2020–21 Ohio Bobcats men's basketball team

2020–21 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings
	† 2021 MAC Tournament winner ;

2020–21 Ohio Bobcats men's basketball
2020–21 Ohio Bobcats men's basketball
MAC Tournament champions
NCAA Tournament, Second Round
Conference	Mid-American Conference
2020–21 record	17–8 (9–5 MAC)
Head coach	Jeff Boals (2nd season);
Assistant coaches	Lamar Thornton (2nd season); Kyle Barlow (2nd season); Lee Martin (1st season);
Home arena	Convocation Center
	Seasons ← 2019–20 2021–22 →

The 2020–21 Ohio University Bobcats men's basketball team represented Ohio University for the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bobcats were led by second-year head coach Jeff Boals, who was a 1995 graduate of Ohio University.^[1] The team played their home games at the Convocation Center in Athens, Ohio as a member of the Mid-American Conference. In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, they finished the season 17–8, 9–5 in MAC play to finish in fifth place. As the No. 5 seed in the MAC Tournament, they defeated Kent State, Toledo, and Buffalo to win the tournament championship. A a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament as the No. 13 seed in the West region..^[2] There they upset No. 4-seeded Virginia in the First Round^[3] before falling to No. 5-seeded Creighton in the Second Round.^[4]^[5]

Previous season[]

The Bobcats finished the 2019–20 season 17–15, 8–10 in MAC play to finish in last place in the East division. As the No. 8 seed in the MAC Tournament, they defeated Central Michigan in the first round before the tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[6]

Offseason[]

Departures[]


Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Reason
Nate Springs	2	F	6'10"	205	RS Freshman	Charlotte, NC	Transferred to Kennesaw State
Connor Murrell	10	G	6'7"	215	RS Junior	Sioux City, IA	Ended playing career, became graduate assistant
Sylvester Ogbonda	11	F	6'10"	237	Graduate Student	Port Harcourt, Nigeria	Transferred
Jordan Dartis	25	G	6'3"	185	RS Senior	Newark, OH	Exhausted eligibility
Marvin Price	44	G	6'5"	210	Freshman	Baltimore, MD	Transferred to Salt Lake Community College

Incoming transfers[]


Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Reason
Dwight Wilson III	4	F	6'8"	250	Senior	Tallahassee, FL	Transferred from James Madison. Will have one year of eligibility remaining.
Rifen Miguel	23	F	6'8"	240	Junior	Luanda, Angola	Transferred from Tallahassee Community College. Will have two years of eligibility remaining.

Roster[]

2020–21 Ohio Bobcats men's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	Year	Previous school	Hometown
G	0	Jason Preston	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	187 lb (85 kg)	Jr	Believe Sports	Orlando, FL
G	1	Michael Brown, Jr.	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	156 lb (71 kg)	So	Northstar Christian	Rochester, NY
G	2	Miles Brown	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	So	Northstar Christian	Rochester, NY
F	3	Ben Roderick	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	So	Olentangy Liberty	Powell, OH
F	4	Dwight Wilson III	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	250 lb (113 kg)	Sr	Lincoln	Tallahassee, FL
F	5	Ben Vander Plas	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	232 lb (105 kg)	RS Jr	Ripon	Ripon, WI
G	10	Mark Sears	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Fr	Hargrave	Muscle Shoals, AL
F	11	Sam Towns	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	—	Fr	Pickerington Central	Columbus, OH
G	12	John Tenerowicz	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Jr	St. Ignatius	Cleveland, OH
G	15	Lunden McDay	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	So	St. Vincent–St. Mary	Akron, OH
G	21	Jalen White	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Fr	Sam Rayburn	Pasadena, TX
C	22	Nolan Foster	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)	222 lb (101 kg)	So	Mattawan	Mattawan, MI
F	23	Rifen Miguel	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	240 lb (109 kg)	Jr	West Oaks	Luanda, Angola
F	24	Mason McMurray	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	RS So	Stow-Munroe Falls	Stow, OH
F	32	Colin Granger	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	230 lb (104 kg)	Fr	Lambert	Suwanee, GA

Head coach

Jeff Boals (Ohio)

Assistant coach(es)

Lamar Thornton
Kyle Barlow (Concordia)
Lee Martin (Catawba)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster

Schedule and results[]

Ohio had to cancel their games against Mississippi Valley State, Bowling Green, and Kent State due to COVID-19. They also postponed games against Miami (OH), Ball State, Eastern Michigan, Akron, Western Michigan, and Central Michigan.

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 25, 2020* 5:00 P.M.		vs. Chicago State	W 84–61	1-0	15 – McDay	7 – Wilson III	8 – Preston	State Farm Center (0) Champaign, IL
November 26, 2020* 3:00 P.M.		vs. North Carolina A&T	W 84–72	2–0	22 – Roderick	9 – Preston	9 – Preston	State Farm Center (0) Champaign, IL
November 27, 2020* 1:00 P.M., BTN		at No. 8 Illinois	L 75–77	2–1	31 – Preston	8 – Wilson III	8 – Preston	State Farm Center (0) Champaign, IL
December 6, 2020* 2:00 P.M.		Cleveland State	W 101–46	3–1	20 – McDay	14 – Wilson III	8 – Preston	Convocation Center (0) Athens, OH
December 10, 2020* 2:00 P.M.		Purdue Northwest	W 92–72	4–1	22 – Preston	13 – Wilson III	11 – Preston	Convocation Center (0) Athens, OH
December 13, 2020* 2:00 P.M.		at Marshall	L 67–81	4–2	24 – Wilson III	12 – Wilson III	5 – Preston	Henderson Center (1,272) Huntington, WV
December 18, 2020* Canceled		Mississippi Valley State	Canceled					Convocation Center Athens, OH
MAC regular season
December 22, 2020 2:00 P.M.		at Akron	L 70–90	4–3 (0–1)	16 – Preston	7 – Preston	5 – Preston	Rhodes Arena (0) Akron, OH
December 29, 2020 Postponed		at Miami (OH)	Postponed					Millett Hall Oxford, OH
December 30, 2020 2:00 P.M.		at Bowling Green	L 75–83	4–4 (0–2)	20 – Wilson III	11 – Vander Plas	9 – Sears	Convocation Center (0) Athens, OH
January 2, 2021 3:00 P.M., CBSSN		at Ball State	W 78–68	5–4 (1–2)	20 – Roderick	6 – Tied	8 – Sears	Worthen Arena (75) Muncie, Indiana
January 5, 2021 6:00 P.M., ESPN+		Northern Illinois	W 76–73	6–4 (2–2)	25 – Wilson III	8 – Wilson III	7 – Tied	Convocation Center (0) Athens, OH
January 8, 2021 6:30 P.M., CBSSN		at Toledo	L 78–95	6–5 (2–3)	20 – Sears	6 – Vander Plas	5 – Sears	Savage Arena (0) Toledo, OH
January 12, 2021 7:00 P.M.		Miami (OH)	W 78–61	7–5 (3–3)	20 – Roderick	8 – Vander Plas	8 – Preston	Convocation Center (0) Athens, OH
January 16, 2021 2:00 P.M., ESPN+		Kent State	L 79–89	7–6 (3–4)	24 – Vander Plas	6 – Wilson III	10 – Preston	Convocation Center (0) Athens, OH
January 19, 2021 Postponed		at Northern Illinois	Postponed					Convocation Center DeKalb, IL
January 22, 2021 Postponed		Ball State	Postponed					Convocation Center Athens, OH
January 23, 2021 1:30 P.M., ESPN3		Ball State	W 85–77	8–6 (4–4)	19 – Sears	10 – Preston	11 – Preston	Convocation Center (0) Athens, OH
January 26, 2021 6:00 P.M., ESPN+		Western Michigan	W 81–58	9–6 (5–4)	21 – Sears	10 – Preston	6 – Sears	Convocation Center (0) Athens, OH
January 29, 2021 7:00 P.M., ESPNU		at Buffalo	W 76–75	10–6 (6–4)	21 – Wilson III	9 – Preston	4 – Preston	Alumni Arena (0) Buffalo, NY
February 2, 2021 5:00 P.M., ESPN3		at Central Michigan	W 83–69	11–6 (7–4)	17 – Preston	11 – Preston	6 – Preston	McGuirk Arena (0) Mt. Pleasant, MI
February 6, 2021 Postponed		Eastern Michigan	Postponed					Convocation Center Athens, OH
February 9, 2021 Postponed		Akron	Postponed					Convocation Center Athens, OH
February 13, 2021 Postponed		at Western Michigan	Postponed					University Arena Kalamazoo, MI
February 16, 2021 Postponed		Central Michigan	Postponed					Convocation Center Athens, OH
February 20, 2021 Canceled		at Bowling Green	Canceled					Stroh Center Bowling Green, OH
February 23, 2021 2:00 P.M., ESPN3		Akron	W 90–73	12–6 (8–4)	17 – Tied	9 – Vander Plas	9 – Sears	Convocation Center (0) Athens, OH
February 25, 2021 2:00 P.M., ESPN3		Eastern Michigan	W 86–67	13–6 (9–4)	17 – Roderick	9 – Preston	12 – Preston	Convocation Center (0) Athens, OH
February 27, 2021 2:00 P.M., ESPN+		Buffalo	L 66–86	13–7 (9–5)	15 – Roderick	6 – Vander Plas	6 – Tied	Convocation Center (0) Athens, OH
March 2, 2021 Canceled		Kent State	Canceled					MAC Center Kent, OH
March 5, 2021 Canceled		Bowling Green	Canceled					Convocation Center Athens, OH
MAC Tournament
March 11, 2021 1:55 P.M., ESPN+	(5)	vs. (4) Kent State Quarterfinals	W 85–63	14–7	19 – Preston	9 – Wilson III	4 – Preston	Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (0) Cleveland, OH
March 12, 2021 5:00 P.M., CBSSN	(5)	vs. (1) Toledo Semifinals	W 87–80	15–7	27 – Preston	12 – Wilson III	7 – Vander Plas	Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (0) Cleveland, OH
March 13, 2021 7:30 P.M., ESPN2	(5)	vs. (2) Buffalo Championship	W 84–69	16–7	22 – Preston	7 – Wilson III	7 – Preston	Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (0) Cleveland, OH
NCAA Tournament
March 20, 2021 7:15 P.M., truTV	(13 W)	vs. (4 W) No. 15 Virginia First Round	W 62–58	17–7	17 – Vander Plas	13 – Preston	8 – Preston	Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall Bloomington, IN
March 22, 2021 6:10 P.M., TNT	(13 W)	vs. (5 W) No. 19 Creighton Second Round	L 58–72	17–8	12 – Wilson III	10 – Vander Plas	7 – Preston	Hinkle Fieldhouse Indianapolis, IN
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. W=West. All times are in Eastern Time.

Source^[7]

References[]

^ "Men's Basketball". Ohio University. Retrieved 2019-10-16.
^ "2020-21 Ohio Men's Basketball Schedule". Ohio University. Retrieved 2021-09-03.
^ "Ohio vs. Virginia - Game Recap - March 20, 2021 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2021-10-25.
^ "Ohio vs. Creighton - Game Recap - March 22, 2021 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2021-10-25.
^ Henry, Megan. "Athens celebrated March Madness game — despite outcome". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 2021-09-03.
^ "2019-20 Ohio Men's Basketball Schedule". Ohio University. Retrieved 2020-10-16.
^ "2020-21 Ohio Bobcats Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved 2020-11-19.

[1] "Men's Basketball". Ohio University. Retrieved 2019-10-16.

[2] "2020-21 Ohio Men's Basketball Schedule". Ohio University. Retrieved 2021-09-03.

[3] "Ohio vs. Virginia - Game Recap - March 20, 2021 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2021-10-25.

[4] "Ohio vs. Creighton - Game Recap - March 22, 2021 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2021-10-25.

[5] Henry, Megan. "Athens celebrated March Madness game — despite outcome". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 2021-09-03.

[6] "2019-20 Ohio Men's Basketball Schedule". Ohio University. Retrieved 2020-10-16.

[7] "2020-21 Ohio Bobcats Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved 2020-11-19.

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[2]

[3]

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[5]

[6]

[7]

v t Ohio Bobcats men's basketball
Venues	(1907–1908) (1908–1923) (1924–1960) Grover Center (1960–1968) Convocation Center (1968–present)
Culture & lore	Rufus the Bobcat
People	Head coaches
	1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22

2020–21 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings
v t	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Toledo	15	–	4	.789	21	–	9	.700
Buffalo	12	–	5	.706	16	–	9	.640
Akron	12	–	6	.667	15	–	8	.652
Kent State	12	–	6	.667	15	–	8	.652
Ohio †	9	–	5	.643	17	–	8	.680
Bowling Green	10	–	8	.556	14	–	12	.538
Miami (OH)	9	–	8	.529	12	–	11	.522
Ball State	8	–	9	.471	10	–	13	.435
Western Michigan	4	–	12	.250	5	–	16	.238
Eastern Michigan	3	–	11	.214	6	–	12	.333
Central Michigan	3	–	13	.188	7	–	16	.304
Northern Illinois	2	–	12	.143	3	–	16	.158

† 2021 MAC Tournament winner