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January 26, 2011
Ohio State continued its perfect season this week dominating in conference against ranked opponents. It was the most impressive stretch of play this season as the midway point of conference play approaches. The No. 1 ranking has only seemed to improve their focus and play. It’s the best basketball team in Ohio and one that could be destined for big things come April.
This week, the Ohio State men’s basketball team rolled through the toughest stretch of their schedule to date and put a firm hold on the number one ranking heading into a weekend matchup against Northwestern.
It was the kind of week that put some distance between the Buckeyes and everyone else in the country. It’s unlikely they will go through conference play unscathed, but the dominance this week will surely keep them in the discussion for top team in the country whenever that first loss does come.
Rankings
ESPN/USA Today Coachs Poll – #1
Week That Was (3-0 – Iowa, at Illinois, Purdue)
As I noted above, there can be no question who the best team in the country is after this week. Last night, ESPN analyst Dan Dakich stated he didn’t think any team in the country could have come into Columbus and stayed within 10 points of the Buckeyes with the way they were playing. Ohio State scored a ridiculous 46 points in the first half in an offensive explosion rarely seen in the Big Ten. Every shot was falling for the Buckeyes as they jumped out to a quick lead, extended it, and never let the Boilermakers come close to making a run. Purdue came into the game second in the Big Ten and left with the media questioning their legitimacy as a contender in the conference.
Ohio State shot a ridiculous 55% from the field and 58% from behind the arc last night. William Buford led all OSU scorers, hitting 5 of 6 from three. Every time it seemed like Purdue might make a run or get it down to low double digits, Buford hit a big three to put the game out of reach once again. Jon Diebler hit 3 of 5 from deep as well. JaJuan Johnson, who Gus Johnson called “the Kevin Durant of college basketball,” continued his march towards the conference scoring title with 24 points but Purdue had little else to threaten the Thad Matta’s club. It was over at the under 12 timeout.
The Buckeye freshmen once again proved to be the catalyst behind this team’s drive to a second consecutive conference crown. Sullinger owned the conference this week (see below) but Aaron Craft continues to command the team from the PG spot and impress more and more with each game. ESPN named him the player of the game last night as he finished with 11 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists. Purdue coach Matt Painter was most disheartened by Craft’s ability to consistently penetrate and get in the lane throughout the first half against some of the Big Ten’s better defending guards, Lewis Jackson and E’Twaun Moore.
Deshaun Thomas is another freshman that could become a viable rotation player after the week he put in on the offensive end. For much of the season, he has seemed out of place and still a hyper high school style player scoring by accident. This week, he hit two huge threes down the stretch to put the Buckeyes ahead for good in Champaign. Last night, he probably had his best game as a Buckeye, finishing with 13 points and 6 rebounds. He scored within the offense and was incredibly active around the rim. I can’t imagine he will lead the team in field goal attempts again this season but I think he’ll continue to see increased time in key situations after this week.
While not by 23 points, I think many expected Ohio State to protect home last night and win against Purdue. On Saturday in Champaign, however, the Illini seemed to be the experts’ pick to end Ohio State’s perfect season. All three ESPN analysts on Saturday morning’s gameday picked Illinois to win and it was the toughest road test of the season. Sullinger emasculated what Fox writer Jeff Goodman called a “soft as charmin” Illinois front line. Three of Ohio State’s starters played all 40 minutes and the team shot sub 40% from the field but still managed to win on the road against a ranked team.
Thus it was a week that demonstrated Ohio State’s ability to win in different ways against ranked opponents – shooting poorly on the road and shooting well at home.
Week That Will Be
at Northwestern – Saturday @ 6:00 PM
Northwestern needs a home win to stay relevant and on the fringes of tournament consideration. Many thought Bill Carmody’s club had a shot at their first ever at-large berth under this season but they’ve struggled in conference so far. They were blown out at home by 30+ last week. Ohio State may be on cruise control after this past week while the Wildcats need a conference scalp badly. I imagine Sullinger will control the game againt another soft Illinois frontcourt who is ranked 319th in the country in rebounding.
OSU Player of the Week
Jared Sullinger – 6’9 Freshman F
For the second week in a row, a Buckeye was named the conference Freshman of the Week. But unlike Aaron Craft last week, Jared Sullinger added conference Player of the Week to his awards haul. It was the second time this month he received the honor. This was also all before his performance against Purdue last night, where he hit two threes. His 26 point, 17 rebound performance Saturday against Illinois was one of the more impressive performances from an Ohio State forward that I can remember. The freshman seems to be getting stronger as conference season moves on and continues to make a case for National Player of the Year. It had some contemplating whether he’s the best freshman big man Ohio State has seen in the Matta era.
One thing to keep an eye on going forward is Sullinger’s ability to stay out of foul trouble. He fouled out a couple weeks ago against Michigan but this week he committed only 2 fouls combined against Illinois and Purdue. His first foul in the Illinois came did not come until deep into the 2nd half and last night he committed no fouls against JaJuan Johnson and Purdue. Foul trouble is consistently the easiest way to an early tournament exit and Ohio State’s guards’ ability to prevent penetration have been a huge factor in Sullinger staying out of foul trouble.
Around the Big Ten
The upcoming week does not feature many head-to-head matchups of teams at the top of the conference. While Ohio State has a light week before a brutal two and half week stretch, Purdue finds itself in middle of such a stretch against the elites. If Northwestern is to have any chance at its first ever at-large berth, the Wildcats have to get their act together this week and get a win (or two) against Minnesota or Ohio State. Otherwise, it continues to look like only those top 6 elite teams will get bids. Unranked MSU took a hit late last night as Tom Izzo dismissed veteran guard Korie Lucious for the let-your-imagination-run-wild “conduct detrimental to the team.” The Big Ten has consistently put more than just 6 teams in the tourney but the depth at the top this year is what has taken the conference to a another level in the rankings:
Michigan at Michigan State – Thursday – 7:00 PM
Minnesota at Purdue – Saturday – 1:00 PM
Purdue at Wisconsin – Tuesday – 7:00 PM
Bracketology
The Buckeyes obviously continue to project as a number one seed. As each week passes with success, the protected seed in Cleveland becomes more and more of a lock. In addition, this week put a little cushion between the Buckeyes and Duke in the race for the Newark regional top seed. No other regional is within driving distance from Ohio but Northern NJ has become a second home for Duke and a natural landing spot for the Blue Devils. It’s never a given that a first seed gets out of the first weekend so it’s a little presumptuous to talk about specific regionals but that’s exactly what bracketology is at this point of the season – presumptuous.
ESPN/Joe Lunardi – #1 Seed – Newark Region
Bracketology101 – #1 Seed – Newark Region
CBS/Jerry Palm – #1 Seed – Newark Region
Until next week, happy hoops watching.
