Congratulations Stu! Purdue and Moore were unstoppable today. Home Court advantage survives and road games in the Big Ten are difficult. We had some uncharacteristic turnovers today which did not help. The Boilers were the better team today!
Imagine my surprise when I had planned on watching the Big 10 leaders square off in a great college basketball game but instead found myself watching the E'twuan Moorre show.....what an extraordinary effort by that young man. Great performance in a big game by great player.....well done. Congrats to the Boilers. Uncharacteristically sloppy play by us for sure but no doubt due in part to the Boilers intensity on both ends. In Buford's absence, Lighty - no excuse from the senior captain - and Craft forcing too much and not letting plays develop from the construct of the offense and several mental lapses as well.....some perhaps hitting the wall at the end of a long conference grind. Goal number one is to suck it up, play well down the stretch and earn a top seed.....
Buckeyes get back on winning track at home defeating the Illini 89-70. Home court advantage seems to pay big dividends in the Big Ten this year. It was Buford pushing for the offense in the first half and David Lighty in the second 20 minutes. He had three consecutive steals and scored 21 points. Five players for Ohio State scored in double figures for good scoring balance. We only had three turnovers for the entire game. Illini were shooting a torid pace on treys but cooled off towards game end. Indiana up next here in Columbus Sunday afternoon.
Don, in my mind last nights game showed that Buford really is a huge difference maker on this team......when he is fully engaged, I think they are a special offensive team. When he is on the bench or out of rhythm with foul trouble, they are good, but not great. Only three turnovers last night, none in the first half, 2 in the first minute or so of the second and one for the remainder of the game......1 turnover in 39 minutes of basketball. Unreal.....that's more like it.
Great win...saw the highlights...Lighty hit 13 straight points...the ESPN guys say he's been there forever...they think they remember him playing with Lucas. Purdue has a tough stretch now...3 of last 4 games on the road, and we've already discussed how tough road games are. Tonight it is our rival Hoosiers.
Light basically took the game over in the second half.....Matta said they should erect a statue in his honor in front of the Schott.....I agree. He is on of my all-time favorites. There are some great photo shop pics of Lighty playing with Buckeye greats from every generation.....I'll see if I can't track some down....they are hilarious.
Here they are.....he will go down as one of the great team players in Buckeye history and one of the most versatile we've ever had as well. Hard to overstate his value on any of these teams.... http://forums.the-ozone.net/hof/messages/73.html
Buckeyes retain one game lead over Purdue with a win at home this afternoon against Indiana, thanks to a spurt by Desaun Thomas (Mr Indiana Basketball) last year. Tough game coming up against Penn State at Bryce jordan Center Tuesday evening on ESPN. Numerous upsets over the past wek in college basketball. Either Ohio State or Kansas will be number 1 in the polls tomorrow.
Don, I'm still uncertain if we played that well or IU played that poorly or was simply outmanned....perhaps some combination of all three. The looked very sharp on both ends of the floor especially given that Sully spent most of the game watching from the bench after picking up two quick "ticky tack" fouls. Thomas was spectacular off the bench completely dominating the action and scoring 14 in a row in a three minute span and it's always good to see DL play well.....I almost felt sorry for the IU point guard going against Craft. What Craft had 5 or 6 steals.....he may well be the best on the ball defender at the point that I have ever seen and he's still a baby....he's just a b!tch, that's the best word I can use to describe. The closing stretch will be a challenge....tough game in Happy Valley where they will be looking to make their season with an upset and then the Badgers for what will be the last home game for some much beloved Buckeye seniors.....Lighty, Diebler and Lauderdale. It will be very emotional especially given the loss up in Madison earlier....it will be easy to look past the Nits up there and if we do, we will get beat handily.....focus, focus, focus
Two big games tonight for the Boilers and Buckeyes. Nobody mentioned the big game JJ had against Michigan State...only 20 points but 17 rebounds (against a good rebounding team) and 7 blocked shots...are you kidding me? Kid deserves every bit as much mention as Sully for B1G POTY (he's not been getting it)...maybe even more because he is a senior.
Don't really want the Bucks to lose though it would give Boilers a chance at B1G title. Doesn't matter. They are surgically dismantling PSU. Wish Tod was here. :lol:
Buckeyes guaranteed at least a tie for Big Ten Championship with Purdue, following our win over Penn State this evening. Jon Diebler had a fantastic night hitting 10-12 field goals and scoring 30 points. (All treys) If we beat Wisconsin Sunday afternoon here in Columbus, we will win the title outright. Purdue has really come on strong at seasons end. Should make for a great Big Ten Tournament run.
Stu, I agree...I expect the voting to be pretty close and wouldn't be surprised to see Wisky's Taylor get some attention as well.....maybe we can do our part to hurt his credentials this weekend! Very impressed with how Matta and staff had these kids ready to play on the road, senior night against a team fighting for their tourney life with a tough, tough game coming up in a few days.....classic trap game and these kids came out guns blazing. I do think Matta has earned himself a spot amongst the games elite coaches. A title would secure it for sure.....this team will be a tough out in the tourney. Great offensive diversity, underappreciated defense, mix of experienced leadership and young stars and a great staff. I could watch Diebler shoot jumpers for hours....what a sweet stroke.....so glad to see him get the record - both the school single game and conference career.... "in-the-gym range" comes to mind.
Saw this article and wanting to give some love to Jon Diebler one of three seniors playing their last game in Columbus Sunday....interesting graphic the guy put together and great points about Diebs and Sully two man game.....a classic case of "choose your poison" - the kid is shooting 71% from the left corner! http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/luke_winn/03/03/power.rankings/index.html?eref=sihp
Don't you love having those guys who play 4 years? Real students, had to go to class for 4 years, make grades, become part of the University. I mean it's great having guys like Oden, Sully, Lamarcus Aldridge, Kevin Durant (Texas 1 and dones) etc the 1 and dones, but they aren't there long enough to really become part of the fabric of the program.
Without a doubt....this class has 3 of those kids, 2 of which started for the majority of their careers - Lighty and Diebler. I wish they all stayed for 4 years, but also understand the compelling economics for those that don't..... Still uncertain about Sully. Big Satch - Sully's dad - says he's coming back for another year!
Well I remember both Lamarcus Aldrdige and Kevin Durant saying the same thing, weren't sure, loved college...but in the end they went to the NBA. Seems like Oden and the PG on the same team both said at this time of the year they really loved college and wanted to stay, but they didn't. I'd be shocked if Sully stays unless there is no NBA to go to next year.