Survive and Advance: Buckeyes beat Penn State, set to play No. 2 Sparty—again
March 11, 2016Make it two (in L.A.): Cavs-Clippers, Behind the Box Score
March 13, 2016The saying may be, “third time’s the charm,” but, for the Ohio State basketball team, that statement didn’t hold true. For the third time in less than three weeks, the Buckeyes were blown out by Michigan State who is the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten and second-best team in the country.
In the Big Ten quarterfinals, the scarlet and gray couldn’t avenge their two regular season losses against the team from East Lansing and suffered the biggest blowout against Sparty in 2016, 81-54.
After a tough first 20 minutes in which Ohio State weathered a 13-2 run by Michigan State, the Bucks trailed by just seven points at halftime. But, that all changed at the beginning of the second half, when the Spartans opened the final stanza on a 14-2 run, which gave them what would be an insurmountable lead. Along with the run, Sparty made eight of their first 11 shots in the second half and led by as many as 28 points.
Junior Marc Loving commented on the Spartans’ run to start the second half saying “Just miscommunications, and they turned those into points. They were able to knock down some pretty key shots. They were on the run, and we weren’t able to stop the bleeding.”
Head coach Thad Matta also recognized the way the Bucks opened the second half. The run they allowed was not just due to Michigan State just making shots, but also Ohio State hanging their heads. “I told these guys, when you’re a young basketball team and you hang on to stuff and you don’t run back and do what you’re supposed to do, that’s what happens.”
Just one Buckeye scored in double figures: JaQuan Lyle (10 points, three rebounds, one assist, two steals). With just one player in double-digits, Ohio State shot 42.6 percent from the floor, 9.1 percent from beyond the arc (a horrible 1-for-11), and yet again struggled from the free-throw line at just 63.6 percent. The 54 points by the Bucks was their lowest scoring output of the season.
B1G Player of the Year Denzel Valentine (19 points, nine rebounds, eight assists, two steals, one block) did it all for the Spartans. He led four Michigan State players in double figures.
With the loss to Michigan State in the Big Ten tournament for the second consecutive year, Ohio State is out of the NCAA Tournament contention. Matta’s streak of seven-straight seasons with a March Madness berth will come to an end. But, they will most likely make it into the NIT.
Although it’s not the big stage, such a young team can use any and all experience in tournament play. The NIT selections will be revealed Sunday night after the NCAA Tournament Selection show, and a potential matchup against the Akron Zips (28 RPI but lost MAC Final) is among the most interesting options.
Sophomore Kam Williams, although he would much rather be in the big show, recognized that the Buckeyes will be ready for whoever they get matched up against in the NIT. “We are just going to prepare for whatever comes next. Whoever we play, we’re going to prepare for them and hopefully get a better results.”
