MBB OCCAC Champions

The Hocking College men's basketball team clinched a share of the 2023-24 Ohio Community College Athletic Conference championship on Saturday as the Hawks dominated Bryant & Stratton 62-45 on the road at Ursuline College in Pepper Pike, Ohio.

Hocking finihsed league play 14-2, sharing the OCCAC totle with No. 15-ranked Lakeland, as the Hawks improved to 21-6 overall. The win on Saturday was the Hawks 14th in thier last 15 games as Hocking is now 14-1 since January 6, and that was a one-point loss last weekend at Lakeland.

Today's win was a slow-paced contest against a Bryant & Stratton squad that had beaten a couple of the top teams in the OCCAC over the past few weeks, but the Hawks battled through several players not feeling well to pull away in the second half after leading 29-24 at halftime.

Sophomore forward Dennis Osoro scored a game-high 21 points to lead the Hawks, while sophomore fuard Jaden Woods chipped in with nine points, and sophomore guards Allen Lattimore and Anthony Millner added seven  each as the Hawks were held to their season low in points. Defensively, Hocking held the host Bobcats to the lowest total by an opponent this year.

"We've had a lot of guys sick the last few weeks and we have kept finding ways to win. I'm proud of the way our guys have fought through adversity all year, especially down the stretch," said head coach Ryan Milley, who has guided the Hawks to two OCCAC championships over the last three years. "I am looking foward to getting healthy for the District Tournament next week and making a run - I don't think we are done yet."

The Hawks will be the No. 2 seed from the OCCAC in next week's Great Lakes District Tournament in Flint, MI., hosted by Mott Community College. Hocking will play Friday March 8th at 4:00pm ET against the winner of the Glenn Oaks Community College/Lake Michigan College game. Lakeland will be the No. 1 seed from the OCCAC, and Cuyahoga Community College, a No. 3 seed, will play a first round game earlier in the week.