Ohio State used a stifling zone to shut down a horrible Samford team holding the Bulldogs to 20% from the floor (9/48) including 2/18 from three point land in a 59-22 victory that saw OSU tie the school record for fewest points allowed (Wabash, 1939).
Evan Turner dominated the floor for Ohio State with 16 points and a career high 13 boards to go along with 4 assists and 5 steals.
Even with Turner going off, the best news for Buckeye fans came in the form of BJ Mullens being removed from the Missing Persons list. A non-factor in the first two games, Mullens saw 18 minutes of action producing 8 points, 3 rebounds and 2 steals. Certainly not dazzling stats but Mullens looked a little more comfortable - playing instead of thinking - which will hopefully give him some confidence as the Buckeyes look toward Miami and Notre Dame next week.
Serving as the tuneup Matta expected, Ohio State held Samford scoreless for the first 7+ minutes though the offense was far from spectacular. One bright spot included a nifty transition pass from Crater to Swatterdale resulting in a conventional three point play and a 17-4 lead with 7 minutes left in the half. The lead would grow to 30-6 at intermission as OSU held Samford to 13% shooting (3/23) and forced 10 turnovers while building a 23-12 edge on the glass.
The second half became a snoozefest until Samford's Gaby Bermudez decided to get a little chippy. Frustrated with not being able to inbound the ball under the Bulldog basket thanks to Mullens' length, Bermudez chucked the ball directly at Mullens to save possession prompting a little chirping and a puzzled look from longtime ref Donnie Gray.
Shortly thereafter, Bermudez received a pass and went up strong for a layup and Mullens delivered a Big Ten style foul dropping Gaby to the floor. Teammate Jim Griffin countered with a little push to Mullens chest triggering OSU's Jeremie Simmons to push Griffin to the ground. Order was quickly restored but I was more than happy to see Mullens show a little grit though Simmons' retaliation was more stupid than it was sticking up for a teammate. The remaining 10 minutes were played without incident as OSU cruised to victory.
Swatterdale was again large in the paint posting 10 points, 8 boards and 3 blocks in 23 minutes and bench big Kyle Madsen added 6 rebounds in 12 minutes. Knowing Madsen is truly the third big on a team short on baseliners, it was good to see him get some minutes. The contest also marked the first time I can recall seeing Dallas and Mullens on the floor together. It will be interesting to see if Thad gambles, or is forced to play those two in tandem next week against bigger front lines.
Besides the good we saw from Turner, Dallas and Mullens, there was plenty of bad to be had.
First, David Lighty continued his mediocre to ineffective play scoring just 3 points (1/4) to go with 5 boards, 3 turnovers and 4 fouls. Is it time to maybe come to the conclusion he's just never gonna be much of an offensive player, but instead a solid defender who can get hot once every couple weeks and give you 8-10 points?
Second, Jon Diebler disciples fans won't want to read this, but he reverted back to his '07-'08 self standing around the perimeter helping bog down the offense. In four attempts, his shortest shot was from 20 feet (he banked it in) and he added exactly 0 rebounds and 0 assists to his 5 points but did manage 3 turnovers.
Diebs wasn't alone as the Buckeyes racked up 17 turnovers led by Turner's 4 miscues. We know Turner's all around game is tight but I've seen few gifted players like him struggle so bad leading the break. After a few bad TO's in transition against BG, he had another couple today and seems to truly struggle with knowing when to dish versus when to keep driving. It's like he's never gotten the memo that you don't give up the ball on the break until a defender picks you up forcing the pass. I love him but the TO's continue to kill me - 9 in the last 2 games against chumps like BG and Samford?! He's too damn good to be doing that.
Anthony Crater also had a rough day catching a bit of Diebler-itis taking three shots, all from beyond the arc. One was an airball, another a total brick. I absolutely love his defensive intensity but he needs to focus on setting up teammates unless he's inside 17 feet. I'm fine with the occasional three but OSU doesn't need him to take a high volume of triples. If they need triples from the PG slot, Matta would rather Simmons be the launcher.
All in all, it's another win for a young team still finding its way. I thought the overall effort was strong which is impressive when you consider the opponent, the crowd and what's on tap for next week. What do you guys think? Can Ohio State steal one from Miami to avoid going 0-2? Not that they can't beat Notre Dame, but I certainly don't think we should expect it. At least not this early.
Comments
22 points?!? ahahahahah holy shit
yeah, I was really hoping for a more consistent O this year and looks like more of the same, except no Butler as the "go-to" guy" when absolutely need be. Looks like a work in progress again for this year
I agree Buckeyewillie, but the good thing is we don't have a bunch of NBA bound dominant freshman this year.. we have a bunch of young players who are going to grow into a powerhouse squad... and thats what wins championships..
Agreed...This team is gonna be pretty stout next season. Assuming Mullens turns pro, he's the only loss. Turner, Lighty, Buford, Lauderdale, Crater, Simmons, Diebler, Offut, Kecman and Zisis will all be back.
Simmons getting hot from behind the ark at the end after the technical fouls and the Bulldogs playing a little chippy was the highlight of the game.
Yeah. Bermudez needed his ass kicked. I thought Mullens might pull that switchblade out of his sock for a second.
Not to thread-jack, but wow, what a huge play out of the Ducks. 30-10 at the half and you gotta like the Buckeyes' odds to get into the BCS.
On the topic of basketball, listening to the game on the ride home today I thought I heard Keels and Stokes say that the Buckeyes held a team to 2 total points back in the day. I want to say it was Ohio U and the score was 88-2, but it could have been in the 20s for all I know.
Love the Swatterdale nickname, but heard someone on the BTN call him "Twin Cities" the other day and that has a pretty cool ring to it as well.
Damn, make that 37-10. Fiesta/Sugar here we come.
Doesn't USC get in over us when they look at our game vs. them?
Either way, I'm absolutely ecstatic about the possibility certainty of Penn State getting their heads handed to 'em by SC.
USC was looking at an at-large bid, but with a Beaver win will get the Pac-10 automatic, freeing up the at-large for Ohio State.
Crap.
That stench you smell is Penn State fans everywhere just shitting themselves a little.
They aren't the only ones. We're staring Oklahoma, Florida, Texas, Alabama or Texas Tech in the face. Yipe.
The only team in that group that would scare me going in is UF and I think they'll be playing in the MNC. Not to say I'd guarantee a win against the other teams, but for whatever reason I think Pryor gets his groove-on and these seniors go out with a bang.
We'll see soon enough, though.
If the offensive line run blocks like it did versus Wisconsin and pass blocks like it did against erm, Youngstown State, I think we win 4 out of those 5 games.
Really, if the offensive line shows up for the first time all year, a) I'll be shocked and b) we should win the game, provided Heacock doesn't get soft-zone happy early and often.
This talk may be premature as (that other, inferior) OSU just scored a TD
I was thinking the same thing. Good thing the Beavers don't like to play defense.
I think if we took our 11 most productive commenters on 11W and put us in pads, we'd play better D than Ore. St.
I rest my case. 76 yards for Oregon and this one's probably over.
This is true, that last touchdown (to get over the half century mark) was phenomenal. Oregon committed like 3 (or 4. I'm cycling between that and the funeral of Charlie Weis' credentials on ESPN, so I might miss a detail) penalties to put them in their own 5 and took 3 plays to go 95 yards.
That's 615 yards of total offense for Oregon. They might get to 750 before the end of the game.
Orange bowl baby, vs the ACC champ..... Ga. Tech or BC. I think we could hang with Bama, Texas or Texas Tech.......
Fla or Oklahoma would not be a good matchup for tOSU.... and I think those 2 will be playing in the NC game......
Bye bye charlie... you suck (now 30-0 on the way to 50). And you suck too Tommy Tubberville..... no points against your rival, how dare you say anything foul about tOSU and Jim Tressel. You stupid anus : http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.c...
Is the Orange Bowl a real possibility? And Va Tech-BC is the ACC championship match-up, since Ga Tech lost to Va Tech
Does suck to be Weis. Need a good showing/miracle upset against USC to maybe salvage your job.
The Orange Bowl won't help Ohio State. The Bucks need to play the UGA, the SEC runner up, or a Big XII South team
Oh and call me crazy, but I like PSU's chances against USC. Mark Sanchez is not a great QB, but just as Heacock's zone made Chris Leak and Matt Freakin' Flynn look like Troy Smith against scUM, PSU's D can make him pedestrian...
Not sure getting blown out by one of those teams is going to help us very much, Ryan. A good win over a team from an improving ACC will do wonders for the program's overall health.
Notre Dame is on the board. Does that mean Charlie keeps his job?
I stand corrected pogue, you are correct sir. From what I read and understand, the Orange bowl folks have stated publically that they would love to have OSU in the orange bowl for the first time since '77 I think... they had representatives at the Illinois game. The problem is that they pick last this year (I read) and OSU may not be on the on the board when it is their time to select and they may bet stuck with the Big-East champ (Cincy) since they will be the least desireable and have a guarantee with no automatic bowl tie-in. I am hoping that some behind the scenes negotiation can be reached to get them to Miami... I just placed my order for 2 orange bowl tickets through the University for $140 each...... can you believe that the sugar bowl tickets are $190 and the Fiesta Bowl tickets are $155??? wow $190 for Nawlins??
A. The bowl played on the date nearest to the National Championship Game (for 2009, Fiesta Bowl) will pick first;
B. The bowl played on the date second-nearest to the National Championship Game (for 2009, Sugar Bowl) will pick second;
C. The bowl hosting the game that is played in the time slot immediately after the Rose Bowl game (for 2009, Orange Bowl) will pick third.
The rotation noted in paragraphs A, B and C is as follows:
January 2007 games: Sugar, Orange, Fiesta
January 2008 games: Orange, Fiesta, Sugar
January 2009 games: Fiesta, Sugar, Orange
January 2010 games: Orange, Fiesta, Sugar
Damn it. I'm sure the Sugar will snatch us up, if only because they want to see us get pounded again and reinforce the SEC speed myth
and as Pogue correctly stated... a Bowl win, any Bowl win will help get the program over a hump. Tressel has been great in Bowl games and has beaten Miami, Kansas State, Notre Dame, Oklahoma state..... the last 2 have left a bad image on the masses and that needs to be corrected. Get the win this year and then go for the Big Boys next year with some momentum....... I am not so sure we have much to say about it though, I think the fiesta looks the most likely -
wow... Oregon put up 70 points on the fake OSU and 700 yds offense... forgive me for laughing, but ha ha. Almost as funny as Ohio State putting up 600 yds on Notre Dame! Fun
I'm upset I had to watch that Oregon-Oregon State game. I've never seen two worse BCS conference defenses than what I just saw. And "Civil War" it was not. Those players were helping each other off the field, patting each other on the butts. That is not a rivalry. Those guys were all friends, no bad blood between them. I feel dirty after having watched that Pac-10 shoot out. I'm going to shower now.
You know what they say about those Pac-10 surfer boys.
I say this, of course, after we readily offered up the butt in September to the best of the bunch. Sigh.
So assuming Big 12 South rep will win the conference title against Mizzou, with the Fiesta bowl having the first pick for at large, does that mean the Fiesta Bowl gets to fill both slots right away? They'd have two at large spots, with the Big 12 tie in winner going to the title game; they'll pick the next best Big 12 team (probably Texas if OU holds on and wins against OK State), and then another at large team. I don't think they'll let Ohio State get past them, even if the Utes are undefeated they can't fill the seats, hotels, and restaurants that Buckeye fans can. Do they get to make there selections all at once?
Would it be the Big 12 south runner up or the Big 12 runner-up Missouri?
I think Mizzou would have a better case to make if they hadn't lost to Kansas today. Texas would have just 1 loss and Mizzou would have 4 at that point so I don't see Fiesta passing on Texas.
Any I don't think Mizzou would be ranked in the top 12 so couldn't be selected regardless
Texas is a match-up I actually like: Mediocre defense and running game. We'd have to let McCoy beat us, which Heacock loves doing with soft zones. If he actually attacks, we have a pretty good shot of taking them down.
Seriously though. We need to see if Heacock is being bribed by opposing offensive coordinators. Or if he's an SEC plant.
I think Texas is beatable too, probably the best risk-reward ratio for Ohio State. It'd be the most impressive win that OSU can manage, whereas beating the ACC champ would be nice but not mean as much to the public. But meeting the SEC runner up, especially if that team is Florida, would just be a blood bath. So Texas probably the best draw we could hope for now.
And even if OK State wins tonight, that still means that Tex Tech going to the title game, and so Texas will get the Fiesta nod over a 2 loss OU team that they beat. So I think its very likely that we meet Texas at this point.
I think the only problem could come from UCLA and USC. If UCLA wins, Oregon State goes to the rose bowl and then the Bowls will have to choose between a 2 loss Ohio State and a 2 loss USC that destroyed Ohio State. Hopefully losing that late in the season against a crappy UCLA team would be enough to put OSU in the at large spot, but I seriously doubt that UCLA will challenge this USC team.
i know this has probably been gone over and gone over, but these defenses in the Big 12 are atrocious. its embarassing
Damn, Tennessee won. That means OSU and Tenn the only teams in FBS to never have suffered 8 losses in a season. Was hoping Tenn would pick up their 8th today. Wasn't to be.
Don't get to happy yet guys, They can still pick Bosie St over Ohio State. And with a 12-0 Bosie and 10-2 OSU.... who knows everybody still remembers that Oklahoma And Bosie game....we may get the short end of the stick here.
Hope we do.
You gotta be effing kidding me - we win by more points than Samford SCORED and Thad couldn't get Titus his trillion? That is some bullshit right there.
On The Civil War: Holy cow, the lack of defense in the Pac-10 is a crime.
On OU-OkSt: More criminal lack of defense.
On Herbstreit, who just said re: Oklahoma and Texas, "I gotta go with the head-to-head": he's a fucking idiot. Lots of us like to cut him some slack because he's a Buckeye and sometimes says some entertainingly homerish things on the radio w/ Spielman, but he's a full-on WWL salad-tosser the rest of the time.
THERE IS NO POSSIBLE WAY TO CHOOSE AMONGST TEXAS/OKLAHOMA/TEXAS TECH USING HEAD-TO-HEAD AS A CRITERION. This should be staggeringly obvious to anyone with a 3rd-grade-level intellect, but apparently it escapes Kirk.
If you want to discount the Red Raiders because of the Sooners' destruction of them and their weaker non-conference schedule, and THEN say something about Texas beating Oklahoma on a neutral field, fine, you're entitled. But that requires you to either ignore or explain away the Longhorns' loss to Tech.
No way Boise State gets selected over us. They won't fill the seats. I think Utah isn't deserving either, they barely beat a Michigan team that we dropped 42 on, but they look to be a lock for at least one game. The economy is shit right now and the bowl selection committees are terrified of empty seats and empty hotels. They will go with the big draw teams over better teams, especially when that team is a non BCS conference team. It looks like Iowa is going to be selected over Northwestern, and that isn't because they are more deserving; it's because Iowa will put asses in the seats. Bad economy to be Boise State.
i think it's pretty easy to explain away: texas lost to tech on a ridiculous last second catch after mccoy led his team back in the 4th quarter.
also the fact that texas came within a second of escaping from that midseason gauntlet unscathed is absolutely nuts.
i also think people should consider the game that was just played, not the box score. because okie state was two defensive stops from winning that game
also i think iowa is definitely more deserving than NW, they were playing lights out at the end of the year, and shonn greene is a monster
Maybe so, I think it's a toss up. Northwestern managed to pull off a few wins when they were badly injured and that impressed me. Iowa caught Penn State in a bad game and was able to eke it out. Neither one of the teams jump out to me as world burners though.
As an aside, I've always hated the "hottest team right now" stuff. Like Georgia was hailed last year. I'm a firm believer in taking the bad with the good. Like with the Buckeyes, we played great sometimes, and really, really poorly at other times. Need to look at the entire product and make the call off of the complete body of work.
I want Northwestern to get the Outback Bowl. I don't care about the economy, and packing seats and things of this nature. I just have this lovely scenario in my mind of Northwestern ripping apart some SEC joker in Tampa (South Carolina, I guess) and having to listen to the SEC wonks own up to the fact that one of their own can't hang with the nerd school of the Big Ten. Nay, they can't hang with that there Northwestern Speed (TM).
As it is, CBS is predicting Iowa in the Outback Bowl and Nerdwestern in the Champs Sports Bowl. The Michigan State-Georgia matchup they also have is intriguing: http://www.sportsline.com/coll...
i can't agree with that; it implies football teams stay static throughout the year and don't improve or regress. it'd be unfair to look at the USC game to judge how good our team is now, and it'd be unwise to look at notre dame's first five games to try and contextualize how good they actually are.
college football is too transitory from week to week to say that team a would absolutely beat team b on any given week, but there are also clear patterns that appear during the season. iowa got increasingly better in the last month, and NW seemed to get increasingly erratic.
and again... shonn greene. holy shit, shonn greene. NW doesn't have anyone like that.
Bring on an over-rated SEC team!!! Which means any SEC team that's NOT bama or the fightin urbans
Check it out - Orson put a pic of Boone on one of his posts.
http://www.everydayshouldbesat...
i thought this was a basketball thread!
Unwatchable game.
Here we go again with Thad Matta holding back another top recruit. 18 mins is not enough for the number one player out of high school. The strenght of this team should be post play with Dallas and Bj. Just like he did with Cook Matta will try to make Mullens play very little mins with the hopes of keeping him around 2 years. It didn't work with Cook and it won't work with BJ. He's gone after this year anyway Thad so play him and let's get ready for the Big Ten and beyond.
I highly doubt that's what Thad is doing, just like I doubted Tressel was doing that to Small when that whole thing came out - whole different story but seemed semi-relevant. BJ really doesn't look all that comfortable right now and I'm ok with Dallas (the way he's playing D) and Madsen (who's been around the program) getting more time for now. As for Cook, he was great early because when Oden was out we played to our strengths, which at the time was speed/run and gun offense. Once we got Oden healthy we had a dominant center and could play a slower offense that was better balanced - an offense that Cook just didn't fit into that well.
[...] will never be better than an average offensive player, and we need to make our peace with that.Chris mentioned this a few days ago and I think he nailed it. Lighty is a good defender, aware and athletic enough to [...]