Bruins build big 1st half lead, coast past Bobcats
Ohio falls 81-62 to Belmont in BracketBuster game
By: Lonnie McMillan / Contributor
Saturday, February 23, 2013
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Belmont raced out to a 17-point halftime lead and coasted to an 81-62 BracketBuster victory against Ohio on Saturday night at the Curb Center.
The Bruins (22-6) had an 8-0 run in the middle of the first half to build a double-digit lead, and with their advantage at 10, they closed the first 20 minutes with seven straight points to take a 41-24 lead.
Ian Clark led a balanced Belmont attack with 18 points. Trevor Noack and J.J. Mann each scored 17 and Kerron Johnson finished with 16 points.
Reggie Keely paced the Bobcats (20-7) with 12 points and eight rebounds, while T.J. Hall had 10 points. D.J. Cooper was limited to six points on 1-of-8 shooting and three assists with four turnovers.
Walter Offutt scored four straight points to get Ohio within three at the 11:24 mark in the first half, but Craig Bradshaw and Noack hit back-to-back 3-pointers before a Noack layup made it a 21-10 game.
After a pair of Clark free throws pushed Belmont’s lead out to 15, Ohio cut its deficit to 34-24 on a Hall tip-in with 1:36 to go before halftime.
Johnson got two free throws, Brandon Baker scored a layup and Mann drained a 3-pointer to close out the half with the Bruins leading 41-24.
Blake Jenkins hit a free throw to push Belmont’s lead to 18. Ricardo Johnson completed a three-point play after an offensive rebound and Keely knocked down a jumper to cut Ohio’s deficit to 13.
Later, back-to-back jumpers by Ricardo Johnson and Baltic, followed by a Cooper free throw, got the Bobcats within 10, but Mann answered quickly with a 3-pointer at the other end to start an 11-3 Belmont run. Ohio was never closer than 16 after that.
Belmont was 27 of 52 (51.9 percent) from the field, including 8 of 22 from long range, and 19 of 25 at the foul line. Ohio was 23 of 58 (39.7 percent) overall, making just 6 of 24 3-pointers. The Bobcats were 10 of 13 on free throws. Kerron Johnson alone essentially matched Ohio at the line by going 10 of 12.
The Bruins held a 33-24 rebounding advantage, led by Mann’s eight boards, and they had fewer turnovers, 14-12.
The victory moved Belmont to 11-0 at home this season, while Ohio dropped to 5-6 on the road.
Ohio comes home for a Mid-American Conference showdown against Akron at 7 p.m. Wednesday.