Youth dominates men's b-ball squad

A quick glance down the roster for the Ohio men's basketball team reveals one striking characteristic: youth. Experience is not the strong suit for the Bobcats, and Ohio's success will largely depend on a handful of heralded recruits for head coach John Groce.

"œIt's exciting and frustrating," Groce acknowledged. "œSome of our young guys are going to have to mature quickly because we're relying on them playing a lot this year."

For the first time in recent memory, the Bobcats come into a season with a whole new look. Last year's two leading scorers, Jerome Tillman and Justin Orr, have graduated, and the Bobcats will look toward unfamiliar faces to step in for them.

Many of those new faces are freshmen, and to ease their transition process, Groce has spent much of the pre-season trying to define roles and establish a consistent rotation. He still has plenty to figure out about his team, which has just one senior. As Ohio heads into its season opener against Ohio Valley on Friday, the Bobcats have just as many questions as answers.

"It's going to be one of those teams that's ever evolving," Groce predicted.

One certainty for Ohio is that the freshman class has plenty of potential. The group owns plenty of accolades, as Ivo Baltic, D.J. Cooper, Marquis Horne, Reggie Keely and Jay Kinney were all McDonald's All- American nominees in high school.

Groce has seen plenty from the freshmen during the recruiting process, but emphasized that stepping on the court at the college level opens up an entirely new set of challenges.

"It does change once you get to college," Groce said. "Even though you think you know guys and how they play, once you put them in a college setting, you really learn about them."

With such a young roster, it might take Ohio until mid-December, right before the start of conference play, before the Bobcats have a consistent rotation, Groce said.

Some of the returning players that Ohio will lean on include sophomore Steven Coleman, juniors DeVaughn Washington and Tommy Freeman, and senior Kenneth van Kempen. Coleman (9.8 points per game) and Freeman (7.4 ppg) are the two leading scorers coming back, and Ohio will need for them to provide some scoring power.

Washington and van Kempen will handle duties inside the paint, and van Kempen looks primed to have a much-improved season. He entered the year noticeably leaner with the kind of attitude the coaches wanted to see.

"He's prepared himself to play his best basketball since he's been here," Groce said. "He's come a long way."

Another player who will likely see plenty of action is redshirt junior Asown Sayles. He missed all of last season after having shoulder surgery, but has returned with a strong presence. He has played heavy minutes in Ohio's exhibition games, and could become a key contributor this season.

Of all the new players, the one who probably has the highest expectations is junior Armon Bassett. People have looked forward to seeing him in action for the last year after he transferred from Indiana University. Bassett will become eligible to play after fall quarter ends, and he adds a strong dynamic to the roster.

"He brings experience. He's been there. He's played in big-time atmospheres," Groce said. "He'll really help us from an experience standpoint."

Bassett also brings with him a pure shooting stroke. During his time with Indiana, Bassett helped take the Hoosiers to two NCAA tournament bids, and led the Big 10 in three-point shooting percentage during his sophomore year. Now, people hope he can replicate that success for the Bobcats.

Ohio's inexperience has many people around the Mid-American Conference writing off the Bobcats. In the pre-season poll, the media selected Ohio to finish last in the MAC-East.

But being overlooked is not such a bad thing for Ohio, and the low expectations from the outside could be the perfect motivator for the Bobcats.

"I'm hoping our guys come into the year with a chip on their shoulder," Groce said. "If you're competitive at all, it's going to motivate you that people picked you to finish last."

Football team survives in Buffalo...

The Ohio football team escaped out of Buffalo Tuesday night with a 27-24 victory, and the Bobcats control their own destiny towards a MAC-East championship.

Kicker Matt Weller gave Ohio the lead with 1:25 remaining in the game after kicking a 47-yard field goal.

Ohio looked like different teams in the first and second half. After scoring at will in the first half, the offense came out of halftime flat. In the first half, the Bobcats scored 21 points and absolutely controlled the game. But Ohio could not sustain that success and struggled to put up points after halftime.

As the offense stalled, Weller provided the points. He kicked field goals of 46 and 47 yards.

Now, Ohio has a chance to win the MAC East for the first time since 2006. If Ohio wins its final two games-at home against Northern Illinois and Temple - then the Bobcats will head to the MAC Championship and also earn a bowl bid.