.0 steals a game. CMU also forces 13.8 turnovers a game. 

Meanwhile, Opponents average 71.5 points and 36.0 rebounds a game. Opponents also shoot .430 from the field, .326 from three and .662 from the line. Opponents also dish out 12.4 assists and grab 8.1 steals a game, while also forcing 15.7 turnovers a game. 

Individually, Jesse Zarzuela averages 16.3 points a game, while shooting .399 from the field, .356 from three and .828 from the line, while Bruan Taylor adds 14.8 points and 6.3 rebounds a game. Taylor also shoots .428 from the field. Reggie Bass adds 10.3 points and 3.3 assists a game. 

SCOUTING OHIO
Ohio enters the matchup with CMU with a 15-11 record and a 7-6 mark in MAC play after defeating Buffalo, 85-61 Tuesday night in Athens. 

As a team, Ohio is averaging 78.8 points and 38.2 rebounds a game, while opponents average 73.4 points and 34.7 rebounds a game. The Bobcats are also shooting .463 from the field, .370 from three and .728 from the line. Ohio also adds 13.0 assists, 6.2 steals and force 12.0 turnovers a game.

Opponents are shooting .439 from the field, .352 from three and .671 from the line, while dishing out 12.6 assists, 6.2 steals and 11.4 turnovers a game. 

Individually, Dwight Wilson III leads Ohio with 15.9 points a game, while shooting .633 from the field, while also averaging 9.5 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. CMU
This is the 85th all-time meeting between Ohio and Central Michigan.

Ohio leads the all-time series, 51-33. 

Ohio and CMU met earlier this season, with Ohio winning, 96-68 on Jan. 21 in Athens. 

The Bobcats and CMU met twice last season, with Ohio winning both matchups. 

The Bobcats took the first game, 81-72 at CMU, and then took game two, 76-50 in Athens.

Ohio is 10-7 against CMU since 2009-10, while the Bobcats are 6-0 against CMU under Jeff Boals.

LAST TIME AGAINST CMU
Ohio and CMU met on Jan. 21, 2023 in Athens, with Ohio defeating Central Michigan, 96-68 in the Convo. 

Miles Brown led with his career-high 27 points, going 9-of-12 from the field, while hitting a career-high six threes. He also grabbed five rebounds and was 3-of-4 from the line. Graduate student forward Dwight Wilson III (Tallahassee, Fla.) added 12 points and eight rebounds, followed by junior guard Jaylin Hunter (Manchester, Conn.) with 12 points. Freshman guard AJ Brown (Orlando, Fla.) had a bounce back game with 11 points and four rebounds. 

Overall, Ohio shot 52 percent from the field, went 15-of-32 from three and was 15-of-21 from the line, while CMU shot 44 percent from the field, 28 percent from three and was 17-of-25 from the line, Ohio out-rebounded CMU,38-32, while the Bobcats dished out 15 assists to their eight. Ohio also forced 15 CMU turnovers and scored 26 points off them. 

For CMU, Brian Taylor led with 27 points and 11 rebounds, followed by Markus Harding with 16 points. 

LAST TIME OUT
Ohio is coming off a commanding 85-61 win over Buffalo Tuesday night in Athens. 

Overall, Ohio shot 46.9 percent from the field, 36.8 percent from three and were 18-of-25 from the line, while Buffalo shot 34.4 percent from the field, 12 percent from three and were 14-of-19 from the line. Ohio outrebounded the Bulls, 46-37, while Ohio forced 12 turnovers, scoring 17 points off them. Ohio also dished out 12 assists to Buffalo’s four and grabbed eight steals to their five. 

Individually, freshman guard Elmore James (Cleveland, Ohio) scored 15 points, going 6-of-10 from the field and 2-of-4 from three, while graduate student Dwight Wilson III (Tallahassee, Fla.) added 15 points and eight rebounds. Junior guard Jaylin Hunter (Manchester, Conn.) added 14 points, four rebounds and four assists, while senior guards DeVon Baker (Dayton, Ohio) and Miles Brown (Rochester, N.Y.) both added 11 points for the Bobcats.

For Buffalo, Curtis Jones and Jonnivius Smith led with 14 points each, while Isaiah Adams added 10 points for the Bulls.

DJ AND 1,000 REBOUNDS
Dwight Wilson III is currently five rebounds away from 1,000 for his career. He currently sits at 995. 

It would make him the fourth Bobcat in program history to record 1,000 career rebounds and the fourth to have at least 1,000 points and a 1,000 rebounds. 

OHIO IN NET
Ohio is ranked 136th in the latest NET Rankings, with CMU ranked 304.

OHIO IN NCAA
In the NCAA, Ohio ranks 34th in total rebounds per game, 77th in defensive rebounds per game and 43rd in offensive rebounds per 42nd.

Ohio also ranks 43rd in three point percentage, 59th in three pointers made and 31st in scoring offense. The Bobcats also rank 47th in bench points per game. 

Dwight Wilson III is 13th in the NCAA in field goal percentage, 13th in offensive rebounds per game and 22nd in rebounds per game. He also ranks 38th in double doubles and 34th in total rebounds. 

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. 

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 .643 field goal percentage, which will cement his as Ohio’s all-time leader in field goal percentage. 

He is currently five rebounds away from 1,000 for his career. He currently sits at 995. 

It would make him the fourth Bobcat in program history to record 1,000 career rebounds and the fourth to have at least 1,000 points and a 1,000 rebounds.

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 9.9 points a game and is shooting .423 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. 17, 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 .441 from three, .450 from the field and .746 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 9.5 rebounds a game, while shooting .633 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. 

Roderick returned to the starting lineup during the second week of MAC play. 

This season, Roderick averages 5.2 points, while shooting .374 from the field and .406 from three, while also recording a .710 shooting percentage from the line in 18.8 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.

James was stellar on Feb. 14 against Buffalo, leading the Bobcats with 15 points. 

So far this season, James is averaging 6.4 points and is shooting .528 in 13.9 minutes off the bench. 

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 was stellar on Feb. 14 against Buffalo, scoring 11 points in 18 minutes on the floor. 

Baker has continued to make the most of his minutes this season, averaging 6.5 points, while shooting .359 from the field. 

UP NEXT
Up next, Ohio is back in Athens on Tuesday Feb. 21 to host NIU. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. inside the Convo and can be seen on ESPN+. 

COURTESY OHIO ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS