By Lamont Burroughs
2 25 2025
OHIO GAME NOTES
https://ohiobobcats.com/documents/2025/2/24/022525_Ohio_WMU_Notes.pdf
WESTERN MICHIGAN GAME NOTES
https://ohiobobcats.com/documents/2025/2/24/WMU_MBB_Game_Notes_vs_Ohio_022525.pdf
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ATHENS, Ohio — The Ohio men’s basketball team (15-12, 9-5 MAC) is back on the road on Tuesday, Feb. 25 when the Bobcats head to Kalamazoo, Mich. to take on Western Michigan. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET inside University Arena. The game can be seen on ESPN+ where Evan Stockton, Rob Murphy and Jordan Lass will have the call.
The Bobcats’ matchup can also be heard on the Ohio Sports Network from Learfield, presented by Holzer Health System. Jason Toy begins his first season on the mic for 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 net- work’s flagship.
STORYLINES
• This is the 143rd all-time meeting between Ohio and Western Michigan.
• Ohio leads the all-time series, 75-67.
• Ohio and WMU met on Feb. 4, with Ohio winning, 94-69
• Ohio and WMU met twice last season. The first time with the Broncos winning, 81-79 in Kalamazoo, before the Bobcats defeated WMU, 82-55 in the MAC Quarterfinals in Cleveland.
• Ohio is 13-9 against WMU since 2009-10, while the Bobcats are 6-2 against WMU under Jeff Boals.
• The Bobcats have won seven out of the last eight matchups with the Broncos.
• Junior guard Jackson Paveletzke is 27 points away from 1,000 in his career.
• Graduate Student guard Shereef Mitchell is 66 points away from 1,000 for his career.
• The Bobcats win over Akron on Feb. 22 snapped the Zips 14-game winning streak, which at the time was the longest in the nation.
• On Feb. 18 against CMU, Jackson Paveletzke scored 22 points and had six rebounds, while AJ Brown added 20 points and seven rebounds, with Shereef Mitchell adding 18 points, eight rebounds and six assists.
• At Kent State on Feb. 14, graduate student guard Shereef Mitchell was stellar, leading the Bobcats with 25 points, going 9-of-14 from the field and hitting a career-high four three pointers.
• Against Toledo on Jan. 28, AJ Brown and Jackson Paveletzke both scored 22 points, with Brown recording a career-high with eight rebounds.
• Junior guard Jackson Paveletzke scored a career-high 28 points at EMU on Jan. 21.
• Graduate student guard Shereef Mitchell, in his first start since Nov. 9, scored a career-high 27 points on Jan. 17 at Akron.
• AJ Clayton scored his 1,000the career point on Jan. 11 against NIU.
• Senior forward AJ Clayton had a 31-point performance on Jan. 11 against NIU. Clayton hit a career-high nine threes in the victory.
• The Bobcats currently rank 159th in the Feb. 24 NET Rankings.
SCOUTING WESTERN MICHIGAN
Western Michigan enters the matchup against Ohio with a 9-18 overall record and a 6-8 mark in MAC play after falling to Central Michigan at home on Saturday.
WMU averages 72.0 points a game, while shooting .424 from the field, .279 from three and .674 from the line, while opponents are averaging 76.9 points per game, while shooting .473 from the field, .353 from three and .695 from the line.
WMU averages 38.1 rebounds, 12.4 assists, 6.9 steals and 2.3 blocks a game, while forcing 11.7 turnovers a game. Meanwhile, WMU opponents average 34.4 rebounds, 15.7 assists, 5.7 steals and 4.7 blocks a game, while forcing the Broncos to turn the ball over an average of 11.1 times a contest.
Individually, Chansey Willis, Jr. lead the Broncos in scoring with 16.0 points a game, while averaging 4.4 rebounds and 5.5 assists. He also shoots .421 from the field, .301 from three and .707 from the line. Markhi Strickland adds 11.7 points and a .496 field goal percentage, while JaVaughn Hannah averages 12.3 points a game, while shooting g.426 from the field. Owen Lobsinger averages 9.4 points and a team-leading 6.8 rebounds a contest.
SCOUTING OHIO
Ohio is currently 15-12 overall and 9-5 in MAC play after defeating Akron, 84-67 Saturday night inside the Convocation Center.
Ohio is averaging 80.0 points per game, while shooting .471 from the field, .357 from three and .767 from the line, while opponents are averaging 75.3 points per game, while shooting .450 from the field, .376 from three and .686 from the line.
Ohio is averaging 33.6 rebounds, 14.3 assists, 3.2 blocks and 7.1 steals per game, while forcing 12.9 turnovers a contest. Meanwhile, opponents are averaging 35.4 rebounds, 13.1 assists, 2.9 blocks and 6.7 steals per game, while forcing Ohio to turn the ball over 11.0 times a game.
Individually, AJ Clayton averages 14.5 points and 5.5 rebounds a game, while shooting .461 from the field, .461 from three and .826 from the line. AJ Brown averages 13.3 points a game, while shooting .475 from the field, .380 from three and .851 from the line, while Jackson Paveletzke adds 13.5 points, 4.9 assists and 4.3 rebounds per game, while shooting .510 from the field. Shereef Mitchell adds 12.5 points, while shooting .461 from the field and .429 from three,while Elmore James averages 7.4 points, while shooting .380 from the field.
ALL TIME VS. WESTERN MICHIGAN
This is the 143rd all-time meeting between Ohio and Western Michigan.
Ohio leads the all-time series, 75-67.
Ohio and WMU met on Feb. 4, with Ohio winning, 94-69.
Ohio and WMU met twice last season. The first time with the Bron- cos winning, 81-79 in Kalamazoo, before the Bobcats defeated WMU, 82-55 in the MAC Quarterfinals in Cleveland.
Ohio is 13-9 against WMU since 2009-10, while the Bobcats are 6-2 against WMU under Jeff Boals.
The Bobcats have won seven out of the last eight matchups with the Broncos.
REEF AND PAV HUNT FOR 1,000
Junior guard Jackson Paveletzke is currently 27 points away from 1,000 for his career, sitting at 973 entering Tuesday’s matchup.
Graduate student guard Shereef Mitchell is currently 66 points away from 1,000, currently sitting at 934.
OHIO IN NET
The Bobcats currently rank 159th in the Feb. 24 NET Rankings.
Ohio is the fourth-highest MAC team behind Kent State, Akron, and Miami.
OHIO IN NCAA
Currently Ohio ranks 104th in the nation in forced turnovers per game. The Bobcats are also 12th in fastbreak points and 57th in field goal percentage.
Ohio also ranks 54th in effective field goal percentage, 46th in scoring offense, 38th in free throw percentage and 88th in free throws made per game.
Ohio also ranks 72nd in turnover margin, 77th in three-pointers per game and 84th in three-point percentage.
Meanwhile, Jackson Paveletzke ranks 56th in assists per game and 60th in assists.
AJ Brown ranks 80th in free throws percentage.
AJ Clayton ranks 103rd in blocks and 65th in blocks per game.
BOBCATS IN THE MAC
Jackson Paveletzke is third in assists and second in assist/turnover ratio. He is also ninth in field goal percentage.
AJ Brown ranks fifth in free throw percentage.
AJ Clayton is first in blocks, sixth in three-point field goals per game and 12th in scoring and eighth in free throw percentage.
STREAK SNAPPED
On Feb. 22 the Bobcats defeated Akron, 84-67 in the Convo. The win handed Akron it’s first conference loss and snapped the nation’s longest win streak at 14 games.
In the game, Jackson Paveletzke led all scorers with 21 points, while AJ Clayton added 18 points and eight rebounds, while AJ Brown scored 16 points.
UP NEXT
Ohio is back in Athens on Saturday, March 1 when Ohio hosts Miami. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. ET inside the Convocation Center and can be seen on ESPN+.
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