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THE BASICS
Score: Ohio 81, UC Riverside 59
Location: Convocation Center - Athens, Ohio
The Short Story: Redshirt senior forward Treg Setty (Maysville, Ky.) put together a huge night to lead the Ohio men's basketball team (9-3) to a decisive 81-59 win over UC Riverside (9-6) on Wednesday (Dec. 30) at the Convocation Center in Athens, Ohio. The Bobcats closed out non-conference play on a five-game winning streak and are off to their best start through 12 games since 2011-12.

OHIO STARTERS: #0 Treg Setty, #2 Jaaron Simmons, #13 Kenny Kaminski, #33 Antonio Campbell, #35 Jordan Dartis

UC RIVERSIDE STARTERS: #1 Jaylen Bland, #5 Taylor Johns, #20 Secean Johnson, #21 Alex Larsson, #22 Malik Thames

HOW IT HAPPENED
• The Bobcats dominated the stats sheet. Ohio shot 44.6 percent (29-of-65) from the field while limiting UC Riverside to 39.3 percent (22-of-56). The Green & White shot a season-best 95.2 percent (20-of-21) from the free throw line. The Bobcats outrebounded the Highlanders, 44-27, and match their season high with nine steals while committing only nine turnovers and forcing 13 by UC Riverside. Ohio also led the way in points in the paint (46-26), points off turnovers (18-12) and second chance points (13-4).
• Setty matched his career with 20 points to lead all scorers thanks to a 9-of-17 shooting effort. He also hauled in a game-high 10 rebounds to post his second career double-double. He also led the team with three steals over 29 minutes.
• Junior forward Antonio Campbell (Cincinnati, Ohio) just missed out on his fifth-straight double-double with 15 points and nine rebounds. He shot 7-of-12 from the field. Campbell also recorded two assists and a team-high two blocks in 26 minutes.
• Redshirt sophomore guard Jaaron Simmons (Dayton, Ohio) went a perfect 7-for-7 from the charity stripe to finish with 15 points in addition to dishing out a game-high eight assists. He also hauled in four rebounds and recorded a steal in 30 minutes.
• Redshirt junior forward Kenny Kaminski (Medina, Ohio) logged nine points, a rebound and a steal in 28 minutes.
• Freshman guard Jordan Dartis (Newark, Ohio) went 2-of-3 from three points range and finished with eight points. He also compiled three assists, two rebounds and two steals in 30 minutes.
• After missing the previous four games with an injury, redshirt sophomore guard/forward Khari Harley (Egg Harbor Township, N.J.) went 5-of-6 from the charity stripe and totaled seven points. He also grabbed a rebound in 13 minutes.
• Senior guard Jaylen Bland shot 5-of-8 from three-point range to lead UC Riverside with 15 points. He also totaled two assists, two rebounds and a steal in 34 minutes.
• Freshman center Menno Dijkstra went 5-of-5 from the field to finish with 10 points and hauled in a team-high six rebounds in 25 minutes of work off of the bench for the Highlanders.
• Senior forward Taylor Johns added eight points, a team-high three assists, three rebounds, a team-high two blocks and a steal in 27 minutes for UC Riverside.
• Junior guard Gentrey Thomas logged seven points, two rebounds and an assist in 18 minutes off of the bench for the Highlanders.
• Ohio took an early seven-point lead at 11-4 with just under 16 minutes to play in the first half, with Setty providing six points during the stretch and Dartis knocking down a three.
• A 14-8 run by UC Riverside shaved the Bobcats' edge down to one at 19-18 with just over seven minutes to go in the half. The Highlanders utilized two treys by Bland and pair of layups by Dijkstra to help make it a one-point game.
• The Bobcats responded by outscoring UC Riverside by a 15-5 count over the ensuing six minutes, taking advantage of seven points by Campbell â€" including a conventional three-point play and a dunk -- as well as four points by Setty to build their lead up to a half-high 11 points at 34-23 with just over a minute to go in the first half.
• The Highlanders received a pair of threes from Bland and senior guard Steven Jones in the final minutes of the half to shave Ohio's lead back down to single digits at 36-29 at the halftime break.
• Ohio set the tone for a dominating second half right away, opening the final 20 minutes of play with an 11-0 run over the first two-plus minutes. A jumper by Setty, a layup and a pair of free throws by Simmons, a trey by Dartis and a layup by Campbell built Ohio's lead up to 18 at 47-29.
• Ohio's lead swelled to a game-high 26 points at 59-33 with just under 13 minutes to go as Simmons converted a conventional three-point opportunity.
• The Bobcats never led by less than 18 points the rest of the way, thanks in large part to Simmons pouring in 13 second-half points.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
• Ohio posted nine non-conference triumphs in 12 games in 2015-16. The Bobcats won five non-conference games in 11 tries last season. Ohio's 9-3 start to the 2015-16 campaign is the program's best through 11 games since going 11-1 to begin the 2011-12 season.
• The Bobcats recorded their fifth-straight victory after notching a 76-67 win at Cleveland State on Dec. 12 at Quicken Loans Arena and following it up with a 93-69 triumph over Ohio Dominican on Dec. 15, a 72-67 win over Jackson State two days later and a 65-58 victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Dec. 21. Ohio has won five in a row for the first time since the 2013-14 campaign.
• The Bobcats start a season with seven home victories in seven tries for the third time in the last five seasons.
• Ohio came away victorious in its first-ever meeting with UC Riverside and is now 4-2 (.667) against current Big West Conference members.
• The Green & White eclipsed the 80-point mark for the seventh time this season. Ohio reached the 80-point mark just five times in 30 games last year.
• The Bobcats matched their season high with nine steals. Ohio also logged nine steals in a 75-67 win over Tennessee State on Nov. 16. The 'Cats also finished in single digits in turnovers for the second time this season and first time against an NCAA Division I opponent this year.
• Setty reached double figures in scoring for a third-straight game, sixth time this year and ninth time in his career. He also totaled double-digit boards for the second time this season and fourth time in his career. Setty led the Bobcats in scoring for the first time this year and in rebounding for the second time.
• Campbell finished with double-digit points for a team-high 10 time this season and 31st time in his career.
• Simmons logged double digits in scoring for the ninth time this year. He led the Bobcats in assists for a team-high 12th time. He's posted at least five assists in every game this season.

QUOTABLE
Second-year head coach Saul Phillips on the win
"It's progress, that's all it is. I'm not ready to parade down Court Street with confetti flying yet, but I am excited to start conference play because we took a step forward tonight as a team."

Redshirt senior forward Treg Setty on his big performance
"My teammates gave me the ball, and the shots were kind of falling. I got a lot of shots up. Tonight, my number was called, and I came through for the team. I was proud of myself for that. The most important thing is we got the win. Individual accolades are great, but at the end of the day, if you don't win, then they mean nothing."

Redshirt sophomore guard Jaaron Simmons on his mindset
"At the beginning of the game, I like to focus on getting everyone else involved first. I really don't worry about points. I like getting more assists than points anyway. Points just kind of come from me being aggressive and being in the paint."

UP NEXT
The Bobcats open 2016 Mid-American Conference play with a visit to DeKalb, Ill., next Wednesday (Jan. 6) for an 8 p.m. ET matchup against West Division foe Northern Illinois.

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