Ohio Bobcats fall to Creighton 72-58 in the 2nd round of NCAA Tournament
Justin Holbrock
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (WCMH) — The Ohio Bobcats’ historic season came to an end Monday as No. 13 OU fell 72-58 to No. 5 seed Creighton in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
This was the Bobcats first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2012 and 13th in school history. Ohio shocked defending national champion Virginia 62-58 to reach the Round of 32.
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – MARCH 22: Jason Preston #0 of the Ohio Bobcats goes up for a shot against Christian Bishop #13 of the Creighton Bluejays in the first half of their second round game of the 2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Hinkle Fieldhouse on March 22, 2021 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – MARCH 22: Christian Bishop #13 of the Creighton Bluejays dunks the ball against the Ohio Bobcats in the first half of their second round game of the 2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Hinkle Fieldhouse on March 22, 2021 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – MARCH 22: Head coach Jeff Boals of the Ohio Bobcats reacts in the first half of their second round game against the Creighton Bluejays in the 2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Hinkle Fieldhouse on March 22, 2021 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – MARCH 22: Ben Vander Plas #5 of the Ohio Bobcats is fouled in the first half of their second round game against the Creighton Bluejays in the 2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Hinkle Fieldhouse on March 22, 2021 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – MARCH 22: Lunden McDay #15 of the Ohio Bobcats throws up a shot against Damien Jefferson #23 of the Creighton Bluejays in the first half of their second round game of the 2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Hinkle Fieldhouse on March 22, 2021 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – MARCH 22: Damien Jefferson #23 of the Creighton Bluejays goes up for a shot against Dwight Wilson III #4 of the Ohio Bobcats in the first half of their second round game of the 2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Hinkle Fieldhouse on March 22, 2021 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
BLOOMINGTON, INDIANA – MARCH 20: Jason Preston #0 of the Ohio Bobcats handles the ball defended by Reece Beekman #2 of the Virginia Cavaliers in the first round game of the 2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Assembly Hall on March 20, 2021 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
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Ohio struggled on offense all game shooting 31% from the field while the Bobcats’ leading scorer Jason Preston didn’t score his first basket until 29 minutes into the game. He finished the game with just four points.
No Bobcat had success from the behind the arc as OU shot 7-of-30 from deep.
Aside from its shooting woes, Ohio committed 14 turnovers and the Blue Jays capitalized scoring 18 points off of those mistakes.
In the first half, OU made just 31% of its shots while Creighton shot 50%. Ohio only made two shots in the last 11 minutes and 30 seconds of the first half while Creighton went on a 20-4 run to lead by 15 points at halftime.
The Blue Jays kept it up in the first five minutes of the second half increasing their lead to 21 points after back to back three pointers. The closest OU got in the second half was nine points, but it was with just two minutes and 26 seconds left in the game.
Creighton’s Marcus Zegarowski led all scorers with 20 points while Christian Bishop cleaned up on the glass with 15 rebounds and 12 points. Lunden McDay led the Bobcats with 11 points.
Ohio ends its season with 17 wins and eight losses. The Bobcats only have one senior on the team in center Dwight Wilson who has a chance to return due to the extra year of eligibility granted by the NCAA.
