ATHENS, Ohio – Coming off a MAC Tournament championship and an NCAA Tournament victory in the 2020-21 season, the Ohio men's basketball team returned to action in front of more than 6,000 fans Saturday afternoon (Nov. 6). The Bobcats welcomed Capital University into the Convocation Center, defeating the Comets by a score of 92-66. Ohio was led offensively by Tommy Schmock (Cleveland, Ohio), who finished with 17 points on 7 for 9 shooting, along with three rebounds and two assists. 
 
"Yeah, I think number one, great to see everyone," head coach Jeff Boals said after the game. "Awesome to see the band, dance, cheer, students. I liked the first half and our energy level. For the second half, it waned a little bit, which I was kind of expecting, but I thought the guys who came off the bench did a really good job of bringing that energy, both in the first and second half. And I told the guys after the game, exhibition season's over. We've got to be a lot better on Tuesday night, which should be a great contest against a very good team. And I know they're looking forward to it."


 
Ben Roderick (Powell, Ohio) opened the game with a three to give Ohio the early lead. Capital went on to take a 7-5 lead with 16:53 left in the first. However, a layup from Ben Vander Plas (Ripon, Wis.) and a jumper from freshman forward AJ Clayton (Duncan Falls, Ohio) put Ohio up 9-7 with 15:20 left. Ohio then went on an 18-0 run to take a 44-18 lead with 10:34 left in the half. 
 
"The fans give us great energy and that's what we need," noted sophomore point guard Mark Sears (Muscle Shoals, Ala.). "It was great. They give us that extra boost to play even harder, and to give it all out in front of them."
 
The Ohio offense continued to thrive, with every available Bobcat entering the game, helping send the game to halftime with Oho leading 50-26. 
 
The Bobcats ended the half shooting 63 percent from the field, 50 percent from three and 71 percent from the line. Meanwhile, Capital shot 31 percent from the field and 31.3 percent from three. 
 
Ohio out-rebounded Capital, 17-14 and dished out 10 assists to the Comets six. The Bobcats' forced 10 Capital turnovers and scored 16 points off them, while adding 25 bench points. 
 
Individually, Schmock led the Bobcats with 12 points, going 5-of-6 from the field and 1-of-1 from three. Miles Brown (Rochester, N.Y.) added seven points, while Jason Carter (Johnstown, Ohio) added six. Sophomore forward Sam Towns (Columbus, Ohio) led Ohio at the half with five rebounds. 
 
"I thought our offense was clicking for the first half," said Schmock. "I was getting good ball screens, good rolls, guys lifting, it really opened the floor. But it's just good to see some buckets go in."

In the second half, Capital cut the Ohio lead to 19, but a turnaround jumper from Carter gave the Bobcats a 61-35 lead with 14:44 left. Both teams traded baskets over the next few minutes until a 5-0 lead from the Comet cut Ohio's lead to 16 going into the under-eight timeout. However, Vander Plas drained a three right out of the timeout to stop the run. The Bobcats finished out the remainder of the contest out-scoring the Comets 22-12, making 9 of their last 15 shots from the field while holding Capital to just 4 for 11 shooting.
 
Ohio had three other players alongside Schmock finish with double-digit points. Vander Plas contributed 12, Brown had 11, and Carter scored 10 in his return as a Bobcat. Towns led the rebounding effort with seven, while Vander Plas and Sears had the most assists on the day with four.


 
Up Next:
 
The Bobcats start regular season play on Tuesday, Nov. 9, when they take on the Belmont Bruins at 7 p.m. inside the Convo. The Bruins are coming off a 26-4 campaign last season, and received seven votes in the AP Preseason Top 25 Poll. The game will be broadcast on either ESPN3 or ESPN+. 

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