ATHENS, Ohio — Marshall men’s basketball fell on the road to the Ohio Bobcats Saturday at the Convocation Center, 101-84.
The Herd falls to 5-2 as Ohio moves to 5-2.
“We didn’t come out ready to play,” fifth-year head coach Dan D’Antoni said. “We had little breakdowns in preparation. We came out here and they smacked us in the mouth.”
Senior guards Jon Elmore and C.J. Burks each eclipsed the 20-point mark with 26 and 22, respectively. Elmore shot 10 of 22 from the field, including four of eight from beyond the arc, while Burks went 9 of 20. Each grabbed four rebounds as Elmore dished out a game-high five helpers for Marshall.
Sophomore forwards Jannson Williams and Darius George tied for the game-high in steals with three each.
The Herd took a 3-0 lead on its first shot of the game with a make by Elmore, but the Bobcats took a two-point lead, 5-3, with 17:50 on the clock and led the rest of the game.
Marshall trailed by five at the under-eight media timeout, but Ohio pushed its lead to 17 at halftime, 48-31.
Down 63-42 with 15:03 remaining in the game, the Herd went on a 12-2 run to cut the deficit to 11 at the 11:40 mark. Marshall traded shots with Ohio the next few minutes, but couldn’t get the deficit under 10 points as the Bobcats pulled away.
Ohio had four players in double-figure scoring lead by 25 points from Jason Carter, who also grabbed 12 rebounds for a double-double. The 25 points matched a career-high for Carter.
Gavin Block hit 6-of-7 from 3-point range as he scored 18 points. Freshman Ben Cander Plas also scored 18 points off the bench while Teyvion Kirk scored 17.
The Bobcats went 9 of 17 from three-point range (52.9 percent) as Marshall made 8 of its 27 shots from beyond the arc.
The Herd blocked two more shots than the Bobcats, 5-3, and had fewer turnovers, 15-19.
Carter’s 3-pointer broke a 7-7 tie and started an 8-0 to put the Bobcats in the lead for good. A 10-run put the lead in double figures for good and it was 48-31 at halftime.
Carter had 15 points at the half when Ohio shot 51 percent, making 5 of 10 from distance, and Marshall went 5 of 16 behind the arc and shot 36 percent.
A 10-0 run by Marshall made it an 11-point game near the midway point of the second half but Ohio quickly pushed it back to 20.
Postgame Notes
• Elmore recorded his fifth game of 20 or more points this season.
• Burks has scored in double-figures in all seven games this season, with 20 or more points in three contests.
• Williams’ three takeaways were a career-high for the forward.
• Elmore (39) and Burks (38) each played a season-high in minutes in the contest.
• Elmore has had five or more assists in six games this season.
• Elmore now has 2,040 career-points and is third all-time in Conference USA scoring after passing South Florida’s Altron Jackson.
Up Next
Marshall will look to rebound against Duquesne when it travels to Pittsburgh, Pa., for a road matchup on Wednesday.
Ohio plays at Xavier on Wednesday in a 6:30 p.m. game that will be televised by FS1.

Ohio U. box
OHIO 101, MARSHALL 84
MARSHALL (5-2)
Williams 2-9 3-4 8, Bennett 0-0 1-2 1, West 1-3 0-1 3, Burks 9-20 4-5 22, Elmore 10-22 2-3 26, George 2-5 2-2 7, Sustic 0-0 0-0 0, Beyers 1-1 0-0 2, Watson 2-5 2-2 7, Kinsey 3-3 2-6 8. Totals 30-68 16-25 84.
OHIO (5-2)
Taylor 3-5 2-4 9, Carter 9-17 6-9 25, Preston 0-0 0-0 0, Cowart 4-10 0-0 8, Kirk 6-13 5-6 17, McMurray 0-1 0-0 0, Reeves 1-1 0-0 2, Vander Plas 7-13 3-3 18, James 0-0 0-0 0, McGraw 0-0 0-0 0, Murrell 0-1 2-2 2, Tenerowicz 0-0 2-2 2, Block 6-9 0-2 18. Totals 36-70 20-28 101.
Halftime—Ohio 48-31. 3-Point Goals—Marshall 8-27 (Elmore 4-8, Watson 1-1, George 1-2, West 1-3, Williams 1-7, Burks 0-6), Ohio 9-17 (Block 6-7, Taylor 1-1, Carter 1-1, Vander Plas 1-5, McMurray 0-1, Cowart 0-1, Murrell 0-1). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Marshall 26 (Kinsey, Burks, Williams, George, Elmore 4), Ohio 48 (Carter 12). Assists—Marshall 11 (Elmore 5), Ohio 18 (Kirk 5). Total Fouls—Marshall 22, Ohio 21. A—6,301 (13,080).