2020–21 Ohio Bobcats men's basketball team

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][2] The team played their home games at the Convocation Center in Athens, Ohio as a member of the Mid-American Conference.[3] 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.[4] A a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 13 seed in the West region.[5] There they upset No. 4-seeded Virginia in the First Round[6] before falling to No. 5-seeded Creighton in the Second Round.[7][8]

2020–21 Ohio Bobcats men's basketball
MAC tournament champions
NCAA tournament, second round
ConferenceMid-American Conference
Record17–8 (9–5 MAC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Lamar Thornton (2nd season)
  • Kyle Barlow (2nd season)
  • Lee Martin (1st season)
Home arenaConvocation Center
2020–21 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
Toledo15–4 .78921–9  .700
Buffalo12–5 .70616–9  .640
Akron12–6 .66715–8  .652
Kent State12–6 .66715–8  .652
Ohio †9–5 .64317–8  .680
Bowling Green10–8 .55614–12  .538
Miami (OH)9–8 .52912–11  .522
Ball State8–9 .47110–13  .435
Western Michigan4–12 .2505–16  .238
Eastern Michigan3–11 .2146–12  .333
Central Michigan3–13 .1887–16  .304
Northern Illinois2–12 .1433–16  .158
† 2021 MAC tournament winner

Previous season
Main article: 2019–20 Ohio Bobcats men's basketball team

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.[9]

Offseason

Coaching Departures
Coaching Departures
Name Alma Mater Previous position New position
Steve SnellAssistant coachDirector of Basketball Operations (North Carolina State)[10]

Coaching Additions
Coaching Additions
Name Alma Mater Previous position New position
Lee MartinCatawba CollegeHead coach (Hargrave Military Academy)AssistantCoach[11]

Departures
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 Exhausted eligibility
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
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.

Recruiting class
US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Mark Sears
PG		 Muscle Shoals, AL Hargrave Military Academy 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Jul 22, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN grade: 74
Sam Towns
PF		 Winchendon, MA The Winchendon School 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 190 lb (86 kg) May 16, 2022 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Jalen White
SG		 Pasadena, TX Sam Rayburn High School 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jul 18, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Colin Granger
PF		 Suwanee, Ga. Lambert High School 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 213 lb (97 kg) Nov 15, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2020 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Roster
2020–21 Ohio Bobcats men's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
G 0 Jason Preston 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)187 lb (85 kg) JrBelieve Sports Orlando, FL
G 1 Michael Brown, Jr. (W) 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)156 lb (71 kg) SoNorthstar Christian Rochester, NY
G 2 Miles Brown 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)180 lb (82 kg) SoNorthstar Christian Rochester, NY
F 3 Ben Roderick 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)205 lb (93 kg) SoOlentangy Liberty Powell, OH
F 4 Dwight Wilson III 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)250 lb (113 kg) SrLincoln Tallahassee, FL
F 5 Ben Vander Plas 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)232 lb (105 kg) RS JrRipon Ripon, WI
G 10 Mark Sears 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)185 lb (84 kg) FrHargrave Muscle Shoals, AL
F 11 Sam Towns 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
—
 FrPickerington Central Columbus, OH
G 12 John Tenerowicz (W) 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)185 lb (84 kg) JrSt. Ignatius Cleveland, OH
G 15 Lunden McDay 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)185 lb (84 kg) SoSt. Vincent–St. Mary Akron, OH
G 21 Jalen White 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)180 lb (82 kg) FrSam Rayburn Pasadena, TX
C 22 Nolan Foster 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)222 lb (101 kg) SoMattawan Mattawan, MI
F 23 Rifen Miguel 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)240 lb (109 kg) JrWest Oaks Luanda, Angola
F 24 Mason McMurray 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)220 lb (100 kg) RS SoStow-Munroe Falls Stow, OH
F 32 Colin Granger 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)230 lb (104 kg) FrLambert Suwanee, GA
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Support Staff
2020-21 Ohio Bobcats Support Staff
  • Jake Ness - Director of Basketball Operations

Preseason

Prior to the season Ohio was picked second in the MAC preseason poll.[12] Jason Preston was named to the preseason first team all-conference while Ben Vander Plas was on the second team.

Preseason rankings
MAC preseason poll
Predicted finish Team Votes (1st place)
1Bowling Green(8) 132
2Ohio(1) 117
3Akron(2) 115
4Buffalo109
5Ball State104
6Toledo(1) 93
7Kent State65
8Eastern Michigan57
9Miami48
10Northern Illinois43
11Central Michigan40
12Western Michigan13

MAC Tournament Champions: Bowling Green (4), Akron (2), Ball State (1), Buffalo (1), Eastern Michigan (1), Kent State (1), Miami (1), Toledo (1)

Source[12]

Preseason All-MAC
Preseason All-MAC teams
Team Player Position Year
1st Jason Preston G Jr.
2nd Ben Vander Plas F Jr.

Source[12]

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 – 3 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 – 2 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 – 2 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 – 2 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[13]

Statistics

Team Statistics
Final 2020–21 Statistics
Record Ohio OPP
Scoring19801815
Scoring Average79.2072.60
Field goals – Att728–1519646–1468
3-pt. Field goals – Att209–593197–583
Free throws – Att315–448326–429
Rebounds883840
Assists437345
Turnovers301344
Steals161141
Blocked Shots5265

Source[14]

Player statistics
Minutes Scoring Total FGs 3-point FGs Free-Throws Rebounds
Player GP GS Tot Avg Pts Avg FG FGA Pct 3FG 3FA Pct FT FTA Pct Off Def Tot Avg A PF TO Stl Blk
Dwight Wilson 24 23 656 27.3 347 14.5 150 229 0.655 0 2 0 47 70 0.671 65 116 181 7.5 16 44 40 13 9
Ben Vander Plas 25 25 846 33.8 321 12.8 114 263 0.433 51 146 0.349 42 55 0.764 19 126 145 5.8 94 60 58 36 15
Jason Preston 20 20 691 34.6 314 15.7 127 247 0.514 32 82 0.39 28 47 0.596 21 124 145 7.3 145 27 60 29 5
Ben Roderick 23 22 608 26.4 285 12.4 105 221 0.475 55 139 0.396 20 30 0.667 14 56 70 3 19 51 25 14 4
Lunden McDay 25 25 741 29.6 255 10.2 86 208 0.413 28 84 0.333 55 69 0.797 31 27 58 2.3 32 43 23 17 5
Mark Sears 24 5 468 19.5 203 8.5 64 137 0.467 12 43 0.279 63 74 0.851 19 47 66 2.8 81 35 29 24 1
Miles Brown 25 1 442 17.7 114 4.6 34 82 0.415 17 48 0.354 29 45 0.644 4 34 38 1.5 30 28 18 18 7
Rifen Miguel 13 0 95 7.3 38 2.9 12 35 0.343 3 12 0.25 11 15 0.733 9 12 21 1.6 0 28 13 3 2
Jalen White 11 0 65 5.9 30 2.7 11 25 0.44 6 13 0.462 2 3 0.667 4 7 11 1 3 6 2 1 1
Colin Granger 22 2 134 6.1 29 1.3 12 29 0.414 0 1 0 5 10 0.5 14 13 27 1.2 3 38 10 2 0
Sam Towns 15 2 120 8 21 1.4 7 26 0.269 2 16 0.125 5 14 0.357 4 16 20 1.3 6 14 2 3 3
Mason McMurray 19 0 86 4.5 18 0.9 5 12 0.417 3 7 0.429 5 9 0.556 7 13 20 1.1 7 12 3 1 0
Nolan Foster 6 0 27 4.5 2 0.3 1 2 0.5 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 1 3 0.5 0 7 2 0 0
John Tenerowicz 5 0 11 2.2 2 0.4 0 2 0 0 0 0 2 2 1 1 0 1 0.2 1 1 1 0 0
Michael Brown 5 0 10 2 1 0.2 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 4 0.25 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0
Total 25 - 5000 - 1980 79.2 728 1519 0.479 209 593 0.352 315 448 0.703 240 643 883 35.3 437 396 301 161 52
Opponents 25 - 5000 - 1815 72.6 646 1468 0.440 197 583 0.338 326 429 0.760 228 612 840 33.6 345 441 344 141 65
Legend
  GP  Games played   GS  Games started  Avg  Average per game
  FG  Field-goals made  FGA  Field-goal attempts  Off  Offensive rebounds
 Def  Defensive rebounds   A  Assists   TO Turnovers
 Blk  Blocks  Stl  Steals  High  Team high

Source[14]

Awards and honors

Weekly Awards
Weekly Award Honors
Honors Player Position Date Awarded Source
MAC player of the week Jason Preston G November 30 [15]

Final awards watchlists
Final award honors watchlist
Honors Player Position Year Source
Lou Henson National Player of the Year Jason Preston G Jr. [16]

All-MAC Awards
Postseason All-MAC teams
Award Player Position Year
MAC 1st team Jason Preston G Jr.
MAC 3rd Team Ben Vander Plas F Jr.
MAC 3rd team Dwight Wilson III F Sr.
MAC Freshman Team Mark Sears F Fr.
MAC Defensive Team Lunden McDay G So.

Source[17]

National Awards
National Award Honors
Honors Player Position Ref.
Academic All-American Ben Vander Plas F [18]

References
  1. "Men's Basketball". Ohio University. Archived from the original on October 16, 2019. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
  2. "Jeff Boals". Sports Reference. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  3. "Convocation Center". Ohio University. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  4. "Ohio Bobcats down Buffalo to win MAC Tournament, earn NCAA Tournament bid". Cincinnati Enquirer.
  5. "2020-21 Ohio Men's Basketball Schedule". Ohio University. Retrieved September 3, 2021.
  6. "Ohio vs. Virginia - Game Recap - March 20, 2021 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
  7. "Ohio vs. Creighton - Game Recap - March 22, 2021 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
  8. Henry, Megan. "Athens celebrated March Madness game — despite outcome". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved September 3, 2021.
  9. "2019-20 Ohio Men's Basketball Schedule". Ohio University. Archived from the original on January 11, 2020. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
  10. "Steve Snell". North Carolina State Athletics. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
  11. "Lee Martin". Ohio Athletics. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
  12. "Men's Basketball Preseason Coaches Poll & All-MAC Teams Announced" getsomemaction.com. Retrieved 2020-01-24.
  13. "2020-21 Ohio Bobcats Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved November 19, 2020.
  14. "2020-21 Ohio Bobcats Roster and Stats". Sports Reference.
  15. "Men's Basketball Players of the Week".
  16. "Preston Named Lou Henson Award Finalist".
  17. "2020-21 Men's Basketball Postseason Awards Announced".
  18. "Vander Plas Named 2020-21 Academic All-America®" (Press release). Ohio Athletics. May 28, 2021. Retrieved September 26, 2022.
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