What a week it's been for Bruce Thornton – and the Big Ten recognized as much.
The conference named Thornton the Big Ten Player of the Week after he broke Ohio State's all-time scoring record and led the Buckeyes to two likely NCAA Tournament-clinching wins over Penn State and Indiana.
Who else but 2?
— Ohio State Hoops (@OhioStateHoops) March 9, 2026
B1G Player of the Week Bruce Thornton pic.twitter.com/VZ5Pmr9uQj
Thornton broke Dennis Hopson's record of 2,096 career points in style against the Hoosiers, racking up a game-high 25 points with seven assists and two steals, leading Ohio State to a 91-78 win on Saturday. In addition to the points record, he passed Shannon Scott for third all-time in assists with the Buckeyes, up to 530 for his career.
The only four-time captain in Ohio State history, Thornton also proved critical to the Buckeyes' domination of Penn State on Wednesday, picking up 18 points and another seven assists. He shot an incredible 14-of-17 from the field across those two contests (82.4%) and 4-of-6 from 3-point range (66.7%) with no turnovers to offset his 14 combined assists.
Thornton is now averaging 20.1 points and 3.9 assists per game in his senior season, shooting 55.8% from the field and 39.7% from three. He'll look for more big performances in the upcoming Big Ten Tournament after Ohio State earned a double-bye for its 12-8 conference record.
The eighth-seeded Buckeyes and Thornton face the winner of ninth-seeded Iowa and either 16th-seeded Oregon or 17th-seeded Maryland on Thursday at noon. Big Ten Network will carry the broadcast.
