Nov. 3, 2007
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ATHENS, Ohio - Four Bobcats scored in double figures to lead Ohio in a 72-45 exhibition victory on Saturday night against Mercyhurst at the Convocation Center.
Ohio's guard tandem of Bert Whittington IV (Hankamer, Texas) and Bubba Walther (Cincinnati) each scored 15 points a piece while forwards Leon Williams (Baltimore, Md.) and Justin Orr (Cincinnati) each had 11 points in the win.
Whittington hit on 4-of-7 three points attempts to lead all shooters from outside and Jerome Tillman (Beavercreek) hauled in a game-high 10 rebounds.
The taller and more physical Bobcats outmuscled the Lakers around the rim, out rebounding the Division II Great Lakes Conference member 44-31. Ohio also recorded more assists (18) than turnovers (11) while Mercyhurst's numbers were exactly the opposite with 18 turnovers and 11 assists.
The story of the game, however, came at the free-throw line. Ohio made 17-of-21 attempts while Mercyhurst earned just eight shots at the charity stripe and made four.
In the first game action of the season for both teams, Ohio came out strong.
The new-look Bobcats took little time to get going in their debut, building a 9-0 lead three and a half minutes into the contest on scores from four different players, and the defense held Mercyhurst off the scoreboard the first four minutes. Williams was a factor in Ohio's fast start as he netted five of Ohio's first 12 points.
Whittington supplied Ohio with its first double-digit lead of the game at 22-12 on a layup with 9:35 on the clock. His free throw to complete the three-point play gave Ohio what would be its largest lead of the first half at 23-12.
The Bobcats wouldn't cruise into the locker room, however. The visiting Lakers went on a 13-4 run during a three minute span to cut the Ohio lead to 27-24 with 6:06 remaining. Mercyhurst would keep it close for most of the remainder of the half, but the Bobcats broke open the game with a 10-3 run after halftime.
Mercyhurst, out of Erie, Penn., struggled to make shots in the second stanza and did not get its second basket of the half until a lay-up by Milos Bogetic with 13:13 left on the clock.
With the Bobcats stretching out the lead, Whittington hit back-to-back three points with just more than eight minutes remaining to push Ohio's advantage to 20 for the first time.
Both team's recorded equal 42.4 shooting percentages at halftime but Ohio finished the game hitting 23-of-60 shots (38.3%) and Mercyhurst shot 16-of-50 (32%) in the contest.
The game marked the second time in three years that Ohio had brought in Mercyhurst for a preseason exhibition. The Bobcats defeated the Lakers 86-70 on Nov. 12, 2005.
The Bobcats will officially open their 2007-08 campaign next week when they entertain defending Western Athletic Conference Tournament champion New Mexico State. Tip time on Nov. 9 in the Convocation Center is set for 7 p.m.
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Jason Cunningham is the primary media contact for Ohio men's basketball. He can be reached via e-mail at cunninj3@ohio.edu.
