Sullinger was in full beast mode today.
Thanks for the advice, Bo. How’d we do?
Jon Diebler continued his torrid three point shooting pace, dropping in 27 points on 8/10 FG and 7/8 3FG shooting as the Buckeyes put a thorough 93-65 beatdown on Bo’s Badgers this afternoon in Value City Arena.
Diebler’s unconscious effort on Senior Day was complimented by Jared Sullinger’s 22 points and eight rips, William Buford’s 18 and David Lighty’s 13.
The scorching hot Buckeyes shot 68% for the game and an insane 93% from downtown (14/15 (!)), using big runs to finish the regular season perfect at home.
Two of the game changing runs occurred in the first half of play. Tied up at 11 apiece after a Keaton Nankivil trey at the 14:45 mark, Ohio State answered with a 13-4 spurt featuring seven straight points from Diebler off a four point play via an And-1 triple and another long range bomb on OSU’s ensuing possession. Buford capped the run with a jumper off a Diebler assist to put the Buckeyes in front 24-15 with 8:22 left in the half.
Wisconsin fought back cutting the lead to 26-20 after a Brett Valentyn three at the 6:30 mark but the Buckeyes unleashed another run, this time a 12-3 blitz pushing the lead to 38-23 with 3:29 remaining. Diebler was again in the mix splashing a triple and two free throws while David Lighty and Buford also dropped in treys.
To close the half, the Jon Diebler Show had more act, as he bottomed a three near the top of the circle with :05 left, countering a Jon Leuer putback giving the Buckeyes a healthy 47-32 lead at intermission.
The first half spanking saw OSU outscore the Badgers 20-8 in the paint and control the glass 16-10. The 68% shooting effort was keyed by 4/6 from Diebler (16 pts) and 5/7 from Sullinger (12 pts).
Interestingly, the 47-32 score was the same exact score the Buckeyes had in Madison before the wheels fell off. There would be no déjà vu this time around though Wisconsin tried to make it interesting for about seven minutes. Sideshow Bob, aka Mike Bruesewitz, converted an and-1 to cut the lead to 59-48 at the 12:48 mark but the Buckeyes answered with a 16-2 onslaught to take a 75-50 lead with 7:14 to play. Game over.
Diebler got the final blitz started with a triple after Wisconsin had let a loose ball fall harmlessly out of bounds and dropped another trey after Sullinger hit a pair of layups. Lighty’s fadeaway jumper from the right elbow finished it off.
Josh Gasser led Wisconsin with 17 points while Aaron Craft held Jordan Taylor to eight points on 2/9 shooting. The Badgers were held to 42% from the field and lost the glass 29-24.
The win improves Ohio State to 29-2 overall. With the #1 seed in the B1G tourney already locked up, the Buckeyes play at Noon on Friday. We’ll be on hand with your coverage.
