I hope he eats what he shoots!

Ohio State quarterback Stephen Collier ends his playing career, Mel Kiper dishes on Buckeyes and more - Landof10.com
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Ohio State quarterback Stephen Collier ends his playing career, Mel Kiper dishes on Buckeyes and more
Landof10.com
We hope you'll start your day with us here at the Landof10.com as we work to prepare you for everything that you need to know — Monday through Friday — around the world of Ohio State sports. Whether it's football, basketball, wrestling, hockey ...
Former Lee Co. QB Collier announces retirement in articleWALB-TV

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Ohio State coaches are making their recruiting rounds in Florida.
Caleb Houser via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Buckeyes look to bring more members of the Sunshine State to Columbus, Ohio.

Ohio State’s players have already started their winter off-season workouts and Urban Meyer and his unit have hit the recruiting trail non-stop since the season’s end in full pursuit of the 2017 class and beyond. Whether it be in-home visits with 2017 kids or extending offers to 2018 and 2019 kids, it’s hard to keep track of the Buckeye coaching staff.

Getting an early start


The world of college football moves fast, and the fastest moving part may be the coaching cycle. Yesterday, Ohio State proved that to be true when the newest member of the staff, offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson, hit the recruiting trail.


Along his path, no stop may have been more important for building the future than checking in at Frederica Academy (Ga.) — the home of the top ranked 2019 receiver prospect, Jashawn Sheffield. Sheffield, while only a high school sophomore, is no new name to Buckeye recruiting followers. In fact, you would think the was a seasoned veteran with how often his name is in the headlines.

A future composite five-star, Sheffield has the 6-foot-2, 175-pound frame that will continue to grow. Mostly linked to Florida State and Clemson, according to the 247sports crystal ball, the instate Georgia Bulldogs have really been hard after Sheffield as of late. With so many top programs pitching their best to Jashawn, it’s anyone’s race, but this recruitment will certainly be a marathon to the finish rather than a sprint. Fortunately, the Sheffield and Ohio State love affair is in good shape with only room to grow the relationship even closer.

Coaches head back to Columbus of the South


When you strike gold in the past at a given location, it’s not uncommon to go back again—and maybe again after that. When it comes to Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., Ohio State seems to be there on the regular. Pulling top prospects at St. Thomas Aquinas, Urban Meyer knows exactly what he’s doing when recruiting the talent from the Sunshine State.

Yesterday, Ft. Lauderdale was a topic of interest again as a new offer went out to 2019 safety prospect Josh Sanguinetti. Josh, a current sophomore at University School (Fla.) is listed 6-foot-2, 195 pounds and has the frame Greg Schiano loves for his safeties. With Ohio State’s track record of sending an insane amount of defensive backs to the NFL last year and in this upcoming NFL Draft, it’s not hard to see why prospects covet the OSU offer.


As things currently stand, Josh holds offers from the likes of Miami, Mississippi State, Pitt and most recently, Big Ten powers Wisconsin and Ohio State. With top programs coming to check out Sanguinetti with each passing day, don’t be surprised if more offers come flying in. Luckily, Ohio State has already started with their interest and can start to build a strong relationship between the two parties.

Two is better than one


If one offer was sent out, then another needed to follow. As stated above, Ohio State had a strong presence in Ft. Lauderdale yesterday when they visited University School. With their visit, not one, but two offers were sent out. This time, the offensive side of the ball was the target as they handed out an offer to running back prospect, Kenny McIntosh.


McIntosh, another 2019 prospect of University School is listed at 6-foot-1, 205 pounds and has not only the size, but the running strength of a bruiser at running back. Currently, Kenny sits with 14 scholarship offers with his most recent being Ohio State. Other notable schools to throw their hat into the ring are Alabama, LSU, Miami, Florida State and Wisconsin.

Ohio State certainly isn’t late to the party in offering McIntosh, but there is already a strong presence of recruitment going on for the star running back. Looking back at this NFL season and seeing former Buckeye running back Ezekiel Elliott and his successes in his rookie season. Urban Meyer and Ohio State may not need to say anymore than just that.

Dropping in to see the future


While Urban Meyer was in Florida yesterday extending offers to some of the top young talent in Ft. Lauderdale, he also had time to make a stop and see one of his many prize recruits in the 2017 class when he was able to see St. Thomas Aquinas 2017 receiver Trevon Grimes.


The Buckeyes receiving corp has been in the headlines nonstop lately, but good news outweighs the bad when you can recruit like Meyer. Grimes may not be in Columbus right now as an early-enrolled student due to an ACL tear and recovery, but it’s no secret he can’t wait to get back up to Ohio State and begin his career for the Buckeyes.

While Ohio State may be hot on the trail to bring in one more receiver for the 2017 recruiting class, they know exactly what they are getting in Grimes. Trevon has easily been a top receiver in the country during his prep career and after a full recovery from his ACL injury, looks to be exactly the same in Scarlet and Gray.

Quick Hits:

• Ohio State received a “preferred walk-on” commitment from Hudson, Ohio native Alex Beck.
• According to scout.com, Ohio State will host Edina, Minn. prospect Quinn Carroll for junior day on Jan. 28.

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Badgers women fall to Buckeyes, 70-61 - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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Badgers women fall to Buckeyes, 70-61
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Kelsey Mitchell led the Buckeyes with 24 points. Sierra Calhoun scored 10 points off the bench and Stephanie Mavunga added eight points and 10 rebounds. Suzanne Gilreath scored 15 points for the Badgers. Marsha Howard and Cayla McMorris scored ...
Badgers battle No. 16 Buckeyes in tight 70-61 setbackUniversity of Wisconsin Badgers
Stats that defined 2016: Ohio State BuckeyesESPN (blog)
Buckeyes beat Cornhuskers on last-second shotWDTN
Landof10.com -Columbus Dispatch
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Men's volleyball: Top-ranked Buckeyes on the road again at Saint Francis - OSU - The Lantern
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Men's volleyball: Top-ranked Buckeyes on the road again at Saint Francis
OSU - The Lantern
The Buckeyes will be looking to extend their current 28 game winning streak, a streak that includes 13 straight true road wins, with a win against the Red Flash. OSU has won the last 10 matches against Saint Francis dating back to a loss in 2010, the ...

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Badgers battle No. 16 Buckeyes in tight 70-61 setback - University of Wisconsin Badgers
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Badgers battle No. 16 Buckeyes in tight 70-61 setback
University of Wisconsin Badgers
The Buckeyes laid it in one more time at 7:40 for their last double-digit lead of the half (21-11), which would soon be knocked down thanks to a three-point bomb from freshman Kendra Van Leeuwen . From then on, the momentum stayed in the Badgers' ...
Stats that defined 2016: Ohio State BuckeyesESPN (blog)
Marc Loving rescues Buckeyes, Waters under the bridge, help get Woody a statue and moreLandof10.com
Buckeyes beat Cornhuskers on last-second shotWDTN
Columbus Dispatch -cleveland.com
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College Hockey News: Laczynski Poised to Soar for Buckeyes - College Hockey News
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College Hockey News: Laczynski Poised to Soar for Buckeyes
College Hockey News
“We were just really excited for him going up there and representing himself [and] the team too,” Buckeyes captain Nick Schilkey said. “It's kind of a cool deal for the hockey program here to just be represented at a tournament like that and couldn't ...


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Ohio State-Wisconsin final score: Women’s basketball holds on for 70-61 win over the Badgers
Ben Martens via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


The Buckeyes nearly blew a big second half lead, but had just enough to outlast Wisconsin.

After falling to No. 16 in the latest AP Poll, the Ohio State women’s basketball team had just enough to hold on to a 70-61 victory over visiting Wisconsin on Thursday night in Columbus. The Buckeyes improved to 6-1 in Big Ten play, remaining in second place by themselves behind undefeated Maryland.

Ohio State failed to hit on a field goal for the final five and a half minutes and saw a 19-point trimmed to just six in the final quarter, but clutch free throws down the stretch secured the win.

Junior All-American Kelsey Mitchell led all scorers with 24 points, while Sierra Calhoun scored 10 and Stephanie Mavunga narrowly missed a double-double with eight points and 10 rebounds.

The Badgers, who fell to 0-6 in conference play, struggled mightily to put the ball in the basket, shooting just 34 percent from the field. Suzanne Gilreath scored 15 points, the only one on her team in double figures.

Kiara Lewis, making her first start as a Buckeye, scored the game’s first five points, and three-pointers from Mitchell and Calhoun gave Ohio State the early 11-2 lead.

Another three from Mitchell pushed the lead out to 14-2, as Wisconsin opened up 1-for-7 from the floor and went over three and a half minutes without scoring a point. By the end of the quarter, the Buckeyes had knocked down 4-for-7 from long range and held the Badgers to 16 percent shooting in taking a 17-8 lead.

The roles reversed to start the second, as Wisconsin knocked down a few shots and Ohio State struggled. The Buckeyes hit just three of their first thirteen shots in the frame, experiencing a scoring drought of more than two minutes before the media timeout at the midway point. The Badgers only managed to hit three of five from the field in that span, though, as they had issues cleaning up the defensive glass.

Ohio State’s drought stretched on to three and a half minutes, and a three-point make by Gilreath drew Wisconsin back to within three points at 24-21. Mitchell answered with a three of her own, but Gilreath came right back and splashed another, then stole the ball and fed Courtney Fredrickson for a layup, forcing a Buckeye timeout with just a slim 27-26 lead.

Heading into the locker room, the lead was 29-28, as Ohio State connected on only five of seventeen shots during the second quarter. Mitchell led all scorers in the half with 14 points, while Gilreath paced the Badgers with nine.

Wisconsin took its first lead of the game twenty seconds into the third quarter, 30-29, thanks to a pair of free throws by Kendall Shaw, but it was the last scoring the Badgers would do for over three minutes. The Buckeyes responded with an 8-0 run, punctuated by a Calhoun triple, to reclaim a 37-30 lead.

Mitchell, Mavunga, Alexa Hart, and Linnae Harper helped spur Ohio State after that, and the cold shooting from the first quarter returned for Wisconsin. The Badgers turned it over nine times, made 2-for-12 from the floor in the quarter, and went final 3:48 without a field goal. The result was Buckeye lead of 58-39 with ten minutes remaining in the game.

Wisconsin made things extremely interesting in the final frame, as Ohio State simply could not find the bottom of the bucket. The Buckeyes had a scoring drought of four and a half minutes and were outscored 22-12 in the fourth quarter, with the Badgers pulling to within six points at 65-59.

Ohio State was able to ice the game at the free throw line, though, making six out of nine in the final two minutes to hold on.

The Buckeyes will play their second straight game at home on Sunday when Illinois comes to town. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. ET, and the game will be streaming live on BTN Plus.

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I have some thin leather ties and some sock ties I have kept from the 80s....

5-star Marvin Wilson gives Buckeyes some hope - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


5-star Marvin Wilson gives Buckeyes some hope
247Sports
Despite the Buckeyes need for a big-time defensive tackle – Wilson is ranked No. 1 at the position by the 247Sports Composite – and the potential for Wilson to play with some of his friends in Jeffrey Okudah, Baron Browning and Tate Martell – all of ...

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What is Ohio State getting in CB Kendall Sheffield? 'A too good to be true kid' - Landof10.com
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What is Ohio State getting in CB Kendall Sheffield? 'A too good to be true kid'
Landof10.com
But while Sheffield could wind up being one of the Buckeyes' most impactful newcomers, he's already one of the most unique. Unlike the rest of his classmates, Sheffield will arrive in Columbus not from high school, but Blinn College in Brenham, Texas.

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Top 20 most important Buckeyes: No. 13 Cameron Johnston - 247Sports
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Top 20 most important Buckeyes: No. 13 Cameron Johnston
247Sports
As he was throughout his career, Johnston was clutch for the Buckeyes all season. He had a season-long 70-yard punt against Wisconsin when OSU was at its own 30-yard line. He also recorded a 61-yard punt – one of three that went more than 50 yards ...

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Deep Dive: H-backs - 247Sports
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Deep Dive: H-backs
247Sports
One complaint from Ohio State fans and analysts over the years has been the lack of use when it comes to the tight end position, especially since the Buckeyes have had some talented ones on their roster. Just in the Urban Meyer Era alone, OSU has sent ...


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Post of the decade, right there.

Ohio State offensive lineman Billy Price hoping to follow in Pat Elflein’s footsteps
Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


With this year’s Rimington Award winner graduating, Price will move to center for his senior season.

“I’m going to try and follow Pat’s step, Pat’s lead. The transformation I’ve been able to make over four years, following behind Pat; that’s going to be tough losing him. Taylor Decker was a huge part of this, Jacoby Boren -- those guys set the culture. It’s my job to lead them next year.”

Ohio State offensive lineman Billy Price via Austin Ward, ESPN


Pat Elflein left Billy Price quite a blueprint on how to make the most of your senior season at Ohio State. Much like Elflein did, it is projected that Price will move for guard to center for his senior year. Price is hoping that he enjoys the same success as Elflein, who won the Rimington Award as the nation’s best center this year. Price will also assume the leadership role of the offensive line much like Elflein did prior to last season. While Price has never played center during a game for Ohio State, he did take snaps at center in practice during the season, just in case anything happened to Elflein.

Ohio State came into this year with some unfinished business to take care of after the loss to Michigan State erased any shot the Buckeyes had at the College Football Playoff. Ohio State was able to make the College Football Playoff this year, but they were thoroughly embarrassed by Clemson in the Fiesta Bowl. Now Price will try and lead the Buckeyes back to the playoff, but with a different ending next year. With just one year left in Columbus, the next question is who might follow Elflein and Price’s lead and make the shift to center for the 2018 season.

“We are not a basketball school. We are not. Indiana is a basketball school.”

Gerard Basalla, Ohio State USG president via Evan Szymkowicz and Jillian McVicker, The Lantern


What a difference just a few years can make for Ohio State men’s basketball, not only on the court, but in the stands as well. Gone are the days in which Ohio State student tickets for men’s basketball are sold out within minutes of going on sale. Now the Buckeyes are doing everything they can just to get fans in the seats at Value City Arena. Attendance figures certainly aren’t helped by the inconsistency Ohio State has shown on the court lately, not only missing the NCAA Tournament for the first time in eight years last year, but also looking like they are heading towards another year of not being invited to the big dance this year.

In this year’s home opener, Ohio State wasn’t able to even get 10,000 fans in the seats, drawing just 9,787 against North Carolina Central. Sure, the opponent wasn’t one that was going to get fans excited, but it still should draw better than having just over 50% of Value City Arena occupied. Over the last few years, Ohio State has tried a number of different packages to try and get students back into the building. After recently offering a ticket package that got students tickets to every game, the school has pivoted back to what they did in 2013, offering a 10-game package with all the games played while classes are in session. No matter how Ohio State packages the tickets though, there is no substitute for winning.

“Just making sure we’ve got five people in the right defense at the right time executing the right thing, that usually is the telltale sign. So we’ve got to get that fixed and we’ve got to get it fixed now.”

Ohio State women’s basketball coach Kevin McGuff via Andrew Erickson, The Columbus Dispatch


Expectations were high for the Ohio State women’s basketball team coming into this season with the return of junior guard Kelsey Mitchell. For the most part the Buckeyes have met those expectations, but lately there has been some worrisome trends. After starting off Big Ten play by outscoring Minnesota, Indiana, and Northwestern by an average of nearly 10 points in the first quarter, the Buckeyes have started the last three games slow. Against Michigan, Ohio State needed to overcome an early 10-point deficit to earn the win over their rival. In the first quarter against Purdue, Ohio State scored a season-low six points before recovering to earn the victory. The slow starts finally bit the Buckeyes when they lost to Michigan State by 19 points last time out.

Some of Ohio State’s recent struggles can be attributed to some cold shooting from Mitchell, who has hit just seven of her 35 shots over the past two games. While Mitchell is more than talented enough to snap out of her slump at anytime, the extra attention she receives on the floor makes her work even harder to put points on the board. Ohio State will try and shake their recent slow starts tonight when they host Wisconsin, who has just five wins on the season and has lost all five of their conference games so far.

STICK TO SPORTS

• Eddie George will be a part of the cast of ‘Chicago’ when the touring musical spends two nights in Akron in early May.
• The Columbus IKEA store is on track for a summer 2017 opening.
• Watershed Kitchen & Bar will open next week in Grandview.
• Time Warner Cable officially became Spectrum on Wednesday.
• Gorillaz’ new song is the band’s first new music in six years.

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5-star Marvin Wilson gives Buckeyes some hope - CBS sports.com (blog)
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


5-star Marvin Wilson gives Buckeyes some hope
CBS sports.com (blog)
Despite the Buckeyes need for a big-time defensive tackle – Wilson is ranked No. 1 at the position by the 247Sports Composite – and the potential for Wilson to play with some of his friends in Jeffrey Okudah, Baron Browning and Tate Martell – all of ...
Top 20 most important Buckeyes: No. 13 Cameron Johnston247Sports

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Next up is Northwestern.....

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OSU football: Kiper sees two Buckeyes in the first round of the NFL draft - Columbus Dispatch
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OSU football: Kiper sees two Buckeyes in the first round of the NFL draft
Columbus Dispatch
After a class for the ages a year ago, Ohio State almost certainly won't have as many first-round picks in the 2017 NFL draft. But ESPN analyst Mel Kiper Jr. said Thursday after posting his first mock draft that the Buckeyes should be well-represented ...
NFL Draft guru has Buckeyes high on initial big board247Sports
Mel Kiper Jr.: Marshon Lattimore Has Highest Ceiling of Any Corner in 2017 NFL Draft, Ohio State Set to Unload ...Eleven Warriors
2017 NFL draft big board: Buckeye shockers in the top 3The Draft Wire

all 156 news articles »

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ESPN analyst says Buckeyes WR Noah Brown 'shocked me' by coming out early for NFL draft - Landof10.com
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ESPN analyst says Buckeyes WR Noah Brown 'shocked me' by coming out early for NFL draft
Landof10.com
In his first mock draft, released Thursday morning, Kiper Jr. tapped cornerback Marshon Lattimore as the first Buckeyes player off the board, to the New York Jets at No. 6. Safety Malik Hooker was the only other Buckeyes player projected to be taken in ...

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Emory Jones reaffirms his commitment to the Buckeyes - CBS sports.com (blog)
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Emory Jones reaffirms his commitment to the Buckeyes
CBS sports.com (blog)
These days, some players start hearing from college coaches before they even get to high school and the elite players may have offers from major programs as freshmen and sophomores. Emory Jones is one of those elite players. The quarterback our of ...


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Billy Price using Ohio State's 'Elflein Plan' in return for senior season - ESPN (blog)
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Billy Price using Ohio State's 'Elflein Plan' in return for senior season
ESPN (blog)
And after it worked so well last year in a transition that turned Elflein into a Rimington Trophy winner during his only season at center, Price and the Buckeyes are going right back to the well as offseason conditioning kicked into high gear this week.

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Top 20 most important Buckeyes: No. 14 Noah Brown - CBS sports.com (blog)
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Top 20 most important Buckeyes: No. 14 Noah Brown
CBS sports.com (blog)
The college football season has come to a close. As part of our year-end review of Ohio State's 2016 season, we will be counting down the 20 most important contributors to the Buckeyes this year. We will release one per day until we reach the top spot.


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Ohio State mailbag: Setting expectations for the Buckeyes' 2017 season - Landof10.com
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Ohio State mailbag: Setting expectations for the Buckeyes' 2017 season
Landof10.com
That's a position where experience is huge, so I'll say the Buckeyes will be most helped by existing players. All-American Billy Price will move to center, so that's one crucial spot taken care of. The entire left side also should be free of worry ...
Healthy Malcolm Pridgeon gives Buckeyes options: Ohio State 2017 offensive line depth chart projectioncleveland.com
Spread for Ohio State opener, odds for national title released247Sports

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Billy Price using Ohio State's 'Elflein Plan' in return for senior season - ESPN (blog)
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Billy Price using Ohio State's 'Elflein Plan' in return for senior season
ESPN (blog)
And after it worked so well last year in a transition that turned Elflein into a Rimington Trophy winner during his only season at center, Price and the Buckeyes are going right back to the well as offseason conditioning kicked into high gear this week.

and more »

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How optimistic should we be about Ohio State basketball?
Chuck McKeever via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


The Buckeyes have won 2 in a row and look alive for the first time all season. Can it stick?

It must be Thad Matta’s tie.

In the two games since Ohio State’s head coach reversed his sartorial course and started donning neckwear again, the Buckeyes have emerged as victors. Back-to-back nail-biters against Michigan State and Nebraska broke a four game losing streak in conference play, and for the first time all season, Ohio State seems like a motivated and hungry basketball team.

Will the recent upswing in effort and a pair of Ws be enough to save what very recently looked like a lost season for the Buckeyes? That depends on a few key factors.

Free throws


Ohio State has been uninspiring at the charity stripe so far this season, making around two-thirds of their free throw attempts. One of the major exceptions to that trend came in the recent victory over Michigan State, in which the Buckeyes were lights-out from the line in the first half. They still only managed to finish 14-20 on those attempts, a 70% clip, but it was a promising start in an area that hasn’t looked good all year.

That number came back down to earth against Nebraska on Wednesday night. The Buckeyes shot just 7-16 from the free throw line, less than 44%; if they had even sniffed their middling season average, they wouldn’t have needed a Marc Loving layup at the buzzer to beat the Cornhuskers. Fixing the free throw percentage won’t turn Matta’s season around by itself, but it would go a long way towards making this Buckeye squad feel like a complete unit that could compete in games that stay close late.

Rebounding


A lot of things went disastrously wrong for the Buckeyes in their 89-66 drubbing against Wisconsin. One of those things was cleaning up the boards. Ohio State got out-rebounded 44-31 in that contest by the Badgers’ rangy big men, managing just 10 on offense compared to Wisconsin’s 21. It’s been a consistent problem for the Buckeyes all year, and an easy stat to point to when pondering just how this team managed to open the season 0-4 in conference play.

That got flipped on its head Wednesday against Nebraska. Besides leading the team in scoring and putting in the winning bucket, Marc Loving also led all players with 11 boards during the game. The Buckeyes pulled down 45 rebounds total, including 30 on defense—a huge factor in how they slammed the door shut in the second half and limited the Cornhuskers to just 26 points in the game’s final 20 minutes. If they can keep up that degree of effort and intensity when their opponents make mistakes, they’ll have something to build on going forward against a slate of gritty Big Ten opponents.

“The Guy”


One of the cool parts about this year’s Buckeye team is just how evenly they spread the ball around. Jae’Sean Tate, JaQuan Lyle, Kam Williams, and Marc Loving have all gotten their fair share of looks, with each having attempted more than 160 shots on the year to date. (Tate has led the way in total points and shooting percentage so far, though.) The last two games’ shot numbers are a decent microcosm of those four players’ sharing mentality: in order, we’ve had 11-12-6-6 against Michigan State and 12-12-13-12 against Nebraska.

The one thing missing from that equation, the thing that feels like it would be the missing piece to carry the Buckeyes into the NCAA tournament against decent odds, is someone who can step up and play lights-out at all the right moments. The guy who Ohio State will lean on in meaningful games that need a buzzer-beater, a late steal, a momentum-shifting three-pointer. It’s unclear who that superstar is for the Buckeyes, and that could be a problem. Tate’s probably the leading candidate—he does, after all, lead the team in points per game and minutes played—but even he has looked ready to take a backseat to teammates at times. (He’s neck-and-neck with Lyle and Trevor Thompson in usage rate, for example, and Thompson, who has the benefit of playing inside, has been the more efficient player by a wide margin.)

So what?


There’s an awful lot of basketball left to be played before we hit the conference tournament and the final decision about the NCAAs. Neither of Ohio State’s last two victories was pretty, but they count all the same, and being 2-4 in conference is worlds better than being 0-6 in conference. (In the business, we call that “Rutgers territory.”) There’s no reason to completely lose hope on the Buckeyes, especially given the effort shown this past week from top to bottom within the team. But whether putting a necktie on a coach is akin to putting lipstick on a pig remains to be seen.

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