Simmons leads Ohio against Buffalo after 20-point outing

By Canadian Press on January 9, 2026.

Buffalo Bulls (13-2, 3-0 MAC) at Ohio Bobcats (9-7, 3-1 MAC)

Athens, Ohio; Saturday, 2 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Ohio hosts Buffalo after Javan Simmons scored 20 points in Ohio’s 86-83 win against the UMass Minutemen.

The Bobcats have gone 6-3 in home games. Ohio is 2-1 in games decided by 3 points or fewer.

The Bulls are 3-0 in MAC play. Buffalo scores 79.9 points while outscoring opponents by 9.4 points per game.

Ohio’s average of 6.9 made 3-pointers per game is 1.1 fewer made shots on average than the 8.0 per game Buffalo allows. Buffalo averages 9.5 made 3-pointers per game this season, 1.7 more made shots on average than the 7.8 per game Ohio allows.

The Bobcats and Bulls meet Saturday for the first time in MAC play this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Jackson Paveletzke is averaging 16.5 points and 4.5 assists for the Bobcats. Simmons is averaging 13.0 points over the last 10 games.

Daniel Freitag is averaging 19.7 points, 3.1 assists and 1.5 steals for the Bulls. Ryan Sabol is averaging 17.8 points over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Bobcats: 8-2, averaging 79.6 points, 31.7 rebounds, 15.4 assists, 8.5 steals and 3.5 blocks per game while shooting 48.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 68.8 points per game.

Bulls: 8-2, averaging 79.0 points, 30.1 rebounds, 14.1 assists, 7.3 steals and 2.5 blocks per game while shooting 49.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 69.6 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

The Associated Press