Dec. 29, 2008

Final Stats

MOBILE, Ala. - Senior forward Lauren Hmiel scored a career-high 20 points, but the Ohio women's basketball team dropped its sixth game of the season by five points or less, 68-64 to South Alabama Monday night at the Mitchell Center. The Jaguars (11-2) defeated the Bobcats (4-7) for the second-straight year in the teams' only two meetings.

"South Alabama is a great basketball team," Ohio head coach Semeka Randall said. "They have a lot of players that do a lot of things well. They are a team that very well could end up in the NCAA Tournament at season's end."

Ohio shot 42.4 percent (25-of-59) for the game, including 4-of-7 from distance, while making 10-of-13 shots from the free-throw line. South Alabama was 27-of-61 from the floor for 44.3 percent, but nailed eight 3-pointers on 47.1 percent shooting, both season bests for a Bobcat opponent. Ohio grabbed 40 rebounds to USA's 30, but the Jags had 15 assists to the Bobcats' eight.

In addition to her 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting, Hmiel (York, Pa.) picked up seven rebounds. Junior guard Jennifer Bushby (Gahanna, Ohio) chipped in 17 points, while senior center Chandra Myers (Sugarcreek, Ohio) was the third double-digit scorer with 11. Sophomore center Thia Gholson (Louisville, Ky.) grabbed a team-high eight boards, while junior guard Jenny Poff (St. Johns, Mich.) led the 'Cats with four assists. Sophomore forward Kamille Buckner (Chicago, Ill.) contributed six caroms and a pair of blocks. South Alabama was led by Shakira Nettles' 20 points and Jessica Starling's 16.

"Lauren (Hmiel) did a great job attacking the basket," Randall said. "She really stepped up as a senior in terms of rebounding, attacking the basket and playing defense."

Ohio jumped out to the early lead, holding a 13-9 edge at the first media timeout. The Bobcats extended their lead to as much as six at the 14:19 mark, before a South Alabama 3-pointer knotted the game at 20. The Jaguars took their first lead on another triple on their next possession.

A Poff steal and layup tied the game for the second time in the half at 28. With South Alabama up by five, sophomore forward Carolyn Barnett (North Chicago, Ill.) boosted the 'Cats by scoring four-straight points off the bench to get within one at 34-33. The Jags closed the half on an 8-2 run however, sending Ohio to the locker room trailing 42-36, its largest deficit of the half. It was just the fourth time this season the Green & White trailed at the break.

USA's 42 first-half points matched the most points the Bobcats had given up in the opening 20 minutes all season. Ohio shot 46.7 percent in the first frame on 14-of-30 shooting, including 1-of-4 from deep. The Jaguars hit 16-of-31 shots from the floor for 51.6 percent, but nailed six 3-pointers on 11 tries. USA converted eight Ohio turnovers into 15 points, while the 'Cats earned just five points off seven Jaguar turnovers. Myers and Hmiel paced Ohio with nine points apiece at the break, while the Bobcats outrebounded South Alabama 18-13 in the first half, with Hmiel grabbing four.

The Jaguars took their largest lead of the game at 50-38 to start the second stanza. Minutes later, a Myers layup capped a 6-0 Bobcat spurt to cut the deficit to five with 10:54 to play. Back-to-back buckets by Hmiel put Ohio within three at 62-59, after the two squads traded buckets for much of the second half.

With South Alabama ahead by two, the Jags hit 1-of-2 from the charity stripe to lead 65-62. Bushby calmly sank a pair of free throws to get as close as one with 38 ticks remaining, but USA converted an old-fashioned 3-point play as the shot clock was expiring and the Bobcats were unable to fire off another shot.

"We did a good job of holding them defensively in the second half," Randall said. "At the end when we needed to make a stop, we just didn't."

Ohio was just 37.9 percent (11-of-29) from the floor in the second half, but made all three 3-point tries. The Jaguars shot even worse, going 11-of-30 from the field and were just 2-of-6 from behind the arc. Hmiel tallied 11 points in the final 20 minutes, while Bushby scored 10.

"This was just another hard-fought battle. I thought we played extremely hard," Randall said. "Give a lot of credit to South Alabama. They shot the ball well and pushed the ball to put pressure on us. We're coming along well though. Things will change for us soon."

The Bobcats return home for just the second time this season when they host the 18th-ranked Florida Gators (11-1) Saturday, Jan. 3. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. as part of a Bobcat basketball doubleheader, with the men hosting Bucknell at 2 p.m.