MAC Overview - day one

Here is another photo that I took from today's game.

Overall it was a crazy first day of the MAC Tournament.

Here are the results after the first day:

Central Michigan 62, Eastern Michigan 49
-a relatively uneventful game where the Chippewas had control of.

Kent State 64, Northern Illnois 61
-close call for the Golden Flashes here, with the Huskies winning throughout most of the game

Ohio 62, Western Michigan 55
-The Bobcats rebounded from their blowout loss on Sunday and had control of this one throughout

Akron 93, Toledo 92(overtime)
-craziest game of the night that was decided on an Akron layup with less than one second to save the Zips from an upset

So far I'm 3-1 in my picks, with my only loss the Ohio game.

Here's how the second round of the tournament looks:
No. 2 Ball State vs. No. 7 Central Michigan, noon
No. 3 Buffalo vs. vs. No. 6 Kent State, 2:30 p.m.
No. 1 Bowling Green vs. No. 9 Ohio, 7 p.m.
No. 3 Miami vs. No. 5 Akron, 9:30 p.m.

Big win for the Bobcats

Well the game had the makings of another Ohio collapse, but point guard Michael Allen wasn't going to let it happen again.

Allen propelled the Bobcats to a 62-55 win on Tuesday to move his team to the second round of the Mid-American Conference tournament.

He scored 12 points, including a layup with 1:28 remaining to give the Bobcats a 56-55 lead, which they kept throughout the rest of the game.

"I was proud of how we competed defensively," coach John Groce said. "I thought our guys grinded it and really competed well. It was certainly one of our best defensive performances overall.”

The Bobcats held the Broncos to just 34 percent shooting from the field. They also held Western Michigan's leading scorer David Kool to just 10 points, eight below his season average. Kool said he was frustrated throughout the game after in a news conference.

Groce said that was the plan.

“We felt like coming into the game we were really focused on making him giving the basketball up,” Groce said. “We wanted to make sure it was as difficult as possible to score.”

The Bobcats (15-16) held the lead throughout the majority of the game. But with 2:29 remaining, the Broncos took the lead for the first time since the opening stages of the game.

Many times before, Ohio folded under this type of pressure.

But not this time.

"In game situations you can’t reflect on the past," Allen said. "We just keep believing and keep playing hard."

Along with Allen, forward Jerome Tillman scored 14 points. Many of those came in crunch time when the Bobcats needed him the most.

"I thought our three seniors gave big-time effort," Groce said. "I thought we played with a great deal of energy and tremendous toughness."

Western Michigan had one chance to tie the game late with Ohio leading 58-55. But Kool took the ball and shot an air ball from 3-point range with 14 seconds. Tillman defended Kool, making sure he used his height advantage against him.

He along with guard Steven Coleman and forward Justin Orr were responsible for shutting down Kool.

“It was a team effort from different guys,” Tillman said of defending Kool. “I think JO and Steve were focused on trying to get stops.”

Another key was free throw shooting. The Bobcats shot 21-of-26 from the line while the Broncos were just 8-of-17.

"If you look at the stat sheet we won most of the statistical categories except the free throws," Western Michigan coach Steve Hawkins said. "That ended up being the ultimate thing."

Western Michigan (10-21) likely will not get a chance to continue its season in a postseason tournament with the loss. Guard Shawntes Gray defined the passion of college basketball for the Broncos, tearing up in the postgame newsconference after.

“I knew it could’ve been my last game so I was going to get out there and do everything I could,” said Gray who had eight points. "They came out with shots and we struggled defensively."

The Bobcats, meanwhile, now will get a chance to avenge the 75-41 loss they suffered last Sunday against Bowling Green. The game is set for 7 p.m. on Thursday.

"I just look forward to getting on the floor again," Tillman said. "Take tomorrow and get the legs back."

Here are photos that I took sitting courtside at the game.

Live from Cleveland

I’m here live from Cleveland for Ohio’s opening round game of the Mid-American Conference tournament. The Bobcats tipped off versus the Western Michigan Broncos at Quicken Loans Arena.

The Bobcats (14-16) are the No. 9 seed, while the Broncos (10-20) are the No. 8 seed. I’ll be live-blogging throughout today’s game.

I'm sitting next to Bowling Green coach Louis Orr, whose team is slotted to play today's winner in the next round.

One of the benefits of sitting courtside is you can heard everything the players and coaches are saying to one another. It truly is a unique experience to hear a referee tell guard Tommy Freeman to “get up” when he fell on the ground after a 3-point attempt.

I also can take photos from the court, which, I will upload throughout the game.

Ohio 62, Western Michigan 55 - final

The Bobcats closed it out with clutch free throws. Tillman still led the way for Ohio with 14 points. Ohio shot 21-of-26 from the line while Western Michigan shot just 8-15.

The Bobcats will play Bowling Green 7 p.m. on Thursday.

Ohio 56, Western Michigan 55 - 1:20 second half

Mike Allen just scored a layup to give the Bobcats a one-point lead. Timeout Western Michigan.

Western Michigan 55, Ohio 54 - 2:19 second half

Allen made both free throws but Western Michigan made another 3-pointer to cut the lead to one. After Coleman missed a jump shot, the Broncos scored another basket to get their first lead in ages.

Ohio 52, Western Michigan 50 - 3:44 second half

Western Michigan guard David Kool just hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key with the shot clock winding down to cut the lead to two points.

Ohio has continued to make its free throws today, shooting 13-of-16. Western Michigan is just 8-of-15.

Expect this game to go down to the wire.

Ohio 46, Western Michigan 41 - 7:40 second half

DeVaughn Washington knocked down two clutch free throws to extend the Bobcats lead. He leads the team today with 11 points.

Ohio 40, Western Michigan 34 - 11:25 second half

Whenever the Broncos cut the Bobcats' lead, they respond with big baskets. After a Western Michigan 3-pointer, forward Jerome Tillman made his second 3-pointer to push the lead back to six.

Ohio 31, Western Michigan 29 - 15:38 second half

Well so much for that run to start the half. The Broncos have reeled off eight consecutive points to cut the double-digit lead to two.

Another benefit of sitting courtside is experiencing the raw player emotion. On a pick and roll by Western Michigan which Steven Coleman failed to switch players, Tillman screamed "No Steve!"

Ohio 31, Western Michigan 21 - 18:23 second half

The Bobcats have started the half on a 6-0, key by guard Mike Allen. He hit a 3-pointer and then stole the ball and converted a free throw. Timeout Western Michigan.

Ohio 25, Western Michigan 21 - halftime

Justin Orr buried a 3-pointer at the end of the half but it clearly was in his hands when the buzzer sounded.

Aside from that shot though, it was an ugly first half. The Bobcats should be leading by at least 10 with as poorly as the Broncos have shot. Yet Ohio can't seem to do much on offense as well, with Tillman limited to just three points on 1-of-4 shooting.

Guard Steven Coleman has been one of few players on the court have has been aggressive, leading the team with eight points.


Ohio 21, Western Michigan 16 - 3:54 first half

The ball just rolled my way on a lose ball, which was pretty cool. The Bobcats have played less worse than the Broncos so far. Tommy Freeman buried a 3-pointer to give Ohio a three-point lead and Steven Coleman scored on a fast break layup.

Ohio 14, Western Michigan 13 - 7:38 first half

Sensing his team needed an offensive spark, Groce has brought Tillman back into the game with 10:14 remaining in the first half.

He hasn't made much of an impact though as he was called for a travel on an Ohio possession. On the next possession, he had a ball stripped out of his hands inside the paint.


But he finally got going with a 3-pointer to give the Bobcats a 14-13 lead.


Western Michigan 13, Ohio 7 - 11:21 first half

The Bobcats cut the Western Michigan lead to one, 8-7 but the Broncos have responded with five straight to gain some breathing room. At the 13:55 mark, leading scorer Jerome Tillman picked up his second foul and now sits on the bench.

Western Michigan 6, Ohio 4 - 15:56 first half

The first few minutes of the game have been sluggish with many missed shots and players flying all over the floor. Ohio forward DeVaughn Washington just converted on a layup and was fouled before the first media timeout.

More tournament winners

Here's my predictions for other conference tournaments:

ACC: North Carolina
Atlantic 10: Xavier
Big East: Louisville
Big 10: Purdue
Big 12: Oklahoma
Big West: Pacific
Conference USA: Memphis
MAC: Buffalo
MEAC: Morgan State
Mountain West: Utah
Pacific 10: UCLA
SEC: Auburn
Southland: Stephen F. Austin
SWAC: Alabama State
WAC: Utah State

Here's what the Cincinnati Enquirer's Dustin Down thinks

Here's a link to ESPN.com's coverage of Championship Week.

Predictions galore

Well here's how I see the MAC Tournament playing out:

No. 8 Western Michigan over No. 9 Ohio
No. 5 Akron over No. 12 Toledo
No. 7 Central Michigan over No. 10 Eastern Michigan
No. 6 Kent State over No. 11 Northern Illinois

No. 1 Bowling Green over No. 8 WMU
No. 5 Akron over No. 4 Miami
No. 7 Central Michigan over No. 2 Ball State
No. 3 Buffalo over No. 6 Kent State

No. 1 Bowling Green over No. 5 Akron
No. 3 Buffalo over No. 7 Central Michigan

No. 3 Buffalo over No. 1 Bowling Green

Although they struggled down the stretch, the Bulls are the best team in the MAC. They played the toughest nonconference schedule and will beat the Falcons 66-62 in the tournament final.

Ugly loss

Wow. The Bobcats were blasted by Bowling Green today 75-41, the Bobcats' seventh consecutive road loss.

This wasn't exactly the way Ohio wanted to end its regular season.

“For the first time all year that I’m really disappointed and embarrassed,” coach John Groce said. “We didn’t represent the guys that played here in the past. We just didn’t get it done.”

The Bobcats (14-16, 7-9 MAC) were down 23-5 within the first five minutes of the game. They never caught up.

“Bowling Green came out and threw a couple of punches at us early,” Groce said. “Our guys just didn’t respond. That’s awful disappointing when you have three guys out there.”

Ohio's three seniors combined for 13 points. Leading scorer Jerome Tillman only had one point.

“This wasn’t a representation of Ohio basketball,” Groce said.

The Bobcats now travel to Cleveland where they will play in the Mid-American Conference tournament on Tuesday. They are the No. 9 seed and will play the No. 8 seed Western Michigan. The Broncos already defeated Ohio 76-62 on February 11.

Expect another early exit by the Bobcats again this tournament.

Here are the rest of the matchups:

No. 5 Akron vs. No. 12 Toledo
No. 6 Kent State vs. No. 11 Northern Illinois
No. 7 Central Michigan vs. No. 10 Eastern Michigan
No. 8 Western Michigan vs. No. 9 Ohio

No. 4 Miami vs. Akron/Toledo winner
No. 3 Buffalo vs. Kent State/Northern Illinois winner
No. 2 Ball State vs. Central Michigan/Eastern Michigan winner
No. 1 Bowling Green vs. Western Michigan/Ohio winner

I'll be in Cleveland for Tuesday's game and provide live blogging throughout. I'll also have my predictions posted sometime tomorrow.

Another day, another road loss

The Bobcats' 60-51 loss last tonight to Akron was Ohio's 12th of the season. Ohio (14-15, 7-8 MAC) never could stay with the Zips.

"They just physically man-handled us," Groce said. "We weren't able to run our offense. They imposed their will," coach John Groce said.

Turnovers plagued Ohio again as they fell behind early and never could rebound.

"It's so difficult to win when you throw the ball to the other team," Groce said.

The Bobcats have one regular-season game remaining on Sunday at Bowling Green. Expect more of the same from the struggling Bobcats.

Before the game, Ohio players were confident that they could finally win one on the road. They had even beaten the Zips earlier in the season.

"They're definitely going to be ready for us once we get off the bus," Freeman said before the game. "They expected to come in here and physically out tough us."

Point guard Michael Allen said that his team can't worry about where Ohio plays.

"Everybody is going to think we can't get it done," Allen said. "But as long as we believe, that's all that matters."

Here's a link to the Bobcats' website for more information on the game.

Here's what fans are saying about the state >of Ohio basketball.