BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — The Ohio University Bobcats Men's Basketball team is moving on to the second round of the NCAA Tournament after their upset win over Virginia Saturday night at Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Indiana.
No. 13 Ohio took down No. 4 seed Virginia in a contest that had fans in attendance—and at home on their couches—on the edge of their seats as the Bobcats clawed their way to the victory, holding off the Cavaliers, 62-58.
Junior forward Ben Vander Plas led Ohio in points with 17 and hit back-to-back threes that pushed the Bobcats into a five point lead near the end of the second half, while sophomore forward Ben Roderick followed with 15 points. But it was junior guard Jason Preston who was the star of the show.
Putting up 11 points, eight assists and 13 rebounds in a double-double outing to remember, Preston moved the ball well and played smart basketball to help his team get the win Saturday night.
The guard has come a long way in his basketball journey—from averaging 2.2 points in high school, to receiving an offer to play at Ohio after posting his highlight tape on Twitter, to now becoming the hero of the night for OU.
Ohio earned a trip to the NCAA Tournament after beating Buffalo in the MAC Tournament Championship game. This is the Bobcats' first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2012.
The Bobcats will go on to play the No. 5 Creighton Blue Jays on Monday in the second round of the tournament.
What’s the mood on Court Street right now?#OUohyeah pic.twitter.com/rQGevOG2uo
— Ohio Basketball (@OhioMBasketball) March 21, 2021
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Camryn Justice is a digital content producer at News 5 Cleveland. Follow her on Twitter @camijustice.
