Say it with me now, "Thad Matta, elite coach."
Sunday's 50-43 victory over Wisconsin gave Matta his third Big Ten Tournament Title in four seasons – his fourth overall, to go with two runner-ups – pushing his record in the event to 19-6. The win total and winning percentage (.792) are both good enough for tops in conference history and he moved his record in March to a mind-boggling 50-12, which is third among active coaches.
Winning the tournament championship goes beyond cutting down the nets at the United Center. It should end all debate over whether Matta can coach as well as he can recruit.
The Big Ten was as good as it's been in a long time this year and Matta took a team lacking a post presence or a legitimate scoring threat beyond Deshaun Thomas and molded it into a team-first, defensive powerhouse. Along the way, Ohio State developed grit and learned to respond to deficits and close out good opponents.
Four weeks ago, the Buckeyes were blown out 71-49 in Madison leading most of us to believe a five, six or even seven seed was in Ohio State's NCAA future. Then Ohio State won eight-straight, culminating in a cold, but tasty dish served up to Bo Ryan and his Badgers.
The win was a microcosm of all that the Buckeyes had built upon during the winning streak. LaQuinton Ross and B1G tournament MVP Aaron Craft continued to emerge – along with Sam Thompson – as alternative scoring options, the team responded to a halftime deficit and they played defense. Boy, did they ever play defense.
After a Sam Dekker layup put the Badgers up 41-39 with 7:03 remaining, Ohio State clamped down and held Wisconsin without a field goal the rest of the way.
The defense has been so good lately that the team has been able to win games when Thomas has gone cold like he did yesterday at the United Center. Great defense isn't innate. It's coached and Matta's team bought into his message.
I feel like a broken record, singing Matta's praises two weeks in a row, but the work he did year – which included a 6-4 record against Big Ten heavyweights Indiana, Michigan State, Michigan and Wisconsin – has been nothing short of remarkable.
THE WEST BEST REGION. Ohio State's strong finish earned them a two seed in the West region, of course, and the Buckeyes will open play Friday night at 7:15 p.m. against No. 15 Iona in Dayton.
The Gaels (20-13/11-7) finished fourth in the MAAC, but punched their ticket to the NCAA tournament with a win over Manhattan College in the MAAC tournament. They were an at-large team in the 2012 tournament and are no stranger to the Dance, having qualified three times in the last six years.
They can score, coming in at 80.7 points per game, good enough for second in the nation (22nd in adjusted offensive efficiency). They will get up and down the court and leading scorer Lamont "Momo" Jones, a transfer from Arizona, is third in the country in scoring, putting up 23 a game. Here he is ripping Stanford's heart out in 2010.
Fortunately, Iona's defense is pretty terrible, checking in 257th in adjusted defensive efficiency.
It's a game the Buckeyes should win handily, with the line currently hovering in the 13½-14½ point range.
Beyond Iona, you have to be pleased with Ohio State's line. Should they defeat Iona, they'll face the winner of No. 7 Notre Dame and No. 10 Iowa State, both good, but not great teams. The Buckeyes have a bit of history on their side as well as the last five teams to have won the Big Ten Tournament all advanced to the Sweet 16.
Gonzaga, the weakest of the one seeds, headlines the region, while the three seed, New Mexico, is dangerous, but not exactly Florida, either. With Kansas State as the four and Wisconsin as the five, the West Region is pretty wide open for an Ohio State run.
Vegas has installed the Buckeyes as 15-1 favorites to win the tournament, and noted data whisperer Nate Silver gives Ohio State a 25% chance of winning the region.
Pat Forde:
For the first time since Oden, I think Ohio State has a viable shot at winning it all.
— Pat Forde (@YahooForde) March 17, 2013
Sports Illustrated's Luke Winn on the "freight train" that is Ohio State:
I figured the Buckeyes would be a great sleeper pick as a No. 3 or 4 seed ... until they surged all the way up to a No. 2 by winning eight straight to close the season. Indiana and Michigan controlled most of the Big Ten spotlight, but be aware that Ohio State has a better defense than either of those teams, ranking No. 6 in efficiency. These Buckeyes are playing D as stingily as last year's Final Four team did, and although their offense isn't at the same level, go-to-guy Deshaun Thomas is getting just enough help from Aaron Craft in the scoring department for them to get by. Ohio State is like Louisville Lite, and its great D paired with its top-20 offense makes it the most attractive team in a weak West Region.
Ohio State has the toughest coach in the country in Thad Matta. Combine him with Aaron Craft, throw in a scoring savant like Deshaun Thomas, and the Buckeyes aren't losing again until next season
Momentum: it's a helluva drug.
NBD, just Thad Matta's hardware collection at Ohio State [@JeffBoals].B1G EXPECTATIONS. The Big Ten earned seven bids to the tournament, trailing only the Big East's eight, and after a year of hype, is feeling pressure to deliver the league's first championship since 2000 when Michigan State cut down the nets.
Indiana's loss to Wisconsin in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals Saturday cost the Hoosiers the top overall seed in the tourney, but they did draw a #1 in the East Region. They'll open with the winner of LIU-Brooklyn and James Madison, and may eventually run into a hot Miami team, the region's two seed.
Michigan State earned a three in the Midwest, arguably the tournament's toughest region, and Michigan was sent South as a four seed.
Wisconsin as the aforementioned five in Ohio State's West Region, has the most interesting first round matchup of any league team, taking on Mississippi Friday afternoon. The Badgers' pace and style will keep it close, but do you really want the ball in Marshall Henderson's hands late in a one possession game if you're Bo Ryan?
Illinois and Matta disciple John Groce nabbed a seven in the East and will face No. 10 Colorado Friday, while Minnesota snagged the league's final bid, as an 11 and will face No. 6 UCLA, the Pac-12 regular season champs. Seeds be damned, the Gophers opened as early favorites in this one.
THE 11W BOUNCE IS A THING. We had a bit of fun over the weekend and honored Buckeyes as superheroes for B1G tourney open threads here at Eleven Warriors. On Friday, Sam Thompson received the Superman treatment and he finished with a game-high 19 points.
Aaron Craft starred as Bruce Wayne for Saturday's semifinal with Michigan State and the Rosy-Cheeked Knight torched the Spartans for 20 points, again, a game-high.
Sunday's championship game against Wisconsin brought us Deshaun Fury, and despite reservations about flipping from DC to Marvel, Thomas finished with 17 points, good enough to once again lead all scorers.
We're scared to end this thing now, so we need your suggestions for Friday's game with Iona. Lenzelle as Aquaman? Amir as Mister Fantastic? Should we just ride Deshaun until the very end?
TOOLS & CONTESTS. Need a printable bracket? Here you go. What about tipoff times, networks and announcers for the first and second rounds? Done.
Don't forget to enter your bracket for a chance to win a basketball autographed by Jared Sullinger. That, and bragging rights on 11W for an entire year.
Oh, and there's still time to enter and/or vote in our Photoshop Phriday contest starring Mike Vrabel.
ETC. For old time's sake... Kentucky, Southern Miss, Alabama and Virginia are your one seeds in the NIT... Texas is CBI-bound, while the state of Texas is the "None Star State"... The 2013 Big Ten Tournament shattered its attendance record by 15,000 fans and will return to Chicago in 2015.
