College basketball roundup: Ohio’s Cooper reaches two milestones

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Gerry Broome | Associated Press

Ryan Kelly of Duke, right, and Jarell Eddie of Virginia Tech chase after the ball. The third-ranked Blue Devils won 85-57 to finish the season at Cameron Indoor Stadium unbeaten.

Ohio 72, Buffalo 69: D.J. Cooper reached two milestones for Ohio University in a 24-point effort that included the winning three-pointer at Buffalo last night.

Cooper hit 5 of 10 three-pointers to become the all-time leader with 264 for the Bobcats (22-8, 13-2 Mid-American Conference), breaking a tie with Tommy Freeman (2008-11). The senior guard also surpassed 2,000 points, reaching 2,018.

Cooper’s three-pointer with 1:34 remaining, which made it 70-69, capped Ohio’s comeback from a 69-63 deficit with 3:51 to play. The Bobcats had led 60-51 with 9 minutes left before the Bulls (12-18, 7-8) ran off 12 consecutive points.

Buffalo led 12-2 after less than 3 minutes of play, but the Bobcats came back to lead 42-37 at halftime.

Will Regan scored 20 points for Buffalo.

AROUND OHIO

Akron 72, Miami University 58: Zeke Marshall had 14 points and eight rebounds, and host Akron (24-5, 14-1) wrapped up its second consecutive MAC regular-season title.

Nick Harney had 13 points and Alex Abreu 12 points and seven assists for the Zips, who bounced back from an 81-67 loss to Buffalo on Saturday that ended their 19-game winning streak. Abreu’s three-pointer 21 seconds into the second half started a 13-2 run that gave Akron a 44-30 lead.

The RedHawks (8-20, 3-12) have lost eight in a row.

Kent State 69, Bowling Green 61: Randal Holt scored 16 points, Chris Evans had 12 points and 12 rebounds, and host Kent State (18-12, 8-7 MAC) won its fourth consecutive game. A’uston Calhoun scored 13 points and Jordon Crawford 12 for Bowling Green (12-18, 6-9).

Toledo 70, Northern Illinois 46: Matt Smith scored 16 points, and host Toledo (14-13, 9-6) snapped a two-game skid and moved into a tie for first in the MAC West with Western Michigan. Northern Illinois (5-23, 3-12) has lost nine straight.

Youngstown State 62, Loyola of Chicago 60: D.J. Cole banked in a driving basket with 2.5 seconds left to lift host Youngstown State (17-14) over Loyola of Chicago in the first round of the Horizon League tournament. The sixth-seeded Penguins will play No. 3 Wright State on Friday.

For Loyola (15-16), Christian Thomas had 16 points.

Illinois-Chicago 82, Cleveland State 59: Josh Crittle scored 20 points and Daniel Barnes 16, and host Illinois-Chicago (17-14) beat Cleveland State (14-18) in the Horizon League tournament. Charlie Lee led the eighth-seeded Vikings (14-18) with 17 points.

BIG TEN

Iowa 63, Illinois 55: Roy Devyn Marble scored 21 points, and host Iowa (19-11, 8-9) beat Illinois (21-10, 8-9) for its fifth win in seven games. The Hawkeyes tied a school record with 12 blocked shots, including six from Gabe Olaseni off the bench. Brandon Paul had 18 points to lead Illinois.