Jan. 24, 2015
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THE BASICS
Score: Ohio 63, Buffalo 61
Location: Convocation Center - Athens, Ohio
The Short Story: Behind a last-second dunk and a career-high 31 points from senior forward Maurice Ndour (Mbour, Senegal), the Ohio men's basketball team (7-10, 2-4 MAC) emerged victorious in dramatic fashion against Mid-American Conference East Division rival Buffalo (12-6, 3-3 MAC), 63-61, on Saturday (Jan. 24) at the Convocation Center. The Bobcats picked up their second-straight win.
OHIO STARTERS: #3 Javarez Willis, #5 Maurice Ndour, #14 Ryan Taylor, #24 Mike Laster, #33 Antonio Campbell
BUFFALO STARTERS: #1 Lamonte Bearden, #10 Jarryn Skeete, #11 Shannon Evans, #2 Will Regan, #23 Justin Moss
HOW IT HAPPENED
• The Bobcats made 22-of-53 (41.5 percent) of their shots while Buffalo made 23 of its 64 attempts (35.9 percent).
• Ohio turned 14 Buffalo turnovers into 18 points. The Bulls managed 10 points off of Ohio's 12 turnovers.
• In addition to his career-high scoring output, Ndour added six rebounds, three blocks and a steal. He went 10-of-15 from the field and a perfect 10-for-10 from the charity stripe -- a career best.
• Freshman guard Ryan Taylor (Gary, Ind.) added 12 points off of a 5-of-9 shooting performance. He also chipped in two assists, a team-high three steals and a rebound.
• Redshirt senior guard Javarez Willis (Homer, La.) knocked down a game-high three treys to finish with nine points. He also grabbed two rebounds.
• Sophomore forward Antonio Campbell (Cincinnati, Ohio) pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds to go along with six points, an assist and a block.
• Senior guard Stevie Taylor (Gahanna, Ohio) tallied a team-high three assists as well as three rebounds and a steal.
• Three Bulls finished in double figures, with junior forward Justin Moss and senior forward Xavier Ford leading the way with 11 points apiece. Moss grabbed seven boards to tie for the team lead while Ford contributed five rebounds and a steal. Junior forward Raheem Johnson contributed 10 points and five rebounds.
• Sophomore guard Shannon Evans and junior guard/forward Rodell Wigginton each posted eight points. Wigginton matched Moss for the team lead with eight rebounds and also dished out an assist. Evans tied freshman guard Lamonte Bearden for the team lead with three assists. Bearden also recorded a team-high three steals.
• Ohio found itself down by as much as seven in the second half, facing a 54-47 deficit with 5:37 remaining in the game. Johnson spearheaded the Buffalo offensive attack in the second stanza, scoring 10 points and grabbing three offensive rebounds.
• Ndour helped bring the Bobcats back, scoring 12 of Ohio's final 13 points -- including the game-winning dunk with 0.6 seconds remaining in the game.
• Ohio jumped out to an early 11-7 advantage with the help of Campbell, who grabbed five rebounds along with two points at the 12:27 mark of the first half.
• Ndour led all scorers with 13 points in the first half to pair with three rebounds, one assist and one block. He scored a layup with four seconds remaining to provide the Bobcats with a 32-31 lead at the break. Ryan Taylor contributed seven points over the first 20 minutes of play while Willis accounted for two of his three successful three-point attempts in the first half.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
• Ndour reached double figures in points for the ninth game in a row, 12th time in the last 13 games, a team-high 15th time this season and 40th time in his career. He has led the team in scoring on seven occassions in 2014-15. Ndour has either reached or surpassed the 20-point mark four times this season. He has tallied three or more blocks five times this season.
• Ndour's 31 points tied an individual season-high for the Bobcats, with Willis scoring 31 points against DePaul on December 23 at the 2014 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic.
• Ryan Taylor achieved double figures for the eighth time in 2014-15, which ranks third on the team.
• Campbell posted double-digit boards for the fourth time this season and led the team in rebounds for the fifth time in 2014-15.
• Willis has sank at least three three-point attempts nine times this season.
• The win gave first-year head coach Saul Phillips his first home conference victory.
QUOTABLE
Head Coach Saul Phillips
• "I thought in the half court we were really good defensively. I thought they got us on the offensive glass and they got us in transition. I think our mindset, making tough plays, I think that is something that really, really changed in the last couple of games.
Senior forward Maurice Ndour
• "It's big man, it's big. Like I've told the guys, we've got a lot of lessons to learn from. Since Wednesday, we're trying to play the best basketball with energy and effort, and that's what we did."
UP NEXT
• Ohio begins another two-game MAC road swing with a visit to Ypsilanti, Mich., to take on West Division foe Eastern Michigan on Tuesday (Jan. 27). Tip time is set for 7 p.m. ET at the Convocation Center.
#SaulBall
