Despite a career high 37 points from sophomore guard Mark Sears, the No. 3 Ohio men's basketball team (25-10) concluded the 2021-22 season Monday night (March 21), falling to No. 6 Abilene Christian (25-10), 91-86, in the Roman CBI Quarterfinals.

Sears led Ohio with 37 points, going 10-of-19 from the field, 1-of-4 from three and 16-of-21 from the line. He also grabbed seven rebounds and dished out three assists. Redshirt senior Ben Vander Plas (Ripon, Wis.) added 19 points and 11 rebounds, while freshman forward AJ Clayton (Duncan Falls, Ohio) added 11 points and grabbed four rebounds.

Overall, Ohio shot 49 percent from the field, 30 percent from three and were 27-of-40 from the line, while ACU shot 54 percent from the field, 44 percent from three and were 25-of-29 from the line. Ohio outrebounded ACU, 34-29, while the Wildcats dished out 18 assists to Ohio's 10.

Ohio won the tip and got the first points of the game, when junior forward Ben Roderick (Powell, Ohio) hit a free throw when redshirt fifth year forward Jason Carter (Johnstown, Ohio) left the game with an injury in the opening minutes. ACU then went on an 8-0 run to take an 8-1 lead going into the first media timeout. Out of the timeout, a layup from Vander Plas and two free throws from Sears cut the ACU lead to 8-5. After the Wildcats went up 10-5, a three from Vander Plas cut the deficit to two, however ACU went on a 5-0 run to take a 15-8 lead with 11:53 left in the game.

Out of the timeout, a layup from Sears cut the ACU lead to five, however, back-to-back threes from the Wildcats put ACU up nine, forcing Ohio to call a timeout with 9:29 remaining in the game. Out of the timeout, a dunk from Clayton cut the lead to seven, however ACU added two more points on a free throw to retake the nine-point lead. After another dunk from Clayton helped cut the lead to six, a three from ACU extended the lead back to nine, but a layup from Roderick cut the lead to 26-19, forcing ACU to call a timeout with 7:14 left in the first half.

A layup from Sears cut the ACU lead to five with 5:50 left in the half, before both teams traded baskets, with the Wildcats holding a 30-23 lead going into the final media timeout. Out of the timeout, the Bobcats and Wildcats traded layups and free throws, with ACU taking the 36-29 lead into the half.

At the half, Ohio shot 37.5 percent from the field, 9.1 percent from three and were 10-of-15 from the line, while ACU shot 38.7 percent from the field, 40 percent from three and were 6-of-6 from the line. Overall, Ohio outrebounded ACU, 20-16.

Individually, Sears led Ohio with 13 points, while Vander Plas added nine points and six rebounds.

ACU opened the half with the ball and hit a layup to take a nine-point lead. After a layup from Vander Plas and a three from Sears, Ohio cut the ACU lead to three. After the Wildcats went up 41-36, a layup from junior guard Miles Brown (Rochester, N.Y.) cut the ACU lead back to three with 17:25 left in the game. After the Wildcats went back up six, both teams traded baskets until ACU took a seven-point lead going into the first media timeout. Out of the timeout, Vander Plas and the Wildcats traded baskets, with ACU keeping the seven-point lead with 11:40 remaining in the game.

Out of the timeout, ACU went on to take a nine-point lead once again, before threes from Clayton and senior guard Tommy Schmock (Cleveland, Ohio) cut the lead to six with 8:55 remaining in the game. Out of the timeout, a free throw from Sears and a layup from Roderick cut the ACU lead to three. However, the Wildcats got the points back on a three-point play, making the deficit 66-60 with 6:34 remaining in the game.

After ACU took a 10-point lead, Ohio cut the lead to seven after ACU was assessed a technical. After the Wildcats retook the nine-point lead, a three from Schmock cut the deficit to six going into the final media timeout. After ACU took a 10-point lead with two minutes to go, free throws from Brown and Sears cut the Wildcats' lead to six with 1:09 remaining in the game.

After the teams traded layups and free throws, Ohio cut the lead to five with a deep three from Vander Plas with 51.3 seconds remaining. After an ACU layup, another three from Schmock cut the lead to four with 42 seconds left. However, the Wildcats hit their free throws down the stretch, with Ohio falling 91-86.

For ACU, Coryon Mason scored 20 points and grabbed five rebounds, while Airion Simmons added 18 points, six rebounds and six assists.