Postseason WNIT | 3/27/2019 1:27:43 PM

Storms clouds were brewing a while back in middle America, but some of them had nothing to do with the weather.

When the berths for the Women's NCAA Tournament were announced, and Ohio was left out of the fray, the Bobcats were understandably chapped. With an RPI in the mid-30s and a solid resume in the tough Mid-American Conference, the sight of a laboring Tennessee squad making the cut left Ohio feeling pretty queasy.

But with their entry into the 2019 Postseason WNIT, the Bobcats have quickly understood the point and purpose of shaking off any disappointment. With two hard-fought wins over High Point and Middle Tennessee, Ohio (29-5) is fully engaged and hoping to reach the quarterfinals if they can solve Western Kentucky (20-14) on Thursday at home in Athens, OH.

After setting a program record for wins and doing so with a predominantly young roster, the Bobcats are pleased they can make 2018-19 about something other than tough news on Selection Day.  

"There was a level of disappointment throughout the program, but that happens. And like in conference play, you have to turn around and play soon, and this was no different – we realized we get to keep playing, in a tremendous tournament, with amazing opportunities," said sixth-year head coach Bob Boldon. "The WNIT is so well run, and there are so many good teams in it, and you realize you're in the company of some very good basketball programs.

"We're grateful we've won two games, but the experience of going through it and pulling things out is great. You can't replicate this (environment) with workouts. There are all these (situations) we have to play through, and we are getting to execute it. We did things well, but we made mistakes, and it's the chance to see them and fix them."

"It was pretty tough. We had one of the best records, and the best ever at our school, and we deserved it more than Tennessee because our record was so much better and our season was better," said sophomore guard Cece Hooks, who hit the game-winning shot against Middle Tennessee in the final seconds. "We plan to show up next year and show people we deserve it. The team is pretty pumped up. We're one of the smallest teams, but we give it our all. We fight and are more determined than a lot of teams, and we deserve respect."

Hooks missed two free throws late in the MTSU contest, but Boldon confidently turned to his young 5-foot-8 guard for the final look and was rewarded, much like all season. Hooks has an interesting stat line: back-to-back years of 100 or more steals (both the best in school history) to go with a solid assist/turnover ratio (139 to 80). She averages 17.6 points (the team high) and 5.2 rebounds per game, and is trying to solve some inefficiencies as a shooter, sitting at 16-of-64 from 3-point range and just 61 percent from the free-throw line.

"People will sag off on me because I don't shoot the 3-pointer very well, and at the beginning of the season I wasn't shooting it at all. I'm more confident now, and I've been hitting them lately," Hooks said. "I've been working on that and my free throws, developing my game. By next year, people will have to change their way, because I'll be shooting and knock down 3's, and when that happens it'll be pretty tough to guard me."

"She affects the game at both ends of the floor. Last year she didn't shoot 3's at all; the last five games she's actually been our best 3-point shooter, ironically," said Boldon, who mentioned Hooks' skills at body control, avoiding contact and using both hands at the rim as key strengths. "It's coming around, but she understands she's best at getting to the rim.

"We had stages this year when people just didn't guard her outside of five feet; they'd guard her with a post player who would stand on the block and wait for her. Then she started making shots, and they guarded her more honestly, and she had to play that way. I've never seen a player guarded in so many different ways, from a (point guard) to a (center), and you can't get any more extreme than that."

With five players averaging double figures in scoring, the Bobcats certainly give teams trouble with balance. Erica Johnson comes in at 13.8 points and 6.7 rebounds per game; she was the MAC freshman of the year and the sixth-man of the year. Amani Burke (13.3 ppg) hit 11 3's in a game this year, and Gabby Burris (sophomore) and Dominique Doseck (senior) are also potential threats with the ball.

"We're so young compared to a lot of teams, and we can compete with most of the teams we play," Hooks said. "We had some ups and downs, but we're getting hang of it. We are more focused on the court, we're way better than we were, and we're just getting better."

Staying sharp and urgent even as the wins piled up was another challenge for Boldon. A lineup that leaned heavily on underclassmen didn't often get that slap that comes with a disappointing defeat, so he worked hard to make sure the roster didn't lose perspective.

"During times in that stretch where I thought it wasn't sustainable and we needed to do things better," he said. "That's a hard message to get across when you keep winning. One of the things we talk about and where we struggle is rebounding, and in a couple losses, we got smashed on the boards. When you win, the challenge is to address those things you didn't do well."

   NOTES:    Western Kentucky leads the all-time series with Ohio 5-0; the teams have not played each other since 1993 … WKU is No. 53 in the nation in points per game on offense at 72.9. The Hilltoppers are No. 301 on defense, allowing 70.8 points per game. The Hilltoppers have one of the best field goal percentages in the country, at 44.9 percent, which is No. 26 in the nation.