Nov. 28, 2006
Box Score
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Senior forward Sonny Troutman (Indianapolis, Ind.) scored a career-high 29 points, but it was not enough to prevent Ohio's first loss of the season as the Bobcats fell to Samford 80-66 Tuesday at Seibert Hall.
Troutman eclipsed his previous career high of 28 points, which he also posted against Samford last February. Troutman was 10-of-17 from the floor Tuesday and 7-of-8 from the free-throw line. He led the Bobcats (2-1) with three assists and five steals and also co-led the team with four rebounds. Junior guard Bubba Walther (Cincinnati, Ohio) scored 17 points in his Bobcat debut after transferring from Akron last season. Walther scored 13 of his 17 points in the second half and was 5-of-11 from beyond the three-point arc while tying for the team-lead with four rebounds. Junior Leon Williams (Baltimore, Md.) contributed 10 points in the loss. The Bobcats finished 25-of-56 (44.6-percent) from the floor on the day, including 7-of-18 from three-point land and 9-of-12 from the charity stripe.
Jerry Smith led the Bulldogs (2-3) to the win with a career-best 26 points on 7-of-9 shooting. Smith was 4-of-5 from three-point range. Randall Gulina added 18 points in the win while Curtis West and Travis Peterson also scored in double-figures with 16 and 14 points, respectively. Samford was lights-out from the floor as the team was 23-of-36 (63.9-percent) on the day. The Bulldogs were 9-of-17 from downtown and 25-of-33 from the free-throw line.
Neither team was able to do much early as Ohio held a 4-2 lead with more than four minutes gone by in the first half. The Bobcats hit just four of their first 15 shots from the floor en route to a season-low 17 points at halftime. While Ohio was ice cold from the floor, the Bulldogs lit it up after a slow start as they converted on eight of their first 15 shots. Samford jumped out to a 31-10 lead due in part to a Bobcat scoreless streak that stretched nearly eight full minutes. During that time, the Bulldogs were able to score 15 unanswered points, highlighting a 26-4 run. Ohio finished the half with a 7-2 run, capped off by a Walther trey at the buzzer, but the Bulldogs took a 16-point lead into the half with a 33-17 score at the break.
Troutman led all Bobcats with six points in the first half as Ohio shot just 6-of-24 (25-percent) from the floor and 1-of-6 from behind the three-point line. Samford converted on 11-of-20 (55-percent) in the half, including 5-of-11 from downtown. Smith led all scorers with 12 points at the break.
Ohio started the second half determined to get back in the contest. After a lay-up by Smith extended the Samford lead to 35-17, the Bobcats used a 13-2 run to open the half and pull within seven points at 37-30. Samford fired right back with a 14-5 run of its own to regain a 16-point advantage at 51-35. Ohio cut the lead to 12 points but Smith put the dagger in the heart of the Bobcats with a three-point shot to give Samford a 65-50 lead with less than five minutes to play. Ohio pulled within nine points on two different occasions but it was as close as the Bobcats would get in the loss.
The Bobcats look to get back in the win column this Saturday when they return home for a non-conference match up against Marshall. Tip-off is slated for 2:00 p.m. at the Convocation Center.
