Recap: Ohio vs. Northern Ill
Athens, OH (Sports Network) - Walter Offutt went 6-of-8 from the floor to net 19 points as the Ohio University Bobcats coasted to an 81-63 decision over the Northern Illinois Huskies in a Mid-American Conference matchup at the Convocation Center.
Reggie Keely added 12 points in 19 minutes of action for Ohio (12-5, 3-0 MAC) as it earned its fourth consecutive win. D.J. Cooper finished with nine points, eight assists, and four steals for the Bobcats.
Abdel Nader paced NIU (3-12, 1-2) with 16 points to go along with seven rebounds while Keith Gray tallied 14 points. J.J. Cravatta and Darrell Bowie scored 10 points each with the latter also grabbing seven boards. The setback was the second in a row for the Huskies.
Neither side managed to build too big of advantage early on and NIU held a 12-11 lead after nine minutes of action. The Bobcats then went on an 18-0 run to take full control of the bout. Ohio shot 68 percent from the field including a 7-of-11 mark from beyond the arc to generate a monstrous 45-18 halftime advantage.
The Huskies converted 19-of-27 attempts at the charity stripe after the break and limited Ohio to 35.7 percent shooting from the floor in the second half, but they were unable to overcome the halftime deficit.
The Bobcats scored 28 points off of NIU's 20 turnovers while the Huskies produced just 10 points off of Ohio's 15 miscues.
Game Notes
