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LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The Ohio men's basketball team (1-3) returned to action Saturday afternoon (Nov. 15) and could not overcome the hot-shooting No. 12 Louisville (4-0), falling 106-81 inside the KFC Yum! Center. 

Overall, Ohio shot 44.1 percent from the field, 34.6 percent from three and were 20-of-26 from the line, while Louisville shot 50 percent from the field, while going 16-of-35 from three and 22-of-30 from the line. Louisville outrebounded the Bobcats, 41-34, while Ohio dished out 12 assists compared to 23 from the Cardinals, both teams recorded three blocks, while Ohio have nine steals. 

Individually, Ohio was led by senior guard Jackson Paveletzke (Kimberly, Wis.) led the Bobcats by tying is career-high with 28 points, going 8-of-14 from the field, 3-of-4 from three and 9-of-10 from the line. He also dished out four assists and had two steals. Senior forward Aidan Hadaway (Layfayette, Ga.) scored 12 points and grabbed eight rebounds, while freshman guard JJ Kelly (Chambersburg, Pa.) scored a career-high 11 points, grabbed five boards and hit his first two threes of his career. Senior guard Dior Conners (Columbus, Ohio) added 10 points, while redshirt junior forward Javan Simmons (Columbus, Ohio) grabbed a game-high nine rebounds. 

The Cardinals won the tip and got on the board first with a three, but Hadaway matched it with a dunk moments later. After Louisville took a 6-2 lead, a layup from Simmons and a three from Paveletzke brought the Cardinals lead to 13-7 headed into the first media timeout. Louisville continued to capitalize on free throws, taking a 10-point lead before a layup from Paveletzke stopped the run. A layup from Simmons and redshirt freshman forward Kiir Kuany (Melbourne, Australia) cut the deficit to nine, however a three from the Cardinals gave them a 25-13 lead with 11:34 left in the half. 

Free throws from Hadaway and a three from Conners were able to cut the deficit to eight with 9:28 to go in the half, however, the Cardinals would continue to stay hot from three, taking a 49-32 lead before Conners' second three of the night stopped the run. After the Cardinals took a 58-37 lead, the Bobcats kept battling, with jumpers from Conners cutting the Ohio deficit to 59-44 headed into halftime. 

At the half, Ohio shot 48 percent from the field, 38 percent from three and were 11-of-15 from the line, while Louisville shot 56 percent from the field, 53 percent from three and were 10-of-14 from the line. Ohio outrebounded the Cardinals, 18-17, with the Bobcats recording eight assists. 



Louisville opened the second half with the first basket, but the Bobcats kept chipping away with a three from Paveletzke cutting the deficit to 64-51 with 16:46 left in the half. A jumper from Paveletzke and a three from Kelly cut the Louisville lead to 72-59, but the Cardinals took advantage of fouls, taking a 75-59 lead into the under-12 media timeout. After the Cardinals took an 81-59 lead, the Bobcats' offense stayed strong, with free throws from Paveletzke and Simmons and baskets from Hadaway and Kelly brought the score to 85-69 going into the under-eight media timeout. 

Over the remaining seven minutes, the Bobcats were unable to string together a run, with Paveletzke hitting five free throws down the stretch, with Ohio falling, 106-81. 

Up next, the Bobcats return to Athens on Wednesday, Nov. 19 when Ohio hosts Bethune-Cookman. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET inside the Convocation Center and can be seen on ESPN+. 

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