YSU's Bohannon back on the court

By BRIAN DZENIS

bdzenis@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

Naz Bohannon endured scary moments around the holidays.

The sophomore forward with Youngstown State’s men’s basketball team wondered whether his playing days were over due to an issue with his heart.

“I was on an emotional roller coaster. I was high. I was low while watching the team play. I felt like if I was in, I could have helped,” Bohannon said Monday. “To know I couldn’t get out there was crushing. It was an eerie feeling.”

An hour before YSU’s 78-66 loss to Detroit Mercy on Dec. 28, the team was informed that Bohannon was medically unfit to play because the right side of his heart was dilated.

The issue was discovered months prior when he went to an Urgent Care for an unrelated illness. Doctors discovered a heart murmur and things became more serious as he received more tests.

He missed games against Oakland and Green Bay while undergoing further tests, then was declared fit in time to play in the Penguins’ 76-51 win against Milwaukee on Saturday.

That win snapped a four-game losing streak. He need to take two planes and an Uber by himself to suit up against the Panthers.

“If you were to go through my life, that’s one of the highlights right there,” Bohannon said. “I was just so grateful that I was able to do something that I love again.”

Bohannon played 27 minutes, collecting five points, five rebounds and three assists.

His heart will continue to be checked every six months.

Bohannon started every game for the Penguins (5-12, 1-3 Horizon League) before his scare, averaging 6.8 points and 8.9 rebounds a game.

He was the team’s leader in assists for before his three-game absence.

He’s the eighth-best offensive rebounder in college basketball with 3.93 a game.

“It’s more than what you see in the stats,” coach Jerrod Calhoun said. “You can look at his passing and his rebounding, but with a young team where you’re trying to build chemistry and continuity, Naz is our most consistent guy.

“There’s no debate with that,” Calhoun said. “He plays really hard, he’s going to get rebounds. More importantly, he’s a calming presence. We’re not looking back, but we certainly missed him.”

BIG HONOR, BIG ROAD TRIP

The women’s basketball team will be in Wisconsin this week for a two-game road swing that starts one of the toughest stretches in the Penguins’ season.

YSU (12-3, 4-0) will start with Milwaukee (5-9, 0-3) on Thursday before facing perennial Horizon League power Green Bay (7-6, 2-1) on Saturday. The Phoenix have won five of the last six League titles.

The Penguins haven’t been slouching either winning, eight of their last nine contests and are coming off a 70-52 win against IUPUI last Saturday.

“We had a really big win on Saturday, but we just have to keep moving on,” junior forward Mary Dunn said. “This is one of the hardest places to even play at. We know we have to bring our A game because we know they’re going to do the same.”

Dunn is the third Penguins player in five weeks to be named the Horizon League’s Player of the Week after averaging 21.5 points and 10 rebounds last week, which she did while coming off the bench.

Dunn is having a bounce-back season. She saw her minutes and stats drop from her freshman year to sophomore year. She’s now playing the best basketball of her YSU career at 13.6 points and 7.1 points a game. She’s the team’s second-leading scorer, even though she doesn’t start.

“I’ve been staying positive no matter what my role is. Every role is important,” Dunn said. “Whatever I can do to help the team is what I need to do. Especially right now, I need to step up and that’s what I’m focusing on.”