INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Shots would not fall, and Ohio’s dance in the NCAA Tournament ended with a 72-58 loss to Creighton on Monday evening at Hinkle Fieldhouse.

The No. 13 seed Bobcats shot just 31.8% for the game, including 23.3% from long range, and scored a season low. The No. 5 seed Bluejays held Mid-American Conference Tournament MVP Jason Preston to just four points on 1-of-10 shooting, and they advance to the Sweet 16 to take on No. 1 seed and top-ranked Gonzaga.

Creighton used a 23-5 run to close the first half to build a 15-point halftime lead and Ohio could not recover, coming only as close as nine in the final minutes of the game.

All five Bluejays starters average double-figures, and all five reached that mark, led by Marcus... <Read More>

Ohio Bobcats Photo

Ben Vander Plas scored 17 points and spear-headed a game-changing second-half run, while Jason Preston off his abilities to the nation by nearly producing a triple-double as the Bobcats knocked off defending national champion Virginia 62-58 in the NCAA Tournament on Saturday night at Assembly Arena.

Beginning with a go-ahead 3-pointer, Vander Plas scored 10 straight Ohio points late in the second half. Preston finished with 11 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists in the school’s third straight opening round victory in the tournament. The Bobcats also pulled first-round upsets in 2010 and 2012.

"I'm just really, really proud of our guys," Igui coach Jeff Boals said. "There... <Read More>

MAC Photo

Ohio completed a dominant run through the Mid-American Conference tournament Saturday night with an 84-69 victory against Buffalo in the title game to clinch a spot in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2012.

As he does after every win, Boals, in just his second year as coach, led the Bobcats in a celebration dance, this time on the floor of Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. They trailed for less than three minutes in the three games of the tournament and ran out to a 20-point halftime lead against the Bulls, who got only as close as 10 points in the second half.

“When you recruit high character guys who love... <Read More>

CLEVELAND – Jason Preston and Ben Vander Plas combined for 53 points to help Ohio knock off Mid-American Conference regular season champion Toledo 87-80 in the semifinals of the conference tournament Friday evening at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

Preston scored 27 points with five assists and five rebounds, while Vander Plas had 26 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. Dwight Wilson III added a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds.

No. 5 seed Ohio (15-7) led by as many as 18 points with 8:33 remaining before MAC Player of the Year Marreon Jackson willed the Rockets (21-8) back into it late. He finished with 29 points. Setrick Millner Jr. added 26 points and nine boards.

No. 2 seed Buffao topped No. 3 Akron 81-74 in overtime in the... <Read More>

CLEVELAND – Questions surrounded both Ohio and Kent State regarding which players would be available in the quarterfinals of the Mid-American Conference men’s basketball tournament Thursday afternoon at Rocket Mortgage Field House.

It turned out the Golden Flashes were down two starters while the Bobcats were at nearly fully strength, and it showed in Ohio’s 85-63 rout.

Kent State played without All-MAC first-team forward Danny Pippen, who had missed the team’s final regular season game, for undisclosed reasons, and they also were without injured All-MAC third-team guard Michael Nuga.

Against the short-handed Golden Flashes, the Bobcats shot a sizzling 58.8%, including 68.2% in the first half. Jason Preston led the way with 19 points on... <Read More>