The CareSource Invitational brought together Ohio State and Cincinnati, along with Dayton and Xavier, for a unique outdoor event at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason, Ohio. The event benefited mental health and suicide prevention efforts while raising awareness and raising funds to support these important causes.

The Buckeyes and Bearcats opened the event, with both teams spending much of the late afternoon experimenting with their respective depth and mixing and matching lineups. A 9-2 run early in the first half gave Ohio State a lead they would not relinquish until late in the second half, building a margin as large as 9 in the first half before taking a 5 point advantage into the halftime locker room. The Buckeyes maintained the lead for much of the second half before UC finally broke through with a 11-2 run to get a lead and added a 15-6 run to create late separation that Ohio State was not able to overcome as the Bearcats completed a 79-68 come from behind exhibition win.

Ohio State shot just 41% from the floor, hitting on just 4 of 19 from three and making just 56% of their free throw attempts (20-36), while getting out rebounded by Cincinnati 45-35. The Bearcats shot 48%, making just 4 of 19 from three and struggled at the line themselves, making just 19 of 32 for 59%. Both teams turned it over at a high rate with Ohio State turning it over 16 times while forcing Cincinnati to turn it over 15 times.

John Mobley, Jr. was the lone Buckeye in double figures, scoring 15, while Amare Bynum added 9 points and 7 rebounds. Cincinnati put three in doubles with Tylen Riley leading the way with 23, while Tyler Tejada added 17 and Jayden Hastings scoring 16. 

1^st Half

The Buckeyes opened the game with John Mobley Jr., Curtis Givens, Anthony Thompson, Amare Bynum and Ivan Njegovan, facing a Cincinnati team featuring an entirely new roster. After an empty possession each way, the Bearcats opened the scoring with a dribble drive that led to a dunk, and after back-to-back Buckeye turnovers—the latter coming on a moving screen by Njegovan—UC added another basket off dribble penetration.

Josh Ojianwuna became the first Buckeye substitution of the afternoon but quickly committed a turnover on the offensive end before picking up a foul at the other end, sending Cincinnati to the free-throw line, where the Bearcats split the pair. Givens then created the Buckeyes’ first points, grabbing a steal in the frontcourt before converting the ensuing layup. Mobley followed by drawing a foul on the next possession and knocking down both free throws to pull Ohio State within a point. Cincinnati answered with a pull-up jumper from the mid-range, and at the first media timeout, the Bearcats held a 7-4 advantage.

More substitutions out of the timeout saw Justin Pippen, Jimmie Williams, L.J. Smith and Andrija Jelavic check into the game, and Pippen wasted little time making an impact, drilling a three-pointer to pull the Buckeyes even. After a Cincinnati turnover, Jelavic was fouled in transition but missed both free-throw attempts. The Bearcats regained the lead with a short jumper, but Pippen answered with a tough score through contact, although he missed the ensuing free throw to keep the game tied at 9-9.

L.J. Smith then gave Ohio State its first lead of the afternoon with a driving runner before adding another to extend the advantage. At the under-12 media timeout, the Buckeyes had taken control and led Cincinnati 13-9.

The Bearcats struck quickly out of a baseline inbounds play, finding a cutter for a dunk, but Ohio State answered on the other end with a Jelavic bucket in the paint. Two Cincinnati free throws were followed by a Mobley floater, only for the Bearcats to respond with a powerful dunk over Njegovan.

Mobley answered immediately, drilling a three from the top of the key. Cincinnati countered with another dunk before adding a layup following a Buckeye turnover. Mobley continued to keep the offense moving, knocking down a runner to maintain Ohio State’s advantage. The Bearcats eventually cut the deficit to one, but Mobley responded by firing a snap pass into the paint to Ojianwuna for an easy two. At the under-8 media timeout, the Buckeyes held a 24-21 lead.

Out of the timeout, Bynum stripped the ball from a Bearcat and raced to the other end for a dunk. Another Buckeye steal, this time in the backcourt, again led to points as Bynum converted off the glass, prompting Cincinnati to call timeout with Ohio State extending its lead to 28-21.

After the Bearcats split a pair of free throws, Bynum did the same at the other end, keeping the Buckeyes ahead by seven. Following a pair of empty possessions on both sides, Pippen drew a foul to send Ohio State to the line and bring the game to the final media timeout of the first half, with the Buckeyes holding a 29-22 advantage.

Pippen went to the stripe out of the timeout and extended the Buckeyes’ lead, knocking down both free throws. Cincinnati answered with a three-pointer, but a Bearcat backcourt foul sent the ball to the other end, where Givens split a pair at the line. UC answered by splitting two free throws of its own before Givens drew another foul and calmly knocked down both attempts to push the Ohio State advantage to eight.

The Bearcats answered with a heavily contested three to cut into the deficit, and following a Smith steal, Mobley drew contact and went to the line, where he split the pair. Cincinnati again split two free throws with 25 seconds remaining in the half, giving the Buckeyes one final opportunity to add to their lead. However, Bynum had the ball stripped on a baseline drive, sending both teams to the locker room with Ohio State holding a 35-30 advantage.

As expected in an outdoor setting, shooting proved to be at a premium throughout the opening half, with Ohio State connecting on 48% of its attempts while holding Cincinnati to just 35%. The Buckeyes struggled from beyond the arc, knocking down just 2-of-8 three-point attempts, while the Bearcats were only slightly worse at 2 of 12.

Free-throw shooting was also a challenge for both teams, with Ohio State converting 9 of 15 attempts and UC managing just 6 of 14. John Mobley Jr. led all Buckeyes with 10 first-half points, while the Bearcats were paced by Jayden Hastings, who scored 9. Despite trailing at the break, the Bearcats controlled the glass in the opening 20 minutes, out rebounding the Buckeyes 27-15.

2^nd Half

Jimmie Williams drew a foul on Ohio State’s opening possession of the second half and knocked down both free throws to extend the Buckeye lead. Cincinnati answered by getting to the line, splitting a pair, before Ojianwuna scored in the paint after receiving a post feed from Pippen.

Following a Buckeye turnover, the Bearcats converted in transition with a dunk, but Williams answered by drawing a foul on a three-point attempt and converting two of three free throws. Cincinnati then banked in a three-pointer before adding another basket in transition off another Ohio State turnover. Pippen responded with a bucket and the ensuing free throw, completing an old-fashioned three-point play to push the lead back to six.

A Smith steal gave the Buckeyes another possession, and Williams took advantage by getting into the lane and banking in a short jumper. Cincinnati continued to battle on the offensive glass, however, grabbing an offensive rebound and converting to trim the deficit. At the under-16 media timeout, Ohio State held a 46-40 advantage.

Jelavic went to the line out of the timeout but missed the front end, and despite the Buckeyes regaining possession, they were unable to capitalize. Cincinnati then cut into the deficit with a score deep in the paint. Ohio State managed to keep the Bearcats at arm’s length when Mobley created space with a step back three from the left wing.

Cincinnati quickly answered with an easy two before calling a 30-second timeout. Out of the timeout, Givens drew a foul but missed the front end of the one-and-one. After a UC turnover, Thompson attacked the lane and scored through contact off the window. He missed the ensuing free throw, but Ohio State secured the offensive rebound, with Givens drawing another foul and splitting the pair to push the lead to eight.

Cincinnati responded immediately with a three-point play before capitalizing on another Buckeye turnover with a transition basket to tighten the margin. Bynum halted the Bearcats’ run with a dunk, prompting Ohio State to call a quick 30-second timeout with the Buckeyes holding a 54-49 lead.

The Buckeyes extended their lead when Smith picked the pocket of a Bearcat and took it the other way, scoring off the glass to give Ohio State a little breathing room. The Bearcats answered with a tip-in, and after Bynum missed a pair of free throws, Cincinnati banked in a three-pointer to pull within two.

A Buckeye turnover then led to a transition layup that tied the game at 56-56. After an empty possession by each team, Cincinnati took its first lead since the opening minutes, scoring at the rim through contact. The Bearcats missed the ensuing free throw, and Mobley answered on the other end by drawing a foul and knocking down both attempts to tie the game once again, ending a 9-0 Cincinnati run. After a Bearcat three-point attempt clanged out of bounds, the game reached the under-8 media timeout with Ohio State and Cincinnati deadlocked at 58-58.

A pair of offensive rebounds gave Ohio State three opportunities to take the lead, but all three attempts from long range missed the mark, allowing Cincinnati to race the other way for a dunk. The Buckeyes answered with a Williams runner off the glass, but the Bearcats regained the lead with a runner of their own. Jelavic responded on the other end, drawing contact and knocking down both free throws to tie the game once again.

Cincinnati then scored the next six points to break the tie as Ohio State struggled offensively, missing seven of its previous eight shots. Bynum finally halted the run, tipping in an Ojianwuna miss before converting at the rim to cut into the deficit. After Ojianwuna picked up his fifth foul, the game headed to the final media timeout with Cincinnati holding a 68-64 lead and 3:29 remaining.

Out of the timeout, UC split two free throws and after two Buckeye turnovers, UC converted two free throws to extend their lead to 7, the largest of the day. After Pippen missed two free throws. UC added two more free throws before Jelavic split two, filling in for an injured Justin Pippen, to stop the bleeding. Smith hit a three to draw the Buckeyes closer, but UC answered with two on the other end and the Bearcats took a timeout with 1:25 to play and leading 75-68. Cincinnati added four more free throws to complete the scoring and the Bearcat win.

Game Wrap

Shooting, fouling and turnovers were understandably issues for both teams this early in the preseason, particularly in an outdoor setting where the elements added another variable to the game. For Ohio State, however, the shooting struggles stood out a little more given that perimeter shooting is expected to be one of the calling cards of this team’s success this season. The Buckeyes also had their share of issues with defensive closeouts and on the glass, although the constant lineup changes and experimentation with different combinations made some of those shortcomings understandable.

Offensively, the shooting numbers certainly looked worse than they might have under normal circumstances, but there were still opportunities Ohio State failed to capitalize on. The Buckeyes had multiple chances to push the lead into double digits in the second half, only to come up empty on several possessions and allow Cincinnati to remain within striking distance. Those are the types of stretches that will need to be cleaned up as the season progresses, particularly against more experienced opponents. Better execution, stronger defensive possessions and more consistency on the glass should come with more time together and a better-defined rotation.

Ultimately, the result mattered far less than the opportunity. Ohio State got an early chance to face another opponent, test different lineups and see how its newcomers and returning players performed in a competitive setting. There were certainly positives to take away, along with plenty of areas that need improvement. For an exhibition this early in the preseason, that is exactly what the Buckeyes needed, a chance to compete, identify weaknesses and begin building toward the regular season.

Box Score

*Official statistics provided courtesy of stat broadcast.

Ohio State closes their exhibition slate at home on Sunday October 25, welcoming the Butler Bulldogs to the Schott. Tip time is scheduled for 2:00 PM with television coverage provided by BTN+.

-Jason Harris