Men’s Basketball Falls to Ohio Northern in Tight OAC Showdown

More news about: Baldwin Wallace
Feb 11, 2026

Written by BW Athletic Communications Assistant AJ Schultz '27 

ADA, Ohio – The Baldwin Wallace University men's basketball team fell to Ohio Northern University in an Ohio Athletic Conference matchup, 77-67, inside the ONU Sports Center. BW came out in the first half and responded to a few runs from the Polar Bears to only be down four at the break. 

An early run by the Yellow Jackets gave them a three-point lead, but BW could not consistently get defensive stops or capitalize on the offensive end of the floor. The effort was there throughout this one, but they were unable to get it done tonight. 

BW Leaders (7-16, 4-10 OAC) 

  • Junior forward AJ Pestello (Cuyahoga Falls/Stow-Munroe Falls) finished with a team-high 16 points, seven rebounds, and a game-high two blocks 

  • Junior Academic All-OAC Guard Titus Baskerville IV (Stow-Munroe Falls) had 13 points, two rebounds, one assist, and one steal 

  • Senior guard Myles Reynolds (Cleveland/St Edward) tallied 13 points, one rebound, one assist, and a game-high two steals 

  • Junior forward Isaac Richardson (Avon Lake) finished with nine points, three rebounds, and was excellent defensively  

Ohio Northern Leaders (15-7, 10-3 OAC) 

  • Senior guard Will Miller had 18 points, five rebounds, and two assists 

  • Sophomore guard Noah Langford finished with 16 points, including four three-pointers, to go along with four rebounds and one assist 

  • Junior guard Aiden Harris tallied 13 points, five rebounds, two assists, and one steal 

First Half (ONU 39-35) 

  • Pestello started the scoring off with a layup at the rim in the opening minute 

  • ONU started the game on a 7-3 run in the opening three minutes of the period 

  • BW responded with a 9-4 run following a pair of free throws made by freshman guard Josh Byers (Strongsville), making the score 12-11 at the 12:40 mark 

  • The Yellow Jackets didn't stop there as they went on a 7-0 run, making the score 20-13 at the 10:26 mark following a made three-pointer by Reynolds 

  • The Polar Bears didn't back down as they scored eight straight points, making the score 21-20 at the 7:20 mark 

  • Both teams traded baskets down the stretch, adding to the highly competitive half  

  • Ohio Northern cashed in on five three-pointers compared to BW's three makes 

  • The Brown and Gold were able to capitalize on five ONU turnovers, resulting in nine BW points 

  • The Polar Bears out-rebounded BW on the glass 19-13 

 Second Half (ONU 77-67) 

  • Pestello started the scoring off with a tip-in during the opening possession 

  • A pair of three-pointers was made by the Polar Bears as both teams traded baskets, resulting in a 45-39 lead at the 17:39 mark 

  • A 9-0 run immediately followed for the Yellow Jackets, capped off by a Reynolds layup at the 14:34 mark 

  • A pair of Miller free throws capped off an 11-4 run by the Polar Bears to make the score 56-52 at the 7:35 mark 

  • ONU was able to shut down the Yellow Jackets defensively, while also making their free throws down the stretch 

  • The Polar Bears out-rebounded BW 21-12 on the glass  

  • Ohio Northern cashed in on five three-pointers compared to BW's one make 

  • The Yellow Jackets went 9-12 from the charity stripe 

Up Next 

The Yellow Jackets return to the hardwood on Wednesday, February 18, as they take the floor at home against OAC opponent Heidelberg University in the regular season home finale. The game will be played at 7 p.m. inside the Ursprung Gymnasium.  Fans can catch all the action on FloCollege.