All season Tim O’Shea has hoped to give guard Tommy Freeman more minutes. When he gave the freshman the opportunity yesterday against Buffalo, the guard did not disappoint, pouring in a career-high 13 points as the Bobcats topped the Bulls 68-59.

“The opportunity was there,” O’Shea said. “He got off to a good start and he was able to get good minutes and he made the most of them.”

Freeman, who had played only a combined 11 minutes over his last 8 games, hit two 3-pointers and was 5-for-5 from the free-throw line, as Ohio (12-6, 3-2 Mid-American Conference) continued to play without starter Bubba Walther, who missed his second consecutive game battling the effects of a concussion suffered against Akron last Thursday.

O’Shea said Freeman made the most of his opportunity like many players have this season for the Bobcats.

“They’ve all had their moments and you go with it,” he said. “They get out there and they do something and you go with it. You’ve got to be ready when your opportunity comes.”

Leading the Bobcats in scoring for a second straight game was guard Bert Whittington IV, who had 21 points, including five 3-pointers to lead the team.

“We made nine 3s tonight, which is very tough to do on the road,” O’Shea said. “Bert really stepped up again and that was very key to the win today.”

The win marked Ohio’s first road victory of the season in MAC play. Although Ohio led for much of the way, the Bulls did not make it easy in the second half, erasing a 13-point deficit to just one with less than eight minutes remaining in the game.

Ohio never lost its lead though, and O’Shea said it was important for the team to not waver down the stretch despite tough pressure from the Bulls.

“Life on the road in the MAC is always very, very tough,” he said. “The games are always close and you have to value your possessions and do the little things down the stretch.”

Though the Bobcat backcourt led the way offensively, center Leon Williams muscled his way to 10 points and nine rebounds with frontcourt mate Jerome Tillman adding 11 points and nine rebounds. Ohio outrebounded the Bulls 39 to 28.

“We’re a very physical team,” O’Shea said. “With Leon and Jerome and Van Kempen and DeVaughn, we have very athletic, strong guys.”

Ohio sealed the victory with its defense, holding the Bulls without a field goal for the final 3:40 of the contest. Buffalo shot just 36.8 percent from the field, with guard Andy Robinson being the only Bulls player in double figures with 23 points.

“It’s always important to defend well and we did down the stretch,” O’Shea said. “Percentage-wise it was a very good effort and they shot the ball very well.”