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CLEVELAND – The sixth-seeded Ohio men's basketball (15-17) season ended on Thursday night (March 12), falling to No. 3 Kent State (24-8), 86-75, in the Mid-American Conference Quarterfinals inside Rocket Arena.

Overall, Ohio shot 44.2 percent from the field, 23.8 percent from three and 75 percent from the line, while Kent State shot 47.5 percent from the field, 35.0 percent from three and 72.4 percent from the line. Ohio outrebounded Kent State, 35-32, while Kent State dished out 16 assists to Ohio's 11. 

Senior forward Aidan Hadaway (Lafayette, Ga.) led the Bobcats with 24 points, going 9-of-16 from the field and 4-of-9 from three and 2-for-2 from the line. He also grabbed seven rebounds. Redshirt junior forward Javan Simmons (Columbus, Ohio) added 22 points, going 7-of-11 from the field and 8-of-12 from the line, while grabbing five rebounds. Senior guard Jackson Paveletzke (Kimberly, Wis.) added 12 points and seven assists. 

Ohio won the tip, but Kent State got on the board first with two free throws. Moments later, a layup from Hadaway and three-point play from Simmons put the Bobcats up, 7-5 early. After Kent State took a 10-7 lead, back-to-back threes from Hadaway gave the Bobcats a one-point lead. The two teams traded baskets over the next few minutes before a layup from Kent State put the Flashes up 16-15 with 11:08 to go in the first half. After Kent State went up three, a three-point play from Simmons tied the game at 18-18. Both teams traded baskets, before back-to-back layups from Paveletzke and redshirt senior Jalen Breath (Oklahoma City, Okla.) put the Bobcats up four. After the two teams traded baskets, a three from the Flashes tied the game at 26-26 entering the under-eight media timeout. 

Out of the break, Kent State took a two-point lead, however, a free throw from Breath and a layup and three from Hadaway, gave the Bobcats a 32-28 lead, forcing Kent State to call a timeout with 4:21 left in the half. Out of the timeout, Kent State chipped away at the Ohio lead, taking a four-point lead, before a layup from Hadaway stopped the run. After a three from Kent State put the Flashes up five, another three from Hadaway at the buzzer sent Ohio to the locker room trailing, 40-38. 

At the half, Ohio shot 46.9 percent from the field, 28.6 percent from three and 66.7 percent from the line, while Kent State shot 43.2 percent from the field, 41.7 percent from three and were 3-of-6 from the line. Ohio outrebounded the Flashes, 21-19, while Ohio dished out six assists compared to nine from Kent State.  



After Kent State took a four-point lead to open the half, the Bobcats tied the game at 42-42 before a 4-0 put the Flashes back up four. After Ohio cut the deficit to three, Kent State went on a 7-2 run to take a 53-45 lead with 15:52 left in the game. Out of the break, the Ohio offense would be unable to chip away, with Kent State taking a 57-45 lead, forcing Ohio to burn a timeout with 14:05 remaining. A layup from Breath stopped the Ohio scoring drought, however Kent State matched it with a three, taking a 61-47 lead entering the under-12 media timeout. 

Out of the break, free throws from Paveletzke and a layup from redshirt freshman forward Kiir Kuany (Melbourne, Australia) cut the Ohio deficit to 11, a 4-0 run from Kent State helped put them up 67-54. However, the two teams continued to trade baskets, with the Flashes taking a 71-56 lead into the under-eight media timeout. After three-straight free throws from the Bobcats, a three from senior guard Ajay Sheldon (Columbus, Ohio) cut the Ohio deficit to nine. After the two teams traded free throws, the Ohio defense forced a turnover, setting up a layup from Simmons, cutting the Kent State lead to 75-68 with 4:10 remaining. 

A defensive stop and a driving layup from Paveletzke brought the Bobcats within five. After Kent State hit two free throws to go up seven, Paveletzke cut the deficit back to five with two free throws of his own. However, the Ohio offense was unable to cut further into the lead, with Kent State hitting their free throws down the stretch, securing the 86-75 victory. 

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