Every starter on the Ohio Bobcats men's basketball team scored in double figures Saturday afternoon against the visiting Buffalo Bulls.
But it was a substitute that sparked them to victory.
True freshman D.J. Cooper, who came into Saturday's game as the only Ohio player to have started every game this season, arrived at the Convocation Center in Athens, Ohio just minutes before tip-off; the young guard had been home in Chicago to attend his grandmother's funeral. On an emotional day, Cooper came off the bench, hit his first three shots and finished the game with nine points, 11 assists, seven steals and six rebounds.
Cooper's energetic play was too much for Buffalo (10-6, 3-2 Mid-American Conference) as Ohio (10-9, 1-4 MAC) cruised to a commanding 99-77 victory. Ohio snapped a four-game losing streak and picked up its first in-conference win of the season.
The Bobcats took the lead early and never looked back. After leading by 16 at the half, Ohio's hot shooting continued as the team pulled away from Buffalo to earn a much-needed win.
On the other side, Buffalo has now dropped two MAC road games in a row. As of late, the team's defense has allowed its opponents to shoot high percentages from the field.
'We're going to have to try to figure out [what we're doing wrong defensively] and we're going to have to have figure it out quickly,' said head coach Reggie Witherspoon. 'We haven't had enough energy and we haven't had enough anticipation to get the stops we need. We've had two opponents now in a row who have shot over 50 percent.'
Last Wednesday, the Kent State Golden Flashes nailed 74.1 percent of their shots as they beat the Bulls by 35 points. On Saturday, Buffalo watched the Ohio Bobcats shoot 51.5 percent (34-of-66) from the field and 50 percent (11-of-22) from 3-point land as the team fell by 22 points.
In both contests, they were outrebounded 43-to-29 and 31-to-29, respectively.
'If you're not rebounding and playing defense, then you're not going to have a chance to win,' Witherspoon said. 'And we didn't do that today, and we didn't do that the last game. We've got to try to address some of the issues we've had in the last two games and then move on to the next.'
Aside from Cooper, the Bobcats received a standout performance from forward Tommy Freeman. The junior had a career day, shooting lights out from the field and finishing with a career-best 27 points. Freeman finished 7-for-10 shooting from the floor, 5-of-8 from 3-point range and 8-of-9 shooting from the free throw line.
Ohio was on fire all game long as the team got looks from all over the floor throughout the game. Anytime the Bulls looked like they were closing the gap, Ohio came up with the big shot.
'The got a chance to choose what [shots] they wanted,' Witherspoon said. 'They got to the basket and they made threes. If they were a hot 3-point shooting team and that's all, then we would be fine. But they scored in transition, they scored on dribble penetration and they shot well from three.'
Three Bulls guards had strong scoring nights. Senior guard John Boyer had a career-high 20 points to go along with six rebounds and four assists.
Senior guards Rodney Pierce and Sean Smiley also finished with double-digit scoring totals with 17 and 18 points, respectively. Pierce added seven rebounds and four assists and Smiley continues to be a force off the bench, as he is the third leading scorer on the team with 8.2 points per game.
Despite strong play at the guard position, Witherspoon knows that if Buffalo is going to win games this season, it needs to have a full effort both offensively and defensively.
'We're not being aggressive enough. We're not being tough enough. We're not getting that kind of display of grit or determination that we need,' he said.
The Bulls continue conference play Thursday when they began their slate against Western Division opponent Ball State Cardinals (8-8, 2-2 MAC). Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. at Alumni Arena.
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