Despite a season high 7 three-pointers from junior Travis Bader, the Oakland University men’s basketball team lost its fourth straight road game, falling 78-61 to the Ohio University Bobcats.

Bader led the Oakland attack with a game-high 29 points, helping to push the Golden Grizzlies (3-7) to a 10-4 lead less than five minutes into the game. The lead changed hands five times in the first half before the Bobcats (7-2) used a 15-8 run to finish the first half, leading 39-39 heading into the locker room.

Oakland responded early in the second half, taking a 53-50 lead with 12:07 left in the contest. However, Ohio responded with a 24-2 run over the next nine minutes of game time, turning OU’s brief lead into a 74-55 deficit.

Cold shooting and turnovers by the Golden Grizzlies aided Ohio’s ability to seal the victory, as OU failed to score a field goal for a stretch of 10 minutes and 48 seconds late in the second half.

Ohio scored 28 points off of 20 Oakland turnovers, scoring 12 on the fast break. The Bobcats dominated inside, outscoring OU 40-20 in the paint.

Ohio, the defending MAC champions, reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament last season. All five starters from that squad returned this year.

Senior D.J. Cooper garnered a double-double for the Bobcats, scoring 10 points and dishing out 13 assists. Fellow senior Walter Offutt led Ohio with 14 points.

Junior Raphael Carter had a career-high 10 points off the bench, being the only other Golden Grizzly besides Bader to score double-figures. Senior Drew Valentine led Oakland with 6 rebounds.

Oakland will return to action on Dec. 17 against Valparaiso at 7pm in the O’rena. This will mark the only home game for the Golden Grizzlies over Christmas break, as OU will play four straight on the road to close out the calendar year.