By Stretch Jenkinson
2/16/2024
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TOLEDO, Ohio – The Ohio men’s basketball team (13-12, 7-5 MAC) returned to action Friday night (Feb. 16), falling to Toledo (16-9, 10-2 MAC), 85-83, in a back-and-forth affair inside Savage Arena.
Overall, Ohio shot 47 percent from the field, 48 percent from three and were 17-of-22 from the line, while Toledo shot 48 percent from the field, 47 percent from three and 81 percent from the line. Toledo out-rebounded Ohio 40-29, while the Bobcats dished out 18 assists and had five blocks, while forcing nine Toledo turnovers.
Individually, junior forward AJ Clayton (Roseville, Ohio) led Ohio with 22 points, going 7-of-13 from the field, 5-of-8 from three and 3-of-4 from the line, while also grabbing five assists. Senior guard Jaylin Hunter (Manchester, Conn.) added 16 points, five rebounds and six assists, while fifth year guard Miles Brown (Rochester, N.Y.) added 12 points and going 7-of-9 from the line. Sophomore guard Elmore James (Cleveland, Ohio) added nine points, while sophomore Aidan Hadaway (Lafayette, Ga.) scored nine points and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.
Toledo won the tip and got on the board first, however Hadaway matched it with his own layup to tie the game moments later. After Toledo took a 4-2 lead, Ohio went on a 10- run with threes from Clayton and Hunter to give the Bobcats an early 12-4 lead going into the first media timeout. After a three from Hadaway increased the Bobcats’ lead, Toledo stopped the run with a three of their own to cut the Ohio lead to 15-7 with 13:35 to go.
After Toledo cut the Ohio lead to seven with 9:36 to go, free throws from James gave Ohio the nine-point lead. After back-to-back threes from sophomore guard Ajay Sheldon (Dublin, Ohio) and Clayton increased the lead to 30-17 with 6:57 to go in the half, a four-point run from the Rockets cut the Ohio lead to 30-23 with 5:24 left in the half. Out of the timeout, a three from Hunter put Ohio back up 10. Threes continued to rain for the Bobcats, with Brown picking up one and Hunter hitting two more, giving the Bobcats a 44-32 lead going into the final media timeout of the half.
Out of the timeout, Toledo would go on a 7-0 run to cut the Ohio lead to 44-39 going into the half.
At the half, Ohio shot 57 percent from the field, 9-of-14 from three and were 3-of-4 from the line, while Toledo shot 52 percent from the field, 4-of-8 from three and were 1-of-1 from the line. Toledo out-rebounded Ohio 18-11 with eight offensive rebounds to the Bobcats’ two. Ohio also dished out 10 assists and had five steals, forcing seven Toledo turnovers.
Hunter led Ohio in the first half with 12 points, going 4-for-4 from three. Clayton added eight points, as did Brown, while Hadaway scored five points, grabbed four rebounds and dished out four assists.
Despite a three from Clayton to start off the half, Toledo cut the Ohio lead to one with 15:53 remaining in the game. After a technical foul was called on the Ohio bench, Toledo took a one-point lead. The two teams traded baskets before Toledo took a three-point lead. A three-point play from James put Ohio back up two, however a three from Toledo moments later, put the Rockets back up one going into the under-12 media timeout.
After Toledo went up six with 8:59 to go, Ohio came out of the timeout with back-to-back layups, cutting the Toledo lead to 66-64 at the under-eight media timeout. After a four-point play from Clayton cut the Ohio deficit to one, a layup from Toledo put the Rockets back up three going into the final media timeout.
Out of the timeout, a three from Clayton tied the game at 74-74 with under three minutes to go. Free throws from Brown put Ohio up two, however Toledo responded with a jumper to knot the game at 76-76. After Toledo hit a three with under a minute to go, Hadaway hit two free throws to cut the deficit to one with 35.4 seconds to go. Down the stretch, the two teams traded free throws, with Toledo taking a three-point lead with eight seconds to go, giving Ohio the ball back. Ohio was able to cut the deficit to two, however the Bobcats were unable to capitalize on the final tip in layup, falling to the Rockets, 85-83.
For Toledo, Dante Maddox, Jr. led with 21 points and six assists, while Ra’Heim Moss added 16 points and eight rebounds and Javan Simmons had a game-high 16 rebounds.
Up next, the Bobcats return to Athens for the first time in 17 days on Tuesday, Feb. 20 when Ohio hosts Kent State. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. inside the Convocation Center and can be seen on ESPN+.
#OUohyeah
OHIO BOBCATS GAME PREVIEW
OHIO GAME NOTES
https://ohiobobcats.com/documents/2024/2/13/21624_Ohio_Toledo_Notes.pdf
TOLEDO GAME NOTES
https://utrockets.com/documents/2024/2/15/2023-24_MBB_Game_Notes-Game_25-Ohio.pdf
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ATHENS, Ohio — The Ohio men’s basketball team (13-11, 7-4 MAC) is back in action on Friday, Feb. 16 when Ohio heads to Toledo, Ohio to take on Toledo (15-9, 9-2 MAC). Tip-off is set for 9 p.m. inside Savage Arena. The game can be seen nationally on ESPNU where Noah Reed and Tim McCormick will have the call.
The Bobcats’ matchup can also be heard on the Ohio Sports Network from Learfield. Russ Eisenstein returns for his 16th season as the “Voice of the Bobcats” and will be joined by Ohio alum Rob Cornelius, 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
• This is the 138th all-time meeting between Ohio and Toledo.
• Ohio leads the all-time series, 70-67.
• Ohio and Toledo met in the MAC opener on Jan. 2, with Ohio falling to the Rockets, 86-77, in Athens.
• Ohio and the Rocket met on twice last season, once on the road and against in the MAC Semifinals, with the Bobcats dropping both contests.
• Ohio is 8-14 against Toledo since 2010-11, while the Bobcats are 1-7 against the Rockets under Jeff Boals.
• Ohio has not defeated Toledo in the regular season since Jan. 26, 2016 in Toledo.
• Ohio is ranked 170th in the latest NET Ranking as of Feb. 13.
• Ohio is ranked 24th in the nation in turnover margin and are 45th in assist/turnover ratio and 90th in turnovers forced per game.
• The Bobcats are also 67th in the country in scoring offense and 45th in three-pointers per game.
• Individually, AJ Clayton is 55th in the NCAA in blocks per game and 54th in total blocks.
• Jaylin Hunter ranks 48th in assists per game, 47th in total assists and 84th in assist/TO ratio.
• Jaylin Hunter was named the MAC Co-Player of the week on Feb. 12 for his performance the week of Feb. 5.
• Sophomore Ajay Sheldon scored a new career-high 17 points and hit five threes at Arkansas State on Feb. 10.
• Jaylin Hunter recorded a career-high 32 points in Ohio’s 84-79 overtime win at Ball State on Tuesday.
• Aidan Hadaway recorded his first career double double on Feb. 6 at Ball State, scoring 14 points and grabbing 10 rebounds.
SCOUTING TOLEDO
Toledo is 15-9 overall and 9-2 in MAC play, and is coming off a 109-104 loss at App State on Feb. 10.
Overall, Toledo averages 80.7 points a game, while shooting .481 from the field, .372 from three and .760 from the line. Toledo also averages 33.3 rebounds a game, 13.2 assists and 7.5 steals a game. Toledo also forces 13.4 turnovers a game.
Meanwhile, Opponents average 77.4 points and 33.3 rebounds a game. Opponents also shoot .492 from the field, .346 from three and .720 from the line. Opponents also dish out 13.9 assists and grab 6.2 steals a game, while also forcing 10.8 turnovers a game.
Individually, Ra’Heim Moss averages 16.5 points a game, while also grabbing 5.6 rebounds and dishing out 4.8 assists a game. He also shoots .472 from the field and .748 from the line. Dante Maddox, Jr. adds 15.7 points, while Tyler Cochran averages 13.5 points and 6.7 rebounds a game.
SCOUTING OHIO
Ohio enters the matchup with Toledo with a 13-11 overall record and a 7-4 mark in MAC play and are coming off a 100-87 loss at Arkansas State on Feb. 10 in Jonesboro.
Overall, Ohio is averaging 78.8 points per game, while shooting .462 from the field, .360 from three and 72.0 percent from the line. The Bobcats also add 35.5 rebounds, 14.1 assists and 6.5 steals per game, while forcing opponents to turn the ball over 13.2 times a game.
Meanwhile, Opponents are averaging 72.4 points a game, while shooting .433 from the field, .335 from three and .706 from the line. They also average 36.1 rebounds, 13.2 assists, 4.9 steals and force the Bobcats to turn the ball over an average of 9.8 times a game.
Individually, Jaylin Hunter leads Ohio with 14.8 points per game, while shooting .436 from the field and averaging 4.5 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game. Shereef Mitchell adds 13.3 points a game, while shooting 49.4 percent from the field, while AJ Clayton averages 11.8 points and 4.5 rebounds a game, while shooting .521 from the field and .405 from three.
ALL TIME VS. TOLEDO
This is the 138th all-time meeting between Ohio and Toledo.
Ohio leads the all-time series, 70-67.
Ohio and Toledo met in the MAC opener on Jan. 2, with Ohio falling to the Rockets, 86-77, in Athens.
Ohio and the Rocket met on twice last season, once on the road and against in the MAC Semifinals, with the Bobcats dropping both contests.
Ohio is 8-14 against Toledo since 2010-11, while the Bobcats are 1-7 against the Rockets under Jeff Boals.
Ohio has not defeated Toledo in the regular season since Jan. 26, 2016 in Toledo.
LAST TIME VS. TOLEDO
Ohio and Toledo met in the MAC opener on Jan. 2, with Ohio falling to the Rockets, 86-77, in Athens.
Ohio struggled to get points in the paint during Toledo’s run, but Aidan Hadaway sparked the offense with a dunk to end Toledo’s run. After that, Ohio went on a 13-2 run powered by Elmore James and Shereef Mitchell.
As a team, Ohio shot 57% from the field and it eclipsed Toledo in 3-point shooting with a 8-for-25 performance. However Toledo finished with a better field goal percentage due to its 23-for-31 free throw shooting compared to Ohio’s 13-for-21.
OHIO IN NET
Ohio is ranked 170th in the latest NET Ranking as of Feb. 13.
OHIO IN NCAA
Ohio is ranked 24th in the nation in turnover margin and are 45th in assist/turnover ratio and 90th in turnovers forced per game.
The Bobcats are also 67th in the country in scoring offense and 45th in three-pointers per game.
Individually, AJ Clayton is 55th in the NCAA in blocks per game and 54th in total blocks.
Jaylin Hunter ranks 48th in assists per game, 47th in total assists and 84th in assist/TO ratio.
OHIO IN THE MAC
Jaylin Hunter is first in the MAC in assists, first in assist/TO ratio and sixth in steals.
AJ Clayton is second in the MAC in total blocks and second in blocks per game. He is also fifth in field goal percentage and eighth in 3-point field goal percentage.
Aidan Hadaway is ranked sixth in field goal percentage.
Ajay Sheldon is first in the MAC in three-point shooting percentage.
MAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Feb. 12
Jaylin Hunter was named the Mid-American Conference Men’s Basketball Co-Player of the Week for his performance the week of Feb. 5.
Hunter put together a stellar week for the Ohio men’s basketball team, leading the Bobcats to a 1-1 week. Overall, Hunter averaged 26.0 points and 4.5 rebounds a game. He also dished out an average of 6.5 assists per game and had 1.3 steals a game. He averaged .545 from the field, .455 from three and was 11-of-13 from the line.
In Ohio’s 84-79 overtime victory against Ball State on Tuesday in Muncie, Hunter scored a career-high 32 points, going 10-of-17 from the field, 2-of-6 from three and was 10-of-12 from the line. He also grabbed five rebounds, dished out five assists and had two steals in the thrilling victory.
Hunter then scored 20 points at Arkansas State on Feb. 10. Hunter went 8-of-16 from the field, 3-of-5 from three and was 1-for-1 from the line. He also grabbed four rebounds and dished out eight assists.
ANOTHER CAREER NIGHT FOR HUNTER
Jaylin Hunter scored a career-high 32 points on Feb. 6, in Ohio’s 84-79 thrilling overtime win over Ball State in Muncie.
Hunter went 10-of-17 from the field, 10-of-12 from the line and grabbed five rebounds and dished out five assists.
SHELLY HAS A DAY TIMES TWO
Sophomore Ajay Sheldon had a career day on Jan. 30 against Buffalo, scoring a career-high 15 points. Sheldon went 4-of-6 from the field, 2-of-4 from three and 5-of-5 from the line.
Sheldon then put up another stellar performance on Feb. 10 at Arkansas State, setting a new career-high with 17 points and hitting a career-high five made threes.
CAREER DAYS FOR HADAWAY
Sophomore Aidan Hadaway had a career night on Jan. 20 in Ohio’s win over EMU. Hadaway scored a career-high 20 points, while going 3-for-3 from three and 8-of-10 from the field.
Hadaway recorded his first career double double on Feb. 6 at Ball State, scoring 14 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in the win.
JAYLIN ON THE HUNT
Senior guard Jaylin Hunter is looking to make the most out of his final season.
In the season opener, Hunter was effective with the ball, dishing out four assists and going a perfect 8-for-8 from the line.
He then had a 13-point performance at Cleveland State on Nov. 11.
Hunter recorded his 1,000th career point on Nov. 18 against Detroit Mercy.
Hunter also recorded his first career double double in the Detroit Mercy game with the help of a career-high 10 rebounds and 14 points.
Hunter had a stellar Nassau Championship Nov. 24-26. On Against GW, Hunter scored a season-high 25 points, going 9-of-22 from the field , while grabbing six rebounds and dishing out five assists.
He added a 19 point performance on Nov. 25 against MTSU, before closing out the tournament with 21 points and eight rebounds against Brown.
Hunter added a solid game against Delaware on Dec. 2, scoring 15 points, while grabbing six rebounds and dishing out three assists in the win.
He followed that up with a 19-point and five-assist night on Dec. 9 against Marshall.
On Jan. 6 against NIU, Hunter scored 20 points, going 5-of-8 from the field, 2-of-2 from three and was a perfect 8-of-8 from the line. He also led Ohio with eight rebounds and six assists in the win.
Hunter rebounded from a rough couple games on Jan. 16 when he led the Bobcats with 19 points in their win over CMU. Hunter also dished out eight assists and grabbed five rebounds in the win.
Hunter followed by that performance with a 14-point performance in Ohio’s win over EMU, where he also added five rebounds and dished out five assists.
In Ohio’s win at Kent State on Jan. 26, Hunter scored a team-high 17 points, while grabbing five rebounds and dishing out five assists.
Hunter had a near triple double on Jan. 30 against Buffalo, scoring 10 points, grabbing nine rebounds and dishing out six assists in the win.
Hunter was stellar on Feb. 3 against Miami, scoring a game-high 22 points, while grabbing three rebounds, dishing out eight assists and hitting four threes.
Hunter scored a career-high 32 points on Feb. 6, in Ohio’s 84-79 thrilling overtime win over Ball State in Muncie.
He then added another 20-point performance on Feb. 10 at Arkansas State and was named the MAC Co-Player of the Week on Feb. 12.
Overall, this season Hunter is averaging 14.8 points a game and 5.0 assists per game.
REEF MAKES MOST OF NEW HOME
Graduate student guard Shereef Mitchell’s offensive power showed up at the Nassau Championship Nov. 24-26.
On Nov. 24 in a double OT loss to George Washington, Mitchell scored a career-high 23 points, going 8-of-15 form the field, 3-of7 from three and grabbed seven rebounds.
He then followed up that performance on Nov. 26 with a new career high against Brown, scoring 24 points, while going 7-of-9 from the field and 8-of-11 from the line in the victory.
Mitchell led Ohio on Dec. 6 against Youngstown State, scoring a team-high 17 points and dishing out a season-high four assists.
Mitchell had a solid game on Jan. 9 at Bowling Green, scoring 17 points, recording two blocks and grabbing four rebounds.
On Jan. 16 against CMU, Mitchell scored 13 points and grabbed six rebounds in the win.
He followed that up on Jan. 20 with a 14-point performance, going 6-of-9 from the field and grabbed five rebounds in Ohio’s win over EMU.
On Jan. 24 against Akron, Mitchell recorded a career-high seven rebounds. Mitchell followed that up with another solid game on Jan. 26 in the Bobcats’ win at Kent State, scoring 16 points, while grabbing four rebounds, dishing out five assists and grabbing four steals.
Mitchell added another strong game to his resume on Jan. 30 against Buffalo, scoring 15 points, grabbing five rebounds and dishing out three assists.
Mitchell put together a 16-point performance on Feb. 3 against Miami, while also grabbing six rebounds, dishing out four assists and going 3-for-3 from three.
So far this season, Mitchell is second on the Bobcats in scoring with 13.6 points and 4.0 rebounds a game, while shooting .494 from the field.
HADAWAY SEEING MORE TIME
Sophomore forward Aidan Hadaway has been seeing his minutes increase as the season has gone on.
On Nov. 25 against MTSU, Hadaway grabbed a season-high four rebounds in the win.
On Dec. 2 against Delaware, Hadaway put together 22 solid minutes on the court, scoring a season-high seven points, while grabbing a career-high seven rebounds in the win.
Hadaway continued his strong play on Dec. 6 against Delaware, scoring a career-high 14 points in 24 minutes.
Hadaway made his first career start on Dec. 18 against Defiance, scoring 11 points and going 5-for-5 from the field.
In his second career start against Austin Peay on Dec. 22, Hadaway grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds and dished out a career-high five assists.
Hadaway added another solid performance on his resume on Jan. 16 in Ohio’s win over CMU, scoring 11 points and grabbing five rebounds.
Hadaway had a career night on Jan. 20 in Ohio’s win over EMU. Hadaway scored a career-high 20 points, while going 3-for-3 from three and 8-of-10 from the field.
Hadaway recorded his first career double double on Feb. 6 at Ball State, scoring 14 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in the win.
As Hadaway continues to see more minutes on the floor, he currently averages 7.3 points and 4.3 rebounds, while shooting 51.4 percent from the field.
SHELLY GETTING MINUTES
Sophomore guard Ajay Sheldon is working to get more minutes in his second season in the Green and White.
Sheldon had a career-high seven points on Nov. 11 at Cleveland State, going 2-of-2 from three in 19 minutes.
Sheldon matched his career high on Nov. 25 against MSTU.
On Dec. 18 against Defiance, Sheldon scored seven points and dished out a career-high five rebounds in the win.
Sheldon scored a career-high 13 points against Toledo on Jan. 2, hitting a career-high four threes. He then added a 10-point performance on Jan. 9 at BGSU.
Sheldon put together a solid game at Kent State on Jan. 26, scoring 12 points and going 4-of-5 from three in 12 minutes on the court in Ohio’s win.
Sheldon had a career day on Jan. 30 against Buffalo, scoring a career-high 15 points. Sheldon went 4-of-6 from the field, 2-of-4 from three and 5-of-5 from the line.
Sheldon set a new career-high on Feb. 10 at Arkansas State, scoring 17 points and hitting a career-high five made three-pointers.
This season as Sheldon gets more playing time, he is averaging 6.0 points a game, while shooting a team-high 54.1 percent from the field and 53.2 percent from three.
UP NEXT
Up next, the Bobcats return to Athens for the first time in 17 days on Tuesday, Feb. 20 when Ohio hosts Akron. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. inside the Convocation Center and can be seen on ESPN+.
#OUohyeah
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