Box Score
Tevin Olison scored 17 of his 21 points in the first half, and the Youngstown State men's basketball team led for more than 36 minutes in an 84-77 victory over Central Michigan on Wednesday evening at Beeghly Center.
Olison was 7-for-8 overall and 3-for-3 from 3-point range in the first half to help the Penguins build a 46-34 halftime lead. Dwayne Cohill scored 10 points in each half to finish with a career-best 20. Michael Akuchie chipped in 13 points and grabbed five boards. Olison led the Penguins with six rebounds.
The Penguins have now won three straight games and improved to 5-3 overall. Central Michigan fell to 1-8.
Leading 28-24 with 7:37 remaining in the first half, YSU went on an 11-0 run to seize control of the game. Chris Shelton drained a 3-pointer to spark the surge then Cohill and Olison followed with back-to-back baskets. Akuchie converted a jumper after the Penguins defense forced a CMU shot clock violation.
On the ensuing possession, Olison's steal led to a fast-break dunk and forced the Chippewas to call timeout with 4:14 left until halftime. CMU pulled within nine, but an Olison 3-pointer with eight seconds left in the half gave the Penguins a 46-34 lead at the intermission.
Despite trailing at half, CMU cut the deficit to 60-54 with 11 minutes remaining in the game, but Jamir Thomas convertered a three-point play and Cohill hit an off-balance 3-pointer as the shot clock was about to expire to push the lead back up to 64-54.
The lead got down to five twice, but each time YSU responded with a 3-pointer. With the score 72-67 Daniel Ogoro knocked down a big three and with the score 75-70, Cohill connected from long distance.
YSU had an 80-70 advantage in the final minute before the Chippewas made one last comeback attempt. CMU scored seven of the next nine points to pull within 82-77, but Olison made two free throws with just over 10 seconds left to ice the game.
Both teams shot well from the field, and Youngstown State torched the nets in the first half by shooting 66.7 percent. For the game, the Penguins shot 56.1 percent from the field overall and 47.8 percent from beyond the 3-point arc (11-of-23). Central Michigan shot 50 percent in the first half and 59.3 percent in the second half to finish at 54.5 percent for the game.
The Penguins made two more field goals, one more 3-pointer and two more free throws than the Chippewas. Oscar Lopez Jr. scored 21 points for CMU and was one of four players to reach double figures for the Chippewas.
YSU continues its homestand with a contest against Canisius on Saturday afternoon. Tipoff at the Beeghly Center is set for 2 p.m.
