ATHENS - For the second straight game, Ohio came back from a double-digit second half deficit, coming back from 18 down against Central Michigan for a 71-67 victory Wednesday night at The Convo.

The Bobcats trailed 48-30 with 14:40 remaining but outscored the Chippewas 41-19 the rest of the way.

Maurice Ndour paced Ohio (15-5, 5-2 Mid-American Conference) with 21 points and 11 rebounds, while Nick Kellogg managed 15 points despite a 1-of-8 3-point shooting night. Jon Smith had 10 points and nine boards.

Chris Fowler scored 19 points to lead Central Michigan (7-12, 0-7 MAC). Braylon Rayson scored 15 points, while John Simons and Austin Stewart added 11 and 10 points, respectively.

"It comes from believing in the system and believing in ourselves," Smith said. "Last year, we didn’t know how to finish, and this year, we’re starting to grasp how to do that a little bit better. We’re still working on how to put two halves together."

Ohio used a 21-3 run to tie the game at 51 on a Stevie Taylor steal and layup with eight minutes remaining.

Central Michigan bounced back and took a five-point lead before the Bobcats finally took the lead, 65-64, on a Taylor free throw with 3:25 remaining. Taylor hit a jumper at the 2:04 mark to put the Bobcats on top for good.

Smith hit one free throw to make it a three-point game with 54 seconds to go, and after Blake Hibbitts missed from beyond the arc, Simons missed a putback and Ohio closed out the victory with a Taylor free throw.

"One thing about this team is that if you let them back in the game, they’re going to win the game," Ohio coach Jim Christian said. "That’s all I can ask for. I’m not happy watching us continue to make mistakes that we know we’ve got to correct, but I am happy that our team has shown a lot of heart."

Treg Setty's layup with 4:33 left in the first half gave Ohio a 25-20 advantage, but Central Michigan carried momentum to close out the first half into the second half, outscoring the Bobcats 28-5 during a span of less than 10 minutes.

"I’m never going to apologize for winning, but we know we need to get better," Christian said.