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NORFOLK, Va. – The Ohio men's basketball team (13-12, 7-5 MAC) returned to action on Saturday, Feb. 7 for the second game of the MAC-SBC Challenge, falling to Old Dominion (8-17, 4-8 SBC), 78-72, inside Chartway Arena. 

Overall, Ohio shot 47 percent from the field, were 8-of-25 from three and 10-of-15 from the line, while Old Dominion shot 45 percent from the field, were 6-of-13 from three and 16-of-18 from the line. ODU outrebounded the Bobcats 36-32, while the Ohio dished out 21 assists. 

Senior guard Ajay Sheldon (Dublin, Ohio) led the Bobcats with 19 points, going 7-of-13 from the field and 5-of-9 from three. He also grabbed three rebounds and dished out four assists in 35 minutes. Redshirt junior forward Javan Simmons (Columbus, Ohio) added 14 points and four rebounds, while senior forward Aidan Hadaway (Lafayette, Ga.) scored 12 points and grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds. Redshirt senior forward Jalen Breath (Oklahoma City, Okla.) added 11 points, while senior guard Jackson Paveletzke (Kimberly, Wis.) dished out 11 assists. 

ODU got on the board first, but the Bobcats responded with a three from Sheldon. After a jumper from Simmons, Sheldon hit another three to put Ohio up 5-2 early. After another basket from ODU, another jumper from Simmons and then six-straight points from Breath gave the Bobcats a 16-6 lead with 14:24 left in the first half. After a three from ODU stopped the run, another layup from Breath helped give the Bobcats the 18-12 lead going into the under-12 media timeout. 

Out of the break, ODU cut the Ohio lead to two, however Sheldon responded with a layup, giving Ohio a 20-16 lead. After ODU tied the game at 20-20 on a four-point play, Sheldon's third three of the game put the Bobcats back up three. A driving layup from Old Dominion moments later cut the Ohio lead to one entering the under-eight break. 

Out of the timeout, the offense picked up on both sides. After ODU took the lead, a jumper from Sheldon put Ohio back in front. After Hadaway would help tie the game at 27-27, ODU would go on a 9-2 run to take a seven-point lead before a jumper from Paveletzke stopped the run. After a jumper from Simmons cut the Ohio deficit to three with 37 seconds to go, ODU was able to get a contested jumper with five seconds left to take a 40-35 lead into the break. 

At the half, Ohio shot 48 percent from the field, were 3-of-12 from three and 2-for-2 from the line, while ODU shot 44 percent from the field, 4-of-6 from three and were 6-of-6 from the line. Ohio outrebounded Old Dominion, 19-16 and dished out 11 assists. 

Sheldon led the Bobcats with 13 points at the half, while Breath added eight points and Hadaway seven rebounds. 

The Bobcats opened the second half with a three from freshman guard JJ Kelly (Chambersburg, Pa.) and a layup from Hadaway to tie the game at 40-40. The two teams continued to trade baskets, before a layup from ODU put the up three going into the first media timeout. After ODU took a five-point lead, a dunk from Breath cut the deficit back to three once again. After free throws form Paveletzke cut the Ohio deficit back to three, another three from Sheldon tied the game at 51-51. After ODU matched it with a three, a free throw from Breath cut the deficit to two with 11:32 remaining in the game. 

Out of the timeout, another three from Sheldon gave the Bobcats the 55-54 lead. However, ODU would go on an 7-1 run to take a five-point lead with 8:12 remaining. A jumper from Paveletzke cut the ODU lead to three, however, Old Dominion matched it with a three-point play to take a 64-58 lead. After ODU went up seven, a three and a dunk from Kelly cut the Ohio deficit to two with 5:36 to go. However, Old Dominion matched it with a fastbreak layup, converting on free throw to put ODU back up five with 5:29 to go. After ODU took a seven-point lead, a layup from Simmons cut the deficit back down to five going into the final media timeout. 

After the break, another three from Sheldon cut the Ohio deficit back down to two, however, ODU matched it with a layup to take a 73-69 lead with 1:48 to go. After free throws from Simmons cut the deficit to two, the Ohio offense would be unable to generate anything over the remaining minute, as ODU hit their free throws, securing the 78-72 win. 

The Bobcats are off during the midweek, but are back in action on Friday, Feb. 13 when the Bobcats head Oxford, Ohio to take on No. 23 Miami. Tip-off is set for 9 p.m. ET inside Millett Hall and can be seen nationally on ESPN. 

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