OHIO STATE 104 | PENN STATE 69
Buckeyes blowout
Lewis, Sullinger lead way with near-perfect shooting in Big Ten-opening victory
Friday, January 06, 2006
Bob Baptist
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
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It only looked like an extension of the nonconference season.
But it counted every bit as much as the win over No. 1 Illinois last March.
Dominating a Big Ten opponent like it hasn’t in more than a decade, the Ohio State men’s basketball team opened the conference season last night by schooling Penn State the way the Harlem Globetrotters do the Washington Generals.
The Buckeyes shot 63.2 percent from the field, scored 38 points off Penn State turnovers and ripped the Nittany Lions 104-69 in Value City Arena.
It was the largest margin of victory in a Big Ten game for the Buckeyes since they won 102-62 at Northwestern on Jan. 10, 1991.
It also was the first time they scored 100 points in a conference game since then.
It was their most points in a conference game since a 105-87 win at Michigan on Feb. 12, 1981.
"I would have never predicted this," coach Thad Matta said.
Ron Lewis scored 26 points and made 5 of 6 three-point shots to lead No. 18 Ohio State (11-0, 1-0), which remained one of six undefeated teams in NCAA Division I.
The Buckeyes won their Big Ten opener for the first time since 2002 at Purdue. It was the first time since 2001 that they opened the conference season at home.
"We were undefeated coming into Big Ten play. We wanted to send a message, so we’re happy," said J.J. Sullinger, who had 18 points and three of the Buckeyes’ nine steals.
"But we can’t be complacent. We’ve got a good opponent we’ve got to go see Saturday."
Ohio State plays Saturday afternoon at No. 16 Indiana, its first ranked opponent of the season. The Buckeyes will have one day’s rest. The Hoosiers last played Tuesday.
Fortunately for Matta, the rout allowed him to rest his starters. No one played more than the 27 minutes logged by backup center Matt Terwilliger.
"Can we make this quick?" Matta said as he began his postgame interview. "We play in like 15 minutes."
Penn State (8-4, 0-1) lost its 33 rd consecutive Big Ten road game. It has not won a conference road game since March 1, 2001, at Iowa.
Freshman Jamelle Cornley of Brookhaven led the Nittany Lions with 20 points and six rebounds. He was pleased to be productive in his homecoming, but as for the game,
"This was an embarrassment," he said.
Cornley and his teammates were competitive at the outset. They hit the boards for four offensive rebounds in the first six minutes, scored off two of them and led 13-12 with 13:34 remaining.
Then the Buckeyes stopped foolin’ around.
They made nine consecutive shots from the field at one point, scored on 13 straight possessions at another and finished the first half with a 58-29 lead.
"They’re a scrappy basketball team. We knew that coming in," Sullinger said.
"Sometimes it just takes that little bit to throw you over the edge, to say, ‘C’mon, guys, you’ve got to pick it up.’ After the first TV timeout, we regrouped and said to ourselves, ‘This can’t happen anymore.’ "
It was the most points by the Buckeyes in a half since they scored 62 in the second half of a come-from-behind win at Penn State in 2001.
Ohio State made 13 threepoint baskets and shot 50 percent from behind the arc. Lewis’ five treys matched his career high he accomplished twice at Bowling Green before transferring to Ohio State before last season.
Lewis made only nine threes and shot 28.1 percent outside the arc in 10 nonconference games.
"My shots haven’t been falling, but I’ve tried to hold my form and keep shooting the same way every time," he said.
"They were a team that backed off of us. We had a lot of good looks."
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