Dec. 12, 2009
NEWARK, Delaware-Ohio junior Armon Bassett exploded for 27 points on 8-12 shooting from the floor and a 9-10 clip from the line to give the visiting Bobcats an 86-70 win over Delaware Saturday afternoon at Carpenter Center.
The Bobcats snapped a three-game losing streak with the win to move to 5-3, while Delaware dropped to 2-7.
DeVaughn Washington also posted 21 points on 8-10 shooting and Tommy Freeman added 12, six of which came at the charity stripe.
Kenneth van Kempen was Ohio’s leading rebounder with seven, while D.J. Cooper had another nice floor game with five assists and three steals.
Delaware was led by Alphonso Dawson’s 20 points (9-16 FG), while Kelvin McNeil notched a team-high nine boards. Jawan Carter had five assists.
The Blue Hens scored the game’s first basket on a Dawson layup 1:16 into the game, but that would be their last as a Freeman 3-pointer two possessions later put the Bobcats up for good.
Ohio gradually built its lead for the balance of the half and pushed it to 11 (35-24) at the 1:28 mark on a free throw by Steven Coleman. Cooper tossed a lob at the rim that Washington dropped home in the final seconds of the first half to give Ohio a nine-point (37-28) lead heading into the locker room.
The Bobcats came out roaring in the second half as well, as a Jay Kinney layup with 13:24 left gave Ohio an 18-point advantage at 54-36. However, two Dawson 3-pointers and a Carter layup later, Ohio was forced to call a time out at the 11:54 mark to stop the UDel run.
After a McNeil jumper sliced Ohio’s lead even further, the Bobcats slowly pulled away again and regained their 18-point edge (84-66) on a Bassett 3-pointer with 49 seconds left.
Ohio won the turnover battle once again, as it committed just 12 and hounded the Blue Hens into 21. The Bobcats then turned those miscues into a 20-7 edge in points off turnovers. Another product of Ohio’s stiff defensive effort was Delaware’s lackluster 4-19 showing (21.1 percent) from beyond the 3-point arc.
The Bobcats will be back in action Wednesday at 7 p.m. against Missouri Valley Conference stalwart Illinois State, who is unbeaten this season at 7-0.
