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Ohio Bobcats Stun Virginia and Send the Cavaliers Packing with Early Exit

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Basketball

Led by a 17-point performance by redshirt junior forward Ben Vander Plas (Ripon, Wis.) and a near-triple double from junior guard Jason Preston (Orlando, Fla.), the No. 13-seeded Ohio men's basketball (17-7) squad upset No. 4-seeded Virginia (18-7), 62-58, Saturday (March 20) night inside Assembly Hall in the NCAA First Round.

The win is Ohio's eighth NCAA tournament victory and the first for the Bobcats since they defeated USF on March 18, 2012 in the NCAA Second Round. 

"I'm just really, really proud of our guys," head coach Jeff Boals said. "There were multiple times in the second half they could have broke. We always talk about bend but don't break. We got down 38-31, Ben Vander Plas made some huge plays in the second half. Jason Preston made some great plays, made big free throws down the stretch. Very fortunate to win the game."

Vander Plas led Ohio with 17 points, going 7-of-15 from the field, including three three-pointers. He also grabbed five rebounds and dished out four assists. Sophomore forward Ben Roderick (Powell, Ohio) added 15 points, going 5-of-12 from the field with three triples. Preston added 11 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists, while sophomore guard Lunden McDay (Akron, Ohio) scored eight and was a perfect 4-of-4 at the free-throw line. 

Ohio out-rebounded UVA, 38-29, and scored 28 points in the paint compared to UVA's 18. 

"I want to give Virginia all the credit in the world for what they went through," Boals said. "It's tough to go through a COVID pause, not practice, flying the day before. They missed some shots they normally make. Feel very fortunate and very grateful."

With the Bobcats trailing by one with 8:13 to go in the game, Vander Plas went on a roll, scoring 10-straight points in a four-minute span, putting Ohio ahead by seven with 4:05 remaining in the game. Virginia cut the lead to two but a deep three from Roderick with 1:06 left was the ultimate dagger for the Ohio upset.

"Obviously, basketball is a game of runs," Vander Plas said. "You always hear that. Yeah, that was a little run. We got a couple good shots, got a couple stops in a row. That's a big thing for us. When we can string some stops together, we're a pretty good [defensive] team. The big focus for us is getting those stops that lead to buckets on the offensive end."

Ohio won the tip and jumped out to an early 3-0 lead after Roderick drained a three. Three straight threes from UVA put them up six. However, a three and a layup from Preston with 11:56 left in the half cut the UVA lead to one. Ohio and UVA traded baskets with the Bobcats tying the game up three times on Vander Plas layups and senior forward Dwight Wilson III (Tallahassee, Fla.) free throws. However, UVA went on a 6-0 run to take a seven-point lead with just under four minutes to go in the half.

Out of the under-four timeout, the Bobcats cut the UVA lead to three before a triple from Roderick brought Ohio within two with 1:27 left. A layup from UVA with 59 seconds left in the game gave the Cavaliers a four-point lead. Vander Plas knocked down a triple at the buzzer, though, to send Ohio to the locker room trailing 28-27.  

Virginia and Ohio opened the second half trading baskets before the Cavaliers went on to take a seven-point lead with 14:36 left in the game. The Bobcats battled back, with Roderick hitting free throws and Preston driving to the basket for a layup to cut the UVA lead to one. After UVA went up three, a layup from freshman guard Mark Sears (Muscle Souls, Ala.) brought Ohio within one. 

After the Sears layup, Vander Plas took over the game, spurring the Bobcats to a 47-40 lead with 4:43 left. After that, the Bobcats' defense held its own, while also hitting free throws down the stretch to secure the win. 

"We have a lot of guys on the bench who do whatever it takes to give us whatever energy they can throughout the entire game," Vander Plas said. "Those guys on the bench, Mike Brown, John Tenerowicz, all those guys, they're always just into the game with us the entire time from start to finish. I don't know if you saw them swinging their towels around before both halves. Those guys are just such a big part of what we're doing this year."

Up next, the Bobcats will take on No. 5-seeded Creighton on Monday (March 22). Game time, location and viewing information will be announced later tonight.