Butler Reaction

The OSU men's basketball team lost to Butler this past Saturday, 74-66. It was the Bucks first game without star player Evan Turner, who led OSU in points, rebounds and assists. Some analysts dubbed Turner as the National Player of the Year through the early part of the season.

The Bucks put up a valiant effort on the road against a very good Butler team, now ranked #17 in the ESPN/USA Today poll. (http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/rankings). But the loss of Turner was definitely prevalent in the outcome.

David Lighty and William Buford had their best games of the year, scoring 16 and 20. Jeremie Simmons added 11 off the bench.

OSU went back and forth with Butler for most of the game. A 15-0 run midway through the second half is what killed the Bucks. Butler got hot and OSU couldn't find a way to score. This was a time in the game where Evan Turner's loss was most felt. Yes, the Bucks did get out rebounded, and Turner certainly would have helped with that aspect, but they were still in the game and ET's loss was most felt on the offensive side of the ball. Turner is the one who makes plays for his teammates and is the go to guy when the Bucks need a bucket. No way that 15-0 run happens with Turner on the floor.

OSU is now 7-2 and ranked #18 in the ESPN/ USA Today poll. Next up for the Bucks is Presbyterian at home on the 16th.

OSU Beats Eastern Michigan, Turner Injured

The Buckeyes 110-60 victory over Eastern Michigan came in the ultimate bitter-sweet fashion. Yes, the Buckeyes won the game, but it came at a great cost.

Evan Turner had a bad fall early in the game, and limped off the court. He missed the rest of the game, and is now reported to be out for 8 weeks according to ohiostatebuckeyes.com.

Rose Bowl Opponent Decided Tonight

Ohio State will find out who they will play in the Rose Bowl tonight. Oregon plays Oregon State in the "Civil War", with the winner claiming the Pac 10 title and a berth to the Rose Bowl.

Oregon is the favorite, but don't count Oregon State out. Its a rivalry game and the Beavers aren't in a position to win the Pac 10 by luck. They're a good team and should give Oregon a game.

OSU probably matches up better with Oregon State as Oregon is full of speed that resembles the teams OSU has lost to in the past in BCS games (Florida, LSU, Texas).

Turner, Diebler Lead Way for Bucks in Win over FSU

The Big 10 has won the Big 10/ ACC Challenge for the first time in the event's history. It took 11 tries, but with OSU's victory over Florida State late Wednesday night the Big 10 took a 6-5 advantage, winning the challenge.

OSU had little trouble with the Seminoles. Winning 77-64, the game was steady in hand for most of the second half.

Jon Diebler led the way for the Bucks in the first half when most of the team was struggling from the field. The junior had 5 three pointers in the first half, and finished the game with 22 points.

Evan Turner continued his dominance over his opponents thus far this year with 25 points, 13 rebounds and 6 assists.

Both Turner and Diebler played the entire 40 minutes. The Bucks only used 7 players.

Coming off the bench, Jeremie Simmons contributed 14 points in 16 minutes of play and Kyle Madsen added 4.

The Bucks have a home date with Eastern Michigan Saturday and then travel to Butler on the 12th for their first true road test of the season.