With a win over that school up north yesterday, the Buckeyes moved a step closer to winning the regular season Big 10 Title.
If Michigan State can beat Purdue today, and the Bucks beat Illinois at home on Wednesday, they will at least be Co-Big 10 champs, with a possibility of winning the league outright depending on how the rest of the league plays out.
The win over the Wolverines not only showed how the Bucks could possibly win the Big 10, but something else: that Evan Turner doesn't have to carry this team on his back to win games.
Sure, Evan Turner was his usual standout self, scoring 18, dishing out 7 and grabbing 11 boards, but he wasn't the star yesterday. William Buford was.
The sophomore shooting guard finished with 24 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists. He was a perfect 3-3 from 3 point range and shot 60% from the field.
Dallas Lauderdale had somewhat of an offensive breakout game, scoring 14 points, tying his season high. Lauderdale's offense is something that the Bucks are going to need late in the season. If he can consistently score 10-12 points it will do wonders for OSU.
David Lighty added 7 and would've brought the house down with his attempted baseline dunk late in the 2nd half.
The Buckeyes also got some contribution from their bench. Still, no one from the bench scored, but they combined for 15 minutes of play, and gave the starters some much needed rest.
The Illinois game on Wednesday is the last of the regular season. If the Bucks can win that, they would be in great position to get the #1 seed in the Big 10 Tournament. A win in the Big 10 tourney would put the Bucks in position to get as high as a #2 seed in the NCAA Tournament. With a 2 seed, the Bucks would basically be guaranteed to advance to the second round, after losing to Sienna in the first round of last years tourney.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Streak Stopped
The #4 Purdue Boilermakers brought our Buckeyes a little more down to earth last night after defeating them 60-57.
The Buckeyes came into the game hot, riding a six game winning streak, but the Boilermakers proved to be a little hotter, winning their eighth game in a row.
Robbie Hummel didn't score a point until less than fifteen minutes were left in the second half, but the Boilermakers were fine without him. JaJuan Johnson was unstoppable for the full forty minutes, scoring 24 points and grabbing 7 rebounds. The Buckeyes started the game out in a 1-3-1 zone, but Johnson tore that apart, scoring from both the perimeter and under the glass. OSU then moved into man to man, putting both Dallas Lauderdale and Kyle Madsen on Johnson, but neither were very successful.
The Buckeyes defensive efforts on Johnson were not the only problem. As usual, the Bucks were forced to rely heavily on their starters. No one outside the starting five scored for the Bucks, and only one player from the bench saw action-Kyle Madsen.
While this rotation has worked of late, it didn't last night. Evan Turner and Jon Diebler were the only real scoring threats last night, putting up 29 and 10. William Buford scored 10, but wasn't a factor until late in the game. The two other starters, Lauderdale and David Lighty, combined for 7 points.
This has been an issue for the Bucks all season long and it was exploited in full effect by Purdue last night. By the end of the game, OSU was very tired. They struggled mightily on offense as the game went on and settled for jump shots possession after possession.
If OSU wants to make a run in the NCAA tournament, they're either going to have to get more offensive production from Lighty and Lauderdale, or get some help off the bench.
The Buckeyes came into the game hot, riding a six game winning streak, but the Boilermakers proved to be a little hotter, winning their eighth game in a row.
Robbie Hummel didn't score a point until less than fifteen minutes were left in the second half, but the Boilermakers were fine without him. JaJuan Johnson was unstoppable for the full forty minutes, scoring 24 points and grabbing 7 rebounds. The Buckeyes started the game out in a 1-3-1 zone, but Johnson tore that apart, scoring from both the perimeter and under the glass. OSU then moved into man to man, putting both Dallas Lauderdale and Kyle Madsen on Johnson, but neither were very successful.
The Buckeyes defensive efforts on Johnson were not the only problem. As usual, the Bucks were forced to rely heavily on their starters. No one outside the starting five scored for the Bucks, and only one player from the bench saw action-Kyle Madsen.
While this rotation has worked of late, it didn't last night. Evan Turner and Jon Diebler were the only real scoring threats last night, putting up 29 and 10. William Buford scored 10, but wasn't a factor until late in the game. The two other starters, Lauderdale and David Lighty, combined for 7 points.
This has been an issue for the Bucks all season long and it was exploited in full effect by Purdue last night. By the end of the game, OSU was very tired. They struggled mightily on offense as the game went on and settled for jump shots possession after possession.
If OSU wants to make a run in the NCAA tournament, they're either going to have to get more offensive production from Lighty and Lauderdale, or get some help off the bench.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Biggest Game of the Year
Ohio State is ranked #12 in the ESPN/USA Today poll, and are riding a six game win streak into tomorrow's contest. The Bucks have won nine out of their last ten as well, with the lone loss coming out of conference at West Virginia.
A win tomorrow night would put the Buckeyes at 11-3 in the Big 10 with four games left to play in the regular season. OSU currently sits a half game out of first place in the conference, behind #11 Michigan State.
OSU is one of the hottest teams in the country, and some analysts believe that if Evan Turner wouldn't have gotten injured in early December, the Bucks would be a top five team in the country. (OSU went 4-3 before Turner returned to 100%)
The Bucks have been flat out destroying teams, winning their last six games by an average of fourteen points.
Tomorrow night's contest fairs to be a little more competitive. Purdue is the highest ranked of all the Big 10 teams at #4 in the country. They're 9-3 in the Big 10 and are tied with both OSU and Michigan State in the loss column of the standings.
E'Twaun Moore leads the Boilermakers in scoring at 17.3 ppg. Center JaJuan Johnson averages over 14 a game and poses serious match-up problems at 6'10. The Junior can step out and knock down the outside shot as well as having a very solid inside game.
But the game will most certainly come down to the two potential All American's, Evan Turner and Robbie Hummel.
In the teams previous meeting, Hummel exploded in the first half of the game, setting a school record for three pointers made. But Turner got the best of him in the second half, finishing with 32 points, 23 of which came in the second half.
The two will probably be matched up against each other for most of the game, and whichever one can get the best of the other will win this game.
A game of this magnitude is going to come down to the superstars, which is why I like the Bucks to defeat the Boilermakers.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Buckeyes Need to Get More Production From Bench
The Mountaineers had worn down the Buckeyes by the end of the game. Evan Turner, David Lighty and William Buford played the entire game. It was clear in the last couple of minutes that these three were tired. And it showed. Their shots were coming up short and they were a step slower than usual.
Evan Turner is about as close to Superman as anyone in college basketball, but you can't expect the kid to play 40 minutes and be 100% from start to finish. He needs to get some rest at some point in the game so he can have his legs at the end.
The bench provided a grand total of zero points. Zero. That just can't happen if OSU wants to advance into the postseason.
Someone needs to step up from the bench and provide OSU with a consistent scoring option when the starters need rest.
A lot of this can fall on Thad Matta's shoulders as well. The Bucks are not a very deep team, but he's going to have to give his starters some rest and trust the guys off the bench, or this team won't go anywhere.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Buckeyes Can't Hold On in Morgantown
For the first twenty minutes of the game, everything was looking good for our Buckeyes. OSU got up 40-28 at halftime and all they had to do was hang on for another twenty minutes, and theyd be heading back to Columbus with a very sweet non-conference victory.
But the Mountaineers had other plans.
West Virginia came out in the second half and scored the first ten points. They cut the lead to 40-38, and we had a serious ball game on our hands.
WVU got hot from three, and took the lead with a little less than nine minutes left.
As the Mountaineers got hot, the Buckeyes got cold.
OSU only made one field goal attempt during the final eight minutes of play. They did cut it to 69-65 with 56 seconds left, but that was as close as they would get.
The final score read 71-65.
Ohio State falls to 14-6 on the year.
But the Mountaineers had other plans.
West Virginia came out in the second half and scored the first ten points. They cut the lead to 40-38, and we had a serious ball game on our hands.
WVU got hot from three, and took the lead with a little less than nine minutes left.
As the Mountaineers got hot, the Buckeyes got cold.
OSU only made one field goal attempt during the final eight minutes of play. They did cut it to 69-65 with 56 seconds left, but that was as close as they would get.
The final score read 71-65.
Ohio State falls to 14-6 on the year.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Bucks Cruise Past Northwestern
The Buckeyes wasted no time tonight in their rout of Northwestern. Seven minutes into the game, OSU was up 17-3, and by all means, the game was already over.
Northwestern played most of the game in a 1-3-1 zone, hoping to force the Buckeyes into traps that would lead to turnovers. Good strategy, unless the guy you're trying to trap is Evan Turner.
The 6'7 point guard had little trouble getting by the 1-3-1 zone, using his height and athleticism to get the ball over and through the Wildcats defense.
Turner, who said after the game that he's about 90% back from his injury, flirted with a triple-double, which would have been his 3rd of the season. ET had 20 points, 13 rebounds, and 8 assists. Not bad for a guy who isn't even 100%.
Jon Diebler had 17, and Dallas Lauderdale added 14.
The one troubling aspect of this game is that the Buckeyes only received 10 points from their bench. While the poor output by the bench wasn't a factor in a blowout such as this, the Bucks are eventually going to face a talented team that likes to run and play the game at a fast tempo. And when that happens, OSU is going to need to get some production from their bench.
With the 76-56 victory the Bucks improved to 14-5 on the season, 4-3 in Big 10 play. Next up for OSU a road contest against #9 West Virginia.
Northwestern played most of the game in a 1-3-1 zone, hoping to force the Buckeyes into traps that would lead to turnovers. Good strategy, unless the guy you're trying to trap is Evan Turner.
The 6'7 point guard had little trouble getting by the 1-3-1 zone, using his height and athleticism to get the ball over and through the Wildcats defense.
Turner, who said after the game that he's about 90% back from his injury, flirted with a triple-double, which would have been his 3rd of the season. ET had 20 points, 13 rebounds, and 8 assists. Not bad for a guy who isn't even 100%.
Jon Diebler had 17, and Dallas Lauderdale added 14.
The one troubling aspect of this game is that the Buckeyes only received 10 points from their bench. While the poor output by the bench wasn't a factor in a blowout such as this, the Bucks are eventually going to face a talented team that likes to run and play the game at a fast tempo. And when that happens, OSU is going to need to get some production from their bench.
With the 76-56 victory the Bucks improved to 14-5 on the season, 4-3 in Big 10 play. Next up for OSU a road contest against #9 West Virginia.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Early Look at Northwestern
The Buckeyes have a chance to win their 3rd straight Big 10 game tomorrow night when they take on Northwestern.
Northwestern is 13-4, 2-3 in Big 10 play. The Wildcats are coming off a huge win over #6 Purdue, the same team OSU defeated earlier in the week.
Sophomore forward John Shurna leads the Wildcats. He averages over 16 points and 7 rebounds a game. Hes 6-8 and can stroke the three ball, and will be a very tough match-up for the Buckeyes. Evan Turner probably matches up best against him. Shurna gets most of his points from the outside and Turner should be able to keep with him and limit his shot opportunities.
On the other side of the court, Northwestern doesn't really have a player that matches up with Turner. Northwestern's biggest guard is freshman Drew Crawford at 6'5. Turner should be able to use his height advantage to get points in the paint.
I see the Buckeyes winning this game, not by a big margin but comfortably. Northwestern is a solid team but the Bucks athleticism will be a little too much to handle for the Wildcats. 75-62 is my prediction.
Northwestern is 13-4, 2-3 in Big 10 play. The Wildcats are coming off a huge win over #6 Purdue, the same team OSU defeated earlier in the week.
Sophomore forward John Shurna leads the Wildcats. He averages over 16 points and 7 rebounds a game. Hes 6-8 and can stroke the three ball, and will be a very tough match-up for the Buckeyes. Evan Turner probably matches up best against him. Shurna gets most of his points from the outside and Turner should be able to keep with him and limit his shot opportunities.
On the other side of the court, Northwestern doesn't really have a player that matches up with Turner. Northwestern's biggest guard is freshman Drew Crawford at 6'5. Turner should be able to use his height advantage to get points in the paint.
I see the Buckeyes winning this game, not by a big margin but comfortably. Northwestern is a solid team but the Bucks athleticism will be a little too much to handle for the Wildcats. 75-62 is my prediction.
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