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Wednesday, Nov. 25 vs. Chicago State, 5:00 pm ET | Champaign, Ill.| State Farm Center | Internet Stream | TuneIn | Live Stats | Ohio Notes | Chicago St. Notes
Thursday, Nov. 26 vs. North Carolina A&T, 3:00 pm ET | Champaign, Ill.| State Farm Center | Internet Stream | TuneIn | Live Stats | Ohio Notes | NC A&T Notes
Friday, Nov. 27 vs. No. 8 Illinois, 1 p.m. ET | Champaign, Ill.| State Farm Center |BTN | TuneIn | Live Stats | Ohio Notes | Illinois Notes
CHAMPAIGN, Ill.-- The Ohio men's basketball team (0-0) opens the 2020-21 season Nov. 25-27 when they head to Champaign, Ill. for a multi-team tournament hosted by Illinois. The Bobcats' open play on Wednesday, Nov. 25 against Chicago State at 5 p.m. ET. Ohio is back in action for a Thanksgiving Day matchup again North Carolina A&T at 3 p.m. ET, before wrapping up play on Nov. 27 against host, No. 8 Illinois at 1 p.m. ET. Wednesday's and Thursday's games will be live streamed via the Illinois website. Friday's game will be broadcast on BTN, with Kevin Kugler & Stephen Bardo on the call.
All three games can be heard on the Ohio Sports Network from Learfield IMG College. Russ Eisenstein returns for his 13th season as the "Voice of the Bobcats," along with Ohio Alum Rob Cornelius. WXTQ (Power 105) in Athens returns as the 11-station network's flagship. The broadcasts are also available online through TuneIn.com/OhioBobcats and on the TuneIn app.
SCOUTING CHICAGO STATE
The 2020-21 Cougars return four of their top five starters and six of their top eight scorers from a season ago. Last season, the Cougars finished 4-25 and were 0-14 in the WAC.
Last season's leading scorer (15.4 points per game) is senior guard Xavier Johnson who is the returning statistical leader in 11 categories including three-point field goals made (51) and attempted (130), points scored (354), assists (64) and steals (33). Johnson ranked eighth in scoring in the Western Athletic Conference while he (fourth, 86.7) and teammate Andrew Lewis (second, 87.2) were two of the top four free-throw shooters in the league.
Lewis is the team's second leading returner scorer (12.2 ppg), while also leading the team in minutes played (767), free throws attempted (109), free throws made (95) and free throw percentage (87.2%). He ranked second on the team in field goals made (100) and attempted (250), three-point FGs made (20) and attempted (68), assists (41) and steals (25).
SCOUTING NC A&T
The Aggies finished 17-15 overall and 12-4 in the MEAC to finish second. Jones took over as acting head coach in December of last season and 14-5 before being named the permanent head coach in June.
The Aggies were playing for the regular-season championship on the final day of last season, but lost at N.C. Central 86-80. N.C. A&T did win their first-round game of the MEAC Championship Basketball Tournament at the Norfolk Scope Arena, 86-77 over Howard before the COVID-19 pandemic cut the college basketball season short.
The Aggies were picked to finish second in the Southern Division by the head coaches and sports information directors across the league. The Aggies received nine first-place votes and 94 total points, one behind projected first-place finisher N.C. Central who received 11 first-place votes and 95 total points.
SCOUTING No. 8 Illinois
Illinois finished last season 21-10 overall and 13-7 in conference play to finish one game back of the title. The Illini earned a bye to the Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinals for the first time in nine years and was set to make its first NCAA Tournament appearance in seven seasons when the postseason was cancelled due to the emergence of COVID-19.
Ayo Dosunmu returns after a sophomore year where he averaged 16.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists to earn first-team All-Big Ten honors by the media.
Kofi Cockburn also returns after being named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors. Cockburn averaged 13.3 points, 8.8 rebounds and 1.4 blocks and tallied 12 double-doubles
ALL TIME VS. CHICAGO STATE
This is the first ever meeting between the Bobcats and Chicago State.
ALL TIME VS. NC A&T
This is the fourth all-time meeting between Ohio and NC A&T, with the Bobcats winning the first three meetings.
Ohio and the Aggies last met on Dec. 23, 2011 with Ohio winning 82-66
ALL TIME VS. No. 8 ILLINOIS
This is the fifth all-time meeting between Ohio and Illinois, with the Illini leading the series, 4-0.
The two teams last met on Dec. 26, 1980, with the then 18th-ranked Illinois squad winning 84-54.
OHIO AND RANKED TEAMS
Overall Ohio is 11-55 (.169) against the top-25. vs. #1: 0-6 (.000);
vs. Top 5: 2-16 (.111)
vs. Top 10: 2-28 (.069);
vs. Top 15: 9-37 (.195);
vs. Top 20: 10-49 (.169);
at home: 3-7 (.300); away: 4-29 (.121); neutral: 4-18 (.154)
PRESEASON ALL- MAC HONORS
Junior guard Jason Preston and Ben Vander Plas both earned spot on the Preseason All-MAC Teams.
Preston earned a spot on the Preseason All-MAC First Team
Vander Plas earned a spot on the Preseason All-MAC Second Team
THE JAY PRESTON SHOW RETURNS
Jason Preston looks to pick up where he left off in 2019-20.
Preston is coming off a stellar sophomore campaign where he finished the regular season averaging 16.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 7.4 assists per game, while shooting 51.5 percent from the field, 40.7 percent from three-point range and 72.5 percent from the free throw line. Preston finished the conference season with 17.2 points per game, while also adding 6.7 rebounds and 7.1 assists per game. Preston shot 51.7 percent from the field, 42.9 percent from three-point range and 70.0 percent from the free throw line. Preston scored a career-high 27 points three times this season, first against Iona and twice in MAC play, once against Buffalo and again against Toledo, while also scoring in double figures 17 times during conference play. Preston also finished the season second in the nation in total assists and finished first in the MAC in assists, assist/turnover margin and minutes played, while also finishing fifth in scoring, fourth in field goal percentage. He was also named the MAC East Player of the Week five times this season, the most of any player in the East Division, while earning a spot on the All-MAC Second Team and the NABCA District 14 Second Team.
BVP FOR THREEEEE
Ben Vander Plas returns for another season in the Green and White.
Vander Plas finished the regular season second on the team in scoring with 15.7 points per game and first in rebounds with 6.9 points per game. He also added 2.8 assists per game, while shooting 49.2 percent from the field and 29.9 percent from three-point range. In conference play, Vander Plas averages 16.6 points, 6.9 rebounds and 2.3 assists a game. He shot 46.2 percent from the field and 28.9 percent from three-point range. Vander Plas scored a career-high 27 points at Buffalo on Jan. 14, while also grabbing a career-high 13 rebounds against Western Michigan on Jan. 4. Vander Plas was also named MAC Male Scholar Athlete once, was named to the 2019-20 Academic All-District® Men's Basketball Team, selected by CoSIDA, was an Academic All-MAC and MAC Distinguished Scholar Athlete selection. Vander Plas was also Ohio's 2020 Male Medal of Excellence Award recipient.
TRIPLE DOUBLE ALERT
Preston recorded the second triple-double in Bobcats history on Feb. 8, second only to D.J. Cooper who registered one on Dec. 10, 2011 at Portland.
PROTECT THIS HOUSE
Ohio has registered an impressive 519-172 (.756) all-time record at the Convocation Center, which opened in 1968.
JEFF BOALS STARTS YEAR TWO
Jeff Boals enters his second season as the head coach of the Bobcats in 2020-21.
In his first season as a head coach with the Green and White, the Bobcats went 17-15 overall and 8-10
in the MAC, and advanced to the MAC Quarterfinals in Cleveland for the first time since 2017.
Point Guard Jason Preston was name Second Team All-MAC, while Forward Ben Vander Plas was named All-MAC Third Team and Lunden McDay earned a spot on the MAC All-Freshman Team.
OTHER RETURNERS
the Bobcats return MAC All-Freshman Team member, Lunden McDay (Akron, Ohio), along with sophomores Ben Roderick (Powell, Ohio), Miles Brown (Rochester, N.Y.) and Nolan Foster (Mattawan, Mich.).
MCDAY: Appeared in 31 games for the Bobcats, starting 29 of them, while averaging 8.2 points per game, while shooting 46.6% from the field.
RODERICK: Played in 23 games in 2019-20, starting five of them. Averaged 6.0 points per game while shooting 36.6% from three-point range.
BROWN: Retuns after playing in 21 games last season, averaging 1.6 points per game.
FOSTER: Played in 29 games for Ohio last season, averaging 2.4 points and 1.6 rebounds per game.
BOBCATS ADD WILSON AND MIGUEL
The Bobcats added two transfers in the offseason, adding Dwight Wilson II from James Madison and Rifen Miguel from Tallahassee CC.
Wilson, a 6-8, 250-pound forward, comes to Ohio after spending the last three seasons at James Madison. Last season, Wilson played in 26 games while starting 22 of then. He averaged 9.8 points and 9.3 rebounds per game while shooting 53.4 percent from the field. He scored a season-high 23 points against the College of Charleston on Jan. 4 and scored in double figures 15 times. He also grabbed a season-high 15 rebounds three times, while recording 12 games with double-digit rebounds. For his career, Wilson has played in 83 games with 50 starts. He averages 7.9 points and 6.9 rebounds per game while shooting 54.9 percent from the field.
Miguel, a 6-8, 240-pound forward, comes to the Bobcats as a junior with two years of eligibility remaining after playing last season at Tallahassee Community College. Miguel appeared in 21 games last season, averaging 7.8 points and 4.2 rebounds. He shot 46.2 percent from the field. Miguel was named second-team All-Panhandle Conference. He scored 15 points and pulled down seven rebounds in his Tallahassee debut against Florida State College-Jacksonville. Over his 21 games, he scored in double figures 10 times and had a career-high nine rebounds twice, while helping the Eagles (27-6) earn an at-large bid to the NJCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship. Prior to his season at Tallahassee, Miguel played one season at the College of Central Florida where he played in 29 games and averaged 5.9 points and 3.2 rebounds and shot 54.9 percent from the field.
NEW FACES ON THE ROSTER
Ohio adds four true freshmen to the roster for the 2019-20 season, including Mark Sears (Muscle Shoals, Ala), Same Towns (Columbus, Ohio), Jalen White (Pasadena, Texas) and Colin Granger (Suwanee, Ga.)
Mark Sears: During his senior year averaged 14 points, three assists and five rebounds per game...Helped lead Hargrave to the Final 4 of the Prep National Championship with a 37-4 record.
Sam Towns: Spent the 2019-20 season at the Winchdendon Prep School in Winchdendon, Mass. where he averaged 22 points, 10 rebounds and four assists per game and was named First Team all NEPSAC...Played his senior year at Pickerington Central High School under coach Eric Krueger, where he helped lead the Tigers to a 2019 Ohio High School Athletic Association district title and a 2019 Ohio Capital Conference title...Played at Springfield High School, winning two OHSAA district titles...Competed for Nova Village in the Under Armour circuit.
Jalen White: Started all 29 games on varsity as a freshman at Clear Springs High School...averaged 12 points per game which led all scorers and was awarded Offensive Player of the Year by the team...As a Sophomore, started 20 games and improved to 15.5 points per game before transferring to Sam Rayburn High School...Spent his 16U and 17U summers with the UAA Houston Defenders where he was a two-year starter alongside a very talented group of D1 Commits...In his 16U Season on the UAA Circuit, led the team in scoring with 10 points per game and helped his team reach the UAA Finals in 2018...In his 17U season on the UAA Circuit, averaged 10 points per game and helped his team reach the Elite 8 of the 2019 UAA Finals.
Colin Granger: A top-27 player in the state of Georgia and is a top-three center in the state as well...A two-time all-region selection and is a two-time Forsyth County News All-County Selection...Was on the 2018-19 Forsyth County Tip-off Club Top-10 player list and was an Atlanta Tip-off Club Top-10 preseason all-state player.
NEW FACES ON THE STAFF
Jeff Boals added one new staff member in the offseason, adding Lee Martin to the staff as an assistant coach.
Martin finished his Hargrave career with a 113-12 overall record in three seasons, during which the program's home winning streak surpassed 100-straight wins. His winning percentage at Hargrave (.904) puts him in exclusive company with former Hargrave head coaches -- current NC State head coach Kevin Keatts and current Eastern Kentucky head coach A.W. Hamilton. Martin's teams advanced to the National Tournament every year of his tenure, including an Elite Eight appearance in 2019 and a Final Four appearance in 2020. Under his watch, Hargrave broke the school record for points in a single game with a staggering 173 points scored on March 1, 2019. Martin's teams finished in the top-four of the final national poll in each year of his tenure.
Martin also sustained success of advancing his players on to the Division I level. In his three years as head coach, 28 of his players went on to play at the NCAA Division I level. During his entire seven-year career at Hargrave, he played a role in 69 players continuing on to play Division I basketball, including nine that were ranked as top 100 recruits.
MAC PRESEASON POLL
TThe Ohio men's basketball team was selected to finish second in the 2020-21 Mid-American Conference Preseason Poll, which was announced Thursday (Nov. 19) by the league office.
In a vote, which was determined by the league's 12 head coaches, the Bobcats earned 117 points and one first-place vote. Ohio was picked to finish behind Bowling Green, which earned 132 points and received eight first-place votes. Akron finished in third, just two points behind the Bobcats, with 115 points, while Buffalo (109) and Ball State (104), rounded out the top-five.
The Falcons have been selected as the favorite to win the 20201MAC Basketball Tournament with a conference-high four votes. Akron (2), Ball State (1), Buffalo (1), Eastern Michigan (1), Kent State (1), Miami (1) and Toledo (1) also received votes to capture the conference tournament crown.
UP NEXT
Ohio will open play in Athens on Sunday, Dec. 6 when Ohio hosts Cleveland State. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. inside the Convocation Center.
#OUohyeah
