Buckeyes Buried by Brandon Paul’s 43-point Explosion

Brandon Paul.

For his transcendent performance, he deserves the first words of this article. The 6’4″ junior Illini guard from Gurnee, Illinois, who is averaging 12.1 points per game this season, pummeled the Buckeyes with a relentless torrential downpour of three point shots. He connected on 8-of-10 three-point attempts and posted a career-high 43 points as the Illini pulled out a close one against the fifth-ranked Buckeyes 79-74. The Buckeyes have now suffered their second conference loss, and with a tight Big Ten race between Michigan State, Indiana, Purdue, Michigan, and these Illini, they now have some soul-searching to do.

Paul’s ability to dissect the Buckeye defense headlined an off night for a generally pesky defensive squad. Illinois shot a stunning 60% for the game as well as 11-of-18 (61%) from behind the arc, Paul being a huge chunk of that. The Buckeyes tried several defenders on Paul, including Aaron Craft and Sam Thompson, who replaced Jordan Sibert in the rotation, but no one could stay locked onto him as he curled around screens and pulled up from beyond NBA range more than once. When they did close out, it wasn’t under control, and he went to the line and converted free throws, making 13-of-15 despite being just a 68% free throw shooter. It was just a special night for Paul, and the Buckeyes were powerless to stop it. Ohio State has struggled defending the three-point line (Kansas game, anyone?) due to slow rotations in the past. This time, however, it was their one-on-one defense from several players that was not up to par rather than the opponent’s ball movement causing the miscues. Paul also influenced the game on the defensive end, blocking 4 shots, including two would-be layups of Buford’s. While he had 7 turnovers, his night was one for the record books.

Following the game, both Sullinger and Craft questioned the team’s effort and focus, and it’s pretty evident that this team is not as mentally tough as last year’s senior laden squad, led by David Lighty, Jon Diebler, and Dallas Lauderdale. William Buford is the only senior on this team, and his inconsistency is trickling through the team right now, and they miss the stabilizing forces of those mentioned above badly. There are moments, like the second half where Buford nailed a jumper off a curl and a couple minutes later forced a steal, where he looks like the guy who has a shot to be OSU’s all-time leading scorer. Then, there are other moments, like his late turnover or his silly cheapshot foul on Meyers Leonard in the second half, where he still plays like a freshman.

In the first half, Paul scored 15 of his 43, but the Bucks weathered the storm because of their work on the offensive glass (15 total offensive rebounds for the game) and in the post. Both Jared Sullinger and Deshaun Thomas cleaned up around the rim, combining for 24 points on 9-of-15 from the field.  The half featured an entertaining battle between Sullinger and the 7’1″ sophomore Leonard. The two starring posts took turns scoring on the other as they were both able to establish deep position. Sullinger won that battle in the first half 13-8 in the points department, but Leonard helped cancel out some of Sullinger’s production as he finished with 14 points, 4 rebounds, and drew one charge on Sully.

As good as Sullinger (21 points, 5 rebounds) and Thomas (23 points, 6 rebounds) were, the reoccuring theme down the stretch of close games for OSU has been to rely too heavily on Craft and Buford, rather than their post threats, on must-score possessions. In the final four minutes with the game still in doubt, the Buckeyes had the ball 7 times. Sullinger and Thomas scored two baskets each. The three possessions that didn’t end in points? A Sam Thompson missed three-pointer, a William Buford turnover, and an Aaron Craft turnover. That’s not a coincidence. I maintain that any possession in the final minutes of the game that doesn’t involve Sullinger or Thomas touching the ball in the post is a bad possession. These two drive the Ohio State offense, and they’re not being used to their full ability. With OSU’s guards turning the ball over in crunch time and struggling to hit outside shots (Buford was just 7-of-18 with 4 turnovers), Ohio State needs to stop forgetting what has been successful when the tension is high. This team is not a good three point shooting team, and even though they were 5-of-15 last night, Sullinger and Thomas were 3-of-4 combined, leaving the guards just 2-for-11.

Whereas I blamed a good chunk of the Indiana loss on the officials taking Ohio State’s key players out of the game for extended minutes and disrupting the flow, make no mistake that Illinois took it to the Buckeyes and earned this victory. I’ll have more on this later in the week, but right now, the Buckeyes look like a team lacking in senior leadership, searching to find out who they are, and heading down a path away from a Big Ten title.

(Photo: Joe Robbins/Getty Images)