Blog Archives

Strong second half sends OU past Seahawks

12/31/2014

ATHENS -- After trailing throughout the first half, the Ohio Bobcats rallied for a 72-53 victory over the University of North Carolina – Wilmington Tuesday at the Convocation Center.

Senior forward Maurice Ndour powered the comeback effort with his fifth double-double in 11 games. He scored 23 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and registered four blocks as Ohio moved within a game of .500 at 5-6. UNCW lost its third in a row, dropping it to an identical 5-6 mark.

Joining Ndour in double figures for OU were Javarez Willis (12), Mike Laster (11) and Antonio Campbell (11).

Addison Sprull led the Seahawks with 16 markers, while Craig Ponder added 13. C.J. Gettys scored six points and led UNCW with 11 rebounds.

(CLICK READ MORE TO CONTINUE . . . )

No. 13 Jayhawks pull away from KSU

12/31/2014

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kent State couldn't overcome a cold-shooting second half as No. 13 Kansas pulled away for a 78-62 victory at Allen Fieldhouse on Tuesday night.

The Golden Flashes (8-4) led by as many as six points and found themselves ahead on the scoreboard for most of the first half before a late run allowed Kansas to take a 39-33 advantage into the break. The Jayhawks extended that lead to 21 after intermission as Kent State struggled from the field, missing its first seven shots of the second half and hitting just 10-of-31 in the final 20 minutes.

"We played very hard and, for about 28 minutes, we were right there," said Kent State head coach Rob Senderoff. "There was about a three-minute stretch where I thought it got away from us.

(CLICK READ MORE TO CONTINUE . . . )

Balanced Broncos beat New Hampshire

12/31/2014

KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan Broncos authored a disciplined effort from start to finish on Tuesday, leading for almost the entirety of the game in defeating the New Hampshire Wildcats 70-56 at University Arena. With the win, the Broncos improve to 8-4 overall on the season.

The Broncos led throughout the game but completely locked down the Wildcats in the second half, holding them to a 33.3 field goal percentage in the final 20 minutes and forcing five turnovers. Conversely, WMU committed just two turnovers in the second half and attacked the hoop aggressively, going 10-of-13 from the free throw line. The Broncos shot 41.1 percent from the field and managed 70 points despite going just 3-of-13 from three-point range.

(CLICK READ MORE TO CONTINUE . . . )

Evans posts triple-double in Bulls win

12/31/2014

BINGHAMTON, NY – Sophomore Shannon Evans finished with 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists on Tuesday night, recording the first triple-double in school history as the Buffalo Bulls defeated Binghamton, 76-50, in front of 3,534 fans at the Events Center. The Bulls are now 8-3 on the season heading into their final non-conference game.

The Bulls led throughout the night as they scored the first seven points and never looked back. Buffalo opened up a 21-5 lead just seven minutes into the game as it hit five early three-pointers, including two from Evans and senior Will Regan. Junior Rodell Wigginton also hit a three en route to his first career double-double. A dunk from junior Justin Moss gave the Bulls their largest lead of the first half at 40-19 before taking a 19-point lead into the half.

(CLICK READ MORE TO CONTINUE . . . )

Forsythe posts double-double as UA downs Herd

12/31/2014

By EVAN MEYER
AKRON, OHIO – It wasn’t the prettiest game of the season. However, the Akron Zips found a way to defeat the Marshall Thundering Herd 70-63 Tuesday night at Rhodes Arena.

It was a game that saw a combined 38 turnovers and 34 total personal fouls. Nevertheless, Akron (8-4) picked up its second straight victory and fifth in the last seven games.

“We won.” Zips head coach Keith Dambrot said. “We can’t make any excuses, though we have to play better.”

Four UA players scored in double figures, led by junior Pat Forsythe and freshman Noah Robotham, each with 13 points. Forsythe added 10 rebounds to register his first career double-double, while Robotham added two assists and four steals.
(CLICK READ MORE TO CONTINUE . . . )

MRO PRE-LAUNCH CHECK: Eastern Michigan

12/30/2014

With Mid-American Conference basketball teams about to launch their MAC schedules, MAC Reporter Online takes a look at what they’ve done in non-conference play.

Team: Eastern Michigan Eagles
Coach: Rob Murphy
Record Last year: 22-15. 10-8 MAC
Early 2014-15 record: 11-2

*All rankings/stats are among MAC teams unless otherwise noted:

The Eastern Michigan Eagles recently dropped 100 points on an opponent. Not only is that relatively rare in college basketball, but it might seem a little more surprising because EMU is especially known for its defense.

Head coach Rob Murphy signature 2-3 defense can be nearly suffocating at times, especially now that he has had time to fit his roster with complimentary pieces. That defense is pretty much there night in and night out. A question for Eagles fans is how often will the necessary offense be there?

Steals fuel Huskies win

12/30/2014

DEKALB, Ill. -- Northern Illinois forced 25 turnovers and converted them into 41 points as the Huskies earned an 83-51 victory over Hampton on Monday night (Dec. 29) at the NIU Convocation Center. Junior Darrell Bowie scored a game-high 22 points with 10 rebounds for his second career double-double and senior Aaron Armstead set a new NIU record with eight steals while also scoring 12 points.

With the victory, NIU improved to 5-5 on the season and claimed its 10th consecutive home victory dating back to last season. The Huskies never trailed in the contest and shot 47.5 percent (28-of-59) for the game, including 50 percent (15-of-30) in the first half.

Senior Anthony Johnson chipped in 11 points as the Huskies, who led by 11 at the intermission, allowed just 16 second half points.

(CLICK READ MORE TO CONTINUE . . . )

Toledo challenge at Duke falls short

12/30/2014

DURHAM, NC – Freshman center Jahlil Okafor proved to be too much for Toledo to handle on Monday evening in the Rockets’ 86-69 setback at No. 2 Duke.

The senior trio of guard Julius Brown (19 pts.), guard Justin Drummond (14 pts.) and forward J.D. Weatherspoon (14 pts., team-high eight rebounds) paced Toledo’s offense. Sophomore guard Jonathan Williams was also in double figures with 10 points. Junior center Nathan Boothe tallied nine points but played just 21 minutes due to foul trouble.

Okafor topped Duke offensively with a season-high 27 points on 12-of-15 shooting, while senior guard Quinn Cook posting a season-best 20 points.

After falling behind by 14 points early in the contest, Toledo connected on 13-of-15 shots over a nine-and-a-half minute span to cut the Blue Devils’ lead to 47-44 approximately 90 seconds into the second half.

Okafo, however, ignited a decisive 21-9 run by scoring seven straight points that put Duke up 68-53 with just over nine minutes remaining.

Toledo returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 3 with a trip to Highland Heights, KY for its final non-conference contest at Northern Kentucky (6-7). Tip-off time is set for 4:00 p.m.

(Courtesy of Toledo Athletics)

RedHawks roll past Capital

12/30/2014

Will Sullivan led all scorers with 18 points.

PHOTOS AND STORY
By MIKE SMITH
OXFORD, Ohio – Starting a four-guard offense and getting two points out of the starting center position, the Miami RedHawks nonetheless outscored visiting Capital 42-4 in the paint on the way to a 69-46 victory over the Crusaders Monday at Millett Hall.

"When you see 42-4 in the paint and you don't see the game, you'd think we pounded the ball inside and just dominated," Miami head coach John Cooper said. "Quite Frankly, we were able to score off penetration into the pain, and that was the difference. But it is one of the few times you will see a stat like that."

The lopsided victory was a welcome respite of sorts for the RedHawks, who fell to No. 21 Ohio State a week earlier in Columbus. This time a Columbus team came to Oxford, and the Division III Crusaders (4-6, 2-2 OAC) found themselves in quick trouble. Capital was up 4-2 when Miami went on a 13-1 run to establish a double digit lead at 15-5.

Senior forward Daniel Ocke briefly got the hot hand, draining three treys in a 2:33 span. That allowed Capital to close within four at 19-15, but the RedHawks then answered with an 11-0 burst. Jaryd Eustace’s layup made it a 30-15 game. By halftime, the hosts owned a 39-20 advantage.

(CLICK READ MORE TO CONTINUE . . . )

MRO PRE-LAUNCH CHECK: Northern Illinois

12/29/2014

With Mid-American Conference basketball teams about to launch their MAC schedules, MAC Reporter Online takes a look at what they’ve done in non-conference play.

Team: Northern Illinois Huskies
Coach: Mark Montgomery
Record Last year: 15-17, 8-10 MAC
Early 2014-15 record: 4-5

*All rankings/stats are among MAC teams unless otherwise noted:

-- The Huskies tripled their win total last year and began to shake the “easy mark” reputation as they were also very competitive in most of their MAC losses. Among those defeats were a 73-64 overtime loss against Kent State and 61-59 setback against Eastern Michigan. It seemed like the Huskies were nipping at the heels of .500 much of the year.

They’re again right around that mark heading into conference play. As of Sunday, they had lost four of the last five. One was a 58-55 loss at Dartmouth, while the other was a 91-66 thumping from No. 16 Notre Dame in South Bend. There were also double-digit losses at Iowa (70-49) and at DePaul (78-67).

There were two more non-conference games remaining on the schedule before the MAC opener at Ohio Jan. 7. Both are at home.

-- The Huskies rank 10th in scoring (65.5 ppg) and eighth in scoring defense (66.6 ppg). The scoring margin of minus-1.2 ppg ranks 10th among MAC teams.

(CLICK READ MORE TO CONTINUE . . .)

MRO PRE-LAUNCH CHECK: Central Michigan

12/29/2014

With Mid-American Conference basketball teams about to launch their MAC schedules, MAC Reporter Online takes a look at what they've done in non-conference play.

Team: Central Michigan Chippewas
Coach: Keno Davis
Record Last year: 10-21, 3-15 MAC
Early 2014-15: (Record: 9-1)

An 84-73 loss to Bradley back on Dec. 7 is the only blemish on Central Michigan ’s record through 10 games.

-- CMU ranks first in scoring (84.1) and fifth in defense 62.5). The bottom line is excellent, since the Chippewas are No. 1 among MAC teams in scoring margin (21.7 ppg). The next closest is Eastern Michigan at 15.6.

-- Junior Chris Fowler (6-1, 191) , a cornerstone on the team last year when he averaged 17.4 ppg with 5.3 assists leads a team that has not only improved its offensive weapons, but other areas as well with the addition of several players who can contribute sooner rather than later. It could well be that CMU doesn’t show its value as much among individual MAC leader stats as it does with the collective product.

-- The Chippewas are first in rebounding margin (8.0).

-- CMU is fourth in turnover margin (2.4) and first in assist-to-turnover ration

-- John Simons, a 6-8 junior forward is averaging 11.1 ppg and 5.6 rpg. Sophomore guard Braylan Grayson (5-9, 185) , meanwhile, is averaging 11.0 ppg. with 3.8 assists per outing.

-- CMU ranks first in 3-point field goals made (11.0 per game) and second in 3-point field goal percentage (41.6%).

Overview: Central Michigan has strengthened itself with personnel additions that complement a talented nucleus. It also gives coach Keno Davis a few more options and depth. The Chippewas could well be a significant player in the MAC West race. That side of the conference, however, will be very strong.

UB leads at half before falling at No. 6 Badgers

12/29/2014

MADISON, WI – For the second time this season, the Buffalo Bulls played one of the top teams in the nation, and for the second time the Bulls took a lead into the final half before falling. After facing top-ranked Kentucky a month and a half ago, the Bulls faced sixth-ranked Wisconsin on Sunday evening in front of a sold out crowd of 17,279 at the Kohl Center. The Bulls led the Badgers 27-26 at the half before falling, 68-56. The loss drops UB to 7-3 on the season, with two of those losses coming to nationally-ranked opponents.

The Bulls shot nearly 41 percent from the field in the opening half and led for 14 minutes in the first stanza. The Badgers were leading, 14-13, 11 minutes into the game when the Bulls went on a 12-5 run to take their largest lead of the contest at 25-19 with 4:55 left following a jumper from senior Xavier Ford. Buffalo again lead by six with 3:34 left, however Wisconsin scored the final five points of the half and cut the UB advantge to one at the break.

(CLICK READ MORE TO CONTINUE . . . )

Holmes leads Falcons past USF

12/28/2014

TAMPA, Fla -- Richaun Holmes tallied 19 points, adding nine rebounds and four blocks as Bowling Green posted a bounce-back win by defeating South Florida 79-70 Sunday at the USF Sun Dome. The Falcons were coming off a setback to Ferris State last Sunday.

Jehvon Clarke (15), Jovan Austing (11) and Zach Denny (10) joined Holmes in double figures. Denny and Clark each hit three treys, accounting for two-thirds of the BG total (9-of-22, 40.9%).

South Florida got a game-high 21points from forward Chris Perry. Anthony Collins nearly matched that with 20 of his own, while Corry Allen Jr. came off the bench to score 17. No other Bulls player had more than three points.

Both teams shot 50 percent from the field, with Bowling Green totaling one more field goal. The Falcons launched 22 three-point shots, converting nine (40.9%). South Florida hit 4-of-14 (30.8% from distance).

(CLICK READ MORE TO CONTINUE . . . )

Cards use foul line to edge Lancers

12/28/2014

MUNCIE, Ind -- Visiting Longwood twice closed to within two points late, but the Ball State Cardinals answered both challenges to post a 69-64 victory Sunday at Worthen Arena.

A Darrion Allen trey, followed by a steal and one free throw by Quincy Taylor put the Lancers just two back (64-62) with 32 seconds left. Ball State managed to push the lead out to four points with four straight free throws.

Quincy Taylor scored on a layup with nine seconds to go, but Zavier Turner made it a two-possession game on a free throw with six seconds left, effectively sealing the outcome.

Guard Sean Sellers led the Cardinals with 15 points, including 4-of-4 from behind the arc. BSU hit 10-of-23 (43.5%) for the night on threes.
(CLICK READ MORE TO CONTINUE . . . )

EMU finishes non-conference slate with record

12/28/2014

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – Closing out the 2014 calendar year, the Eastern Michigan Eagles ended their record-breaking non-conference slate by cruising to a 100-42 victory over Concordia University Sunday afternoon at the Convocation Center.

With the convincing win, the Eagles enter Mid-American Conference play with an 11-2 record for the most non-conference victories in program history since joining the Mid-American Conference prior to the 1974-75 season.

In reaching the 11-victory mark, EMU hit the century mark in points for the first time in the Rob Murphy era. The previous high of an Eastern ballclub coached by Murphy was 95 points, coincidentally against Concordia last season, Nov. 12, 2013. The last time EMU recorded 100 points in a game was Nov. 14, 2008 in a 119-48 victory over Marygrove, a span of 197 games.
(CLICK READ MORE TO CONTINUE . . . )

<<Previous

Strong second half sends OU past Seahawks

No. 13 Jayhawks pull away from KSU

Balanced Broncos beat New Hampshire

Evans posts triple-double in Bulls win

Forsythe posts double-double as UA downs Herd

MRO PRE-LAUNCH CHECK: Eastern Michigan

Steals fuel Huskies win

Toledo challenge at Duke falls short

RedHawks roll past Capital

MRO PRE-LAUNCH CHECK: Northern Illinois

MRO PRE-LAUNCH CHECK: Central Michigan

UB leads at half before falling at No. 6 Badgers

Holmes leads Falcons past USF

Cards use foul line to edge Lancers

EMU finishes non-conference slate with record

MAC Football

Categories

Archives