Eleven Warriors

In a game played in front of 237 rowdy fans jammed into Madison Square Garden, Ohio State came out smoking with a 17-2 run to take a commanding 27-10 lead just 10 minutes in before closing the half on a 13-2 burst handing the Ole Miss Rebels their worst halftime hole of the season, 44-20.

The Rebels would bounce back from the first half manhood-stripping with an impressive 21-5 spurt in which they shot a blistering 9/11 including 3/3 on threes from David Huertas while holding the Buckeyes to 2/10.

The run cut the Buckeye lead to 56-45 with 11:57 to play but the Rebels weren't done there.

Ole Miss would eventually trim the lead to seven (75-68) following a Chris Warren triple with 1:44 left on the clock but a hobbled Butler would answer with a game-icing driving layup.

A few dunks later the Buckeyes secured an 81-69 victory and a berth in the NIT Championship where they'll face the UMass Minutemen (that's what the girls say) Thursday night at 7pm.

The loss was the Rebels' first against a non-league opponent (17-1).

The 2-2-1 press and 3-2 zone gave Ole Miss trouble in the decisive first half as they committed double digit turnovers coupled with a paltry 8/28 from the floor (28%). The Buckeyes were also large on the boards posting a 27-15 edge including 11-5 on the o-glass.

The stifling defensive effort early was buoyed by a balanced offensive attack. Jamar Butler and David Lighty scored 9 each while Kosta Koufos and Evan Turner added 8 apiece.

When the dust settled on the Jekyl and Hyde affair the Buckeyes had placed 4 Buckeyes in double figures while forcing 20 turnovers and holding a 41-36 edge on the glass.

For my money, Evan Turner was the star of the game with 17 points (6/12 FG), 7 boards 5 assists to complement another stellar defensive outing (4 steals). His length on both the press and the zone gave the Rebel ball handlers fits all night long.

Even more important, Turner has reached double figures in two straight for the first time since he had 10 against Northwestern then 16 against Michigan in mid-February. In wins over Dayton and Ole Miss, Turner has compiled 28 points, 15 boards and 8 dimes.

Butler also scored 17 though he appeared to slighty tweak his leg late in the contest before the aforementioned dribble drive to seal the deal. Obviously, the Buckeyes will need a healthy Butler to have any shot at winning the championship.

Lighty kept up his improved play of late with 16 points (7/14 FG) and 5 assists and Koufos added 16 points and 8 rebounds.

Othello Hunter just missed double digits with 9 points but made his presence known at the defensive end registering 5 blocks to go along with 6 boards.

All in all, it was a bit troubling to watch the Buckeyes hemorrhage 49 second half points but I think Corey summed it up best noting the Buckeyes haven't had much experience managing such a huge lead with so much time left. The comfortable margin lead to some questionable shot selection and a relaxed defensive effort before the Bucks settled in making plays when needed to keep the Rebels at bay.

Ohio State has now won 6 of their last 7 pushing the season record to 23-13. Good night, now.

Terrelle Pryor may not be arriving on campus until June, but that doesn't mean it's too early to discuss how he’ll be used this fall.

It's generally assumed that LiC will be used in the same manner as Tebow was used his freshman season at Florida. Like Tebow, Pryor will drive the crowd bonkers when he enters the game and the dynamics of what he can do on the field basically doubles the size of your playbook. Similarly, Boeckman is a returning starter entering his final season and no matter how good the incoming talent, he won't lose his starting position.

It will be interesting to see how Tressel utilizes his prize catch. As one that’s made a living out of adjusting his schemes to his personnel instead of the other way around, you can bet he’ll have some tricks up his sleeve.

Could one of those tricks be the option?

You have to admit, Baby Vince and the best running back in the nation in the same backfield should be enough to trouble even the savviest of defensive coordinators.

The wishbone is the traditional set used to execute the option, but given the uncertainty at fullback heading into this season, the veer may make more sense. In the veer, the fullback becomes a tight end with only two backs lining up behind the quarterback.

Naturally, Beanie and Pryor would be options one and two on most plays out of the formation, but that other would become Mo Wells, Saine or Herron. Wells has the misfortune of playing in the same backfield as He Who Eats Arm Tackle Cereal, but quietly performed pretty well down the stretch last season. Saine is Saine – electric and plenty of speed, while Boom has had people talking this spring. Bottom line: There are three capable runners to fill that 2nd spot.

Another benefit of the veer in favor of the wishbone is that the tight end is a part of the offense instead of a bunched receiver or an afterthought. We’ve been amazed by Pryor’s highlight videos, and while he's made some great throws, it's safe to say that at this point in his career, he's a runner first, passer second. The tight end will give him that safety blanket until he builds up his swag and oh yeah, he'll still have Robo and Hartline on the outside. Two seasoned receivers that will become that much more dangerous with corners focusing on the run.

His goal is to eventually become a true multi-dimensional quarterback, but what better way to introduce him to the speed of the game and work his throwing confidence up than an old-school set that should be good for 12 yards a rush?

Ohio State 22-13, 10-8 Big Ten Roster | Schedule

April 1, 2008 9:20 PM ET - ESPN2 —— The Garden New York, NY

Mississippi 24-10, 7-9 SEC Roster | Schedule

OPPONENT: Mississippi started the season ablaze, winning their first 13 games and then, they lost 9 of their next 17 once they entered conference play. Their 7-9 conference record was good for seventh place in the SEC and as all Big Ten fans know, that would be good enough for first in our conference...SEC speed dude.

Mississippi is shooting 46 percent overall, 36 percent from downtown and 66 percent from the line, which has lead to 80 points a contest. The Rebels are outrebounding their opponenets by 6.1 a game and they dish out almost 16 assists per contest. Ole' Miss takes care of the rock by only turning it over 13 times a game, while forcing their opposistion into 14 turnovers.

KEY PLAYERS: Mississippi uses a 3 guard lineup, similar to what Ohio State saw against Dayton. Ole' Miss is lead by their 5'11" freshman guard, Chris Warren, who leads this team in minutes, points, assists and turnovers. For the year he is scoring 15.7 points and handing out 4.5 assists per contest, but also averages 3 to's and could fall victim to OSU's pressure defense.

Dwanye Curtis, a 6'8" senior, will test Ohio State's bigs. He is fourth in the nation grabbing 3.5 offensive boards a game and averages 9.5 total rebounds, while scoring 15 points. He is shooting over 64 percent from the floor and did not attempt a three pointer this season. Eniel Polynice is a 6'5" sophomore who comes in scoring 10.8 points, grabs 5.4 caroms and dishes out 4 assists per game.

David Huertas, a 6'5" sophomore, comes in averaging 10.6 points and almost 4 rebounds, while only shooting 38 percent from the field. The 6'8" senior, Kenny Williams looks to be the other starter, scoring 8.5 points and grabbing 6.7 boards. He is shooting 53 percent from the floor and a whopping 49.4 percent from the line. Trevor Gaskins (6'2" Fr.) and Zach Graham (6'5" Fr.) seem to be the two top reserves for the Rebels, each playing about 17 minutes a game and chipping in with just over 6 points a contest.

NOTES: The Rebels are coached by Andy Kennedy, the former Cincinnati assistant and interim coach, who is 45-23 in his two seasons... Chris Warren broke the school record for 3's in a season and set the freshman scoring record at Ole' Miss... The Rebels are 1-6 all time against the Big Ten... The 24 wins is the second most in school history.

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BUCKEYE BREAKDOWN: (Take yourself back a few weeks...) Now name me the Big Ten team who will be the last to be playing in the 2008 season. What a difference a couple of weeks can make. Ohio State has taken this NIT bid and turned it into a valuable learning and winning experience, earning their second trip to NYC this season. I know I have sat in wonderment the last week questioning where this team was all season.

Thankfully Ohio State has saved their best ball for the end, scoring more than 70 points in three straight for the first time all season. They have beaten their opponents by an average of 15 points a game and seem to be playing ball with a bit more relaxation. While I was dissappointed by not getting the NCAA bid, I think this NIT invitation was the best thing for this team, almost three extra weeks of practice can only help jump start this group into next season.

KEY PLAYERS: Four Buckeyes are averaging in double digits during this tourney, with Kosta and Jamar leading the way at 17.7 points a game. Othello is scoring 10.7 and leads the team with 7.7 boards and D-Light is chipping in with 10 points during the NIT. I have said it before, I hope Kosta can turn down the millions of dollars he has earned himself in the last couple of weeks. He has hit 73 percent of his shots (24-33), including 9 of 11 against Dayton and has shown his wide array of offensive moves.

Thankfully Jamar has returned to form and his legacy at OSU is still in tact. I know we have all been critical of him at certain points during this season, but he has rewritten the Ohio State record books and deserves his props. This team has missed Mike Conley Jr. tremendously this year, but I have a feeling Jamar is going to be missed even more next season.

So what Jon Diebler and Evan Turner show up for this road trip? Diebler scored 10 points last game, but we all have seen his troubles on the road this year. Turner has to be hurt. He did score 11 against Dayton and his defense is still stellar, but his offense seems to be a bit off in the last month or so.

NOTES: OSU is now 33-1 when The Wiggler scores 4 or more points... Butler needs 8 points to pass Clark Kellog for 23rd on the all time list... OSU is 56-17 when Butler dishes out 4 or more assists... OSU has a blog going for the NYC trip... I am not a journalist and will not look to make a career out of it.

It looks like Fergie won't be meeting Joe Paterno after all.

The NCAA got around to looking at the specifics behind the Gridiron Bash, a series of events where musical acts were to perform as part of a fan-friendly event leading up to the spring games of select universities, and didn't like what they saw.

It appears that some schools had raised concerns regarding the participation of players at pep rallies and the concerts. The NCAA then advised MSL Sports and Entertainment, the event backers, that the shows could not go on. Officials are in the process of canceling the events and while refund information is supposedly forthcoming, the Wiz correctly speculates that MSL could take a shot to the wallet:

The suspicion is that MSL could take a financial hit, given that top-flight acts would seemingly have financial guarantees to guard against cancellations — especially cancellations close to the concert dates.

What's that about measuring twice, cutting once?

When the original roster was announced with the likes of Penn State, Alabama, Tennessee and LSU, some Buckeye fans wondered why the school wasn't included. Besides the obvious reason of not sullying your flagship spring event with the likes of Alan Jackson, Kelly Clarkson or Kid Rock, perhaps the compliance folks saw the danger in this one a mile away. At any rate, it's nice to be ahead of the game for once.

Now that all of the one seeds have advanced to the Final Four (and that hot girl in accounting has moved to the front of your office pool), it's time to take a quick look at the leaderboard for Eleven Warriors Steak Knives.

A staggering 46 entries have mad insight finally saw their strategies of automatically moving the top seeds to the Final Four pay off. Regardless, only a handful at the top of the leaderboard have a realistic chance to take home the title. And by title, we mean an autographed pair of Corey's "game-worn" underwear.

Leading the pack is the Next Year bracket. With 1030 points his entry is in the top 20,000 of more than 3.2m entered -- good enough for the top .6%. Thank you, sir. We'll be including you on any reader demographic materials we prepare for advertising.

The M. Huges entry is a close second with 1020 points, but since both entries have the same championship game opponents and winner (UCLA over UNC) it's impossible for him.

Corey's Pimp and the NIT Champs entry are still alive by virtue of being close enough (980 points) and having different winners than the top two entries. There are probably a couple of other brackets that are still alive, but there's only so much permutation time in the day, you know?

Suffice to say, you guys seem to be a lot better at filling out your brackets than we are. Corey is in the best position, tied for 13th, while Chris is tied for 23rd and I'm laying a turd, tied for 44th. Could be worse I guess, we could have Mark's entry.

This guy knows a thing or two about talent.

In an effort to cram more dollars, er fans into NCAA Tournament sites, the NCAA, in it's infinite wisdom is raising the floor 3 feet off the ground in both the Midwest Regional in Detroit and the South Regional in Houston in addition to moving the court to the center of the stadiums.

I could care less about whether they place the court in the end or center of a stadium, just as long as it's on the freaking ground.

Seriously, am I the only one who hates elevated courts? It's not just the potential injuries it's the fact players are less aggressive going for loose balls and I'm not sure I like having the coaches either stand or watch the game at knee level while sitting 10-15 feet from the sideline.

Even if you did agree with me it wouldn't matter because the NCAA is hell bent on selling as many tickets as possible - be damned a player breaking his neck going for an errant pass or loose ball that could decide whether or not his team advances to the Final Four. NCAA Committee member Laing Kennedy (and Kent State AD) makes it clear what matters most:

"It really opens up the whole stadium and makes it so much better for the fans. Having the court elevated like that just makes for a terrific view from the upper level."

Hallelujah. I'm sure those extra 3 feet make the view from the rafters of 72k seat Reliant Stadium unbeatable. Give me a break.

If nothing else, it sounds as if most of the players would agree with my grumpy rant. Memphis' Chris Douglas-Roberts certainly isn't a fan:

"I'm definitely not jumping in the stands. I'm not even going to act like it. If it's going out of bounds and I can't get it, hey I'm not going to fake hustle and act like I'm diving for it."

Perfect. Doesn't sound like Scottie Reynolds is excited about giving his best effort near the edges either:

"What if we go for the loose ball and dive off the court? I mean, that's the thing I was scared about."

In their defense, the NCAA has placed a 10 foot border of carpet at the ends of the court and a five foot strip down the sidelines. Not sure that's enough but if they made it any wider the coaches and players would need binoculars to keep an eye on the action.

Okay. I'm out of breath now. Carry on.

This is a bit old, but damn if I'm not a sucker for internet memes.

LAist does a decent job of explaining the phenomenon to those of you fortunate enough not to have been initiated yet:

If you don't know what a Rick Roll is and you've never experienced a two-day long orgasm or won a free iPod, welcome back to the internet. We've missed you the past year. There's even a Rickroll database out there for your protection.

The start of spring practice is finally upon us and thanks to a Tressel press opp yesterday, some bits tickled out of the Kremlin.

One of the more interesting nuggets was the news that Antonio Henton was not the clear-cut #2 at quarterback heading into the session. The Vest went out of his way to point out how good Bauserman has looked:

"The thing that stands out with Joe is how quickly he lets the ball go," Tressel said. "When he first got here and he hadn't played football in three years and he was used to throwing that baseball, he wasn't quite as impressive as we had remembered him in youth camp when we recruited him."

Yes, part of that is fostering competition and is what any coach from pee-wee up says, but the other side of that coin is softening the landing for when LiC shows up this summer, sporting that #2 jersey.

Tressel indicated that Rehring, Person and and Brewster will sit out spring practice due to recent surgeries. This presents a perfect opportunity for the younger lineman to prove they can play on a consistent basis. Tressel all but issued a challenge to Mike Adams when discussing the opening vacated by Barton:

"I'm sure if I'm Mike Adams I'm thinking, 'I'm taking that spot over.'"

Speaking of surgeries, Beanie finally got his wrist right and he'll be held out of some contact drills. Personally, I don't think that's enough. The guy should have a team of round-the-clock masseuses (Gholston-style) and be put on blocks of ice at night. He's that important to the show.

Tressel also mentioned that the staff had spent quite a bit of time studying the offenses from the past three seasons and have come to the conclusion that 2005's edition was the best. Ken Gordon expands on this further:

That also happened to be the season in which they used the most spread. By 2006, Troy Smith was a pocket passer, but in 2005, he was a dynamic open-field runner and passer both. I liked the late-2005 model better, personally.

Gordon mentioned that Small, Saine and to some degree Boom Herron could help the team stretch the field vertically and horizontally and that's true, but that dude from Western PA knows a little something about that type of offense as well. He will play early and often (more on that in a later post).

Bucknuts has a look at what the spring 2-deep may look like and it's pretty sick. I'm trying to contain myself, but I'm having a hard time thinking of a more loaded Buckeye lineup in my lifetime.

Finally, some choice quotes from the Malcom Jenkins chat held yesterday:

Nate (Chillicothe): After experiencing preparations for Florida and LSU, what do you think needs to be addressed in preparing for another tough matchup with USC so we can contend for another national title this year?

Malcolm Jenkins: One word - Focus. Everyone needs to focus and be disciplined.

...

Matthew Smith (Perrysburg, OH): Malcom: How well of an asset you think TP is gonna be to the Ohio State Buckeye Offense, and do you think he has a chance to play early on, or will he have to put in his time like everyone else??

Malcolm Jenkins: I'm not sure how much he will help because I've never seen him play but if he works hard enough and has the right mindset he could play earlier.

Captain in-waiting?

In front of another electric crowd, the Buckeyes unleashed a 23-8 run to start the second half turning a 31-30 halftime deficit into a 53-39 lead before coasting to a 74-63 victory over the #3 seeded Dayton Flyers tonight in the Schott.

The W sends the Buckeyes to their second straight Final Four (couldn't resist) where they'll face off against Ole Miss next Tuesday in New York City.

The decisive run saw the balanced Buckeyes receive two triples from The Ghost of Jon Diebler, 7 points from Jamar Butler, 6 from Evan Turner and 4 from Kosta Koufos while the D held the Flyers to 3/11 from the field.

Diebler finished with 10 points (3/5 FG) starting the second half in place of Othello Hunter due to foul trouble.

Though Dayton never threatened after the burst, it looked like the game would be a nailbiter early on as the Flyers received 11 first half points from stud guard Brian Roberts and outrebounded the Bucks 20-12 including a huge 8-2 advantage on the offensive glass to take a 31-26 lead with 1:18 to play before the dynamic duo of The Wiggler and PJ Hill combined to hit 4 free throws trimming the lead to 31-30 at the break.

The Flyers held Butler to 3 points in the first half as London Warren and others forced Jamar to expend energy bringing the ball up court against constant pressure. As in past games, Matta countered by having Evan Turner bring the ball into the front court for much of the second half allowing Butler to work off screens. The strategy paid off as Butler scored 10 second half points on 4/9 shooting in addition to dishing 7 dimes.

Koufos was a prime benefactor of Butler's looks scoring a game high 21 points on 9/11 shooting while Turner bounced back from a shaky couple weeks with 11 points, 8 boards and 3 assists against just 1 turnover.

David Lighty added 9 points with 7 of those coming in the nip and tuck first half to go along with 3 boards and 3 steals.

For the game, the Bucks shot 53% on the strength of a blistering 15/25 (60%) in the second half but were outrebounded 35-25 by the active Flyers.

Roberts led Dayton with 20 points while stud freshman Chris Wright added 12 in 18 minutes including a highlight reel dunk over Hunter but in the end, the Flyers didn't have the horses to take down the Buckeyes at home.