#2 Ohio State 64, Penn State 62 (Final)

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

This team must learn how to deliver the knock out blow against lesser teams......it's hard to be critical of a team that has just 3 losses, but yet I feel like we got beat last night by a team that had no business being 2 points away from the #2 team in the nation. In my view this team lacks focus and they have been through the learning process, yet cannot seem to get that leadership they need from the veterans to close games out. With that said, they did win and we move forward......not much you can take out of this game other than they need to be more consistent and play a full 40 minutes.

 

[BuckeyeTillIDie]

Litlbuck, great post. I agree with everything.

 

[jimotis4heisman]

No shots from me, I agree with you on shot selection and Harris. Cook is much more deserving than Harris for a starting spot. Plus cook is only getting better, I have yet to see vast improvement from Harris.

BTW, work on the font size. It's hard to read

i dont see cook replacing harris. lewis maybe, but not harris. cooks a 2/3 and harris is a tweener forward playing the 4.

 

[jimotis4heisman]

This team must learn how to deliver the knock out blow against lesser teams......it's hard to be critical of a team that has just 3 losses, but yet I feel like we got beat last night by a team that had no business being 2 points away from the #2 team in the nation. In my view this team lacks focus and they have been through the learning process, yet cannot seem to get that leadership they need from the veterans to close games out. With that said, they did win and we move forward......not much you can take out of this game other than they need to be more consistent and play a full 40 minutes.

though the reality is "playing 40 mins" is such a cliche. basketball is a game of runs. the key is limiting the runs and not letting them be 20something to single digits. thats what i take away. at points this year has given up big runs and waited for a game to buckle back down...

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

though the reality is "playing 40 mins" is such a cliche. basketball is a game of runs.

ok....how about playing a consistent, complete game offensively and defensively and not taking 5-10 minutes off during a game.... How can anyone who watched that game, actually believe we have what it takes to make a deep run in the tourney with they way we are playing?

Cook needs to play more minutes in my opinion, make the switch now, bring Lewis off the bench where he was very good at last year and go from there....is that the solution to their problems? No, but the fact Cook is not playing deep in the second half is very confusing for me personally.

Lewis = bad shot selection and jacking 22 footers.

 

[jimotis4heisman]

ok....how about playing a consistent, complete game offensively and defensively and not taking 5-10 minutes off during a game.... How can anyone who watched that game, actually believe we have what it takes to make a deep run in the tourney with they way we are playing?

Cook needs to play more minutes in my opinion, make the switch now, bring Lewis off the bench where he was very good at last year and go from there....is that the solution to their problems? No, but the fact Cook is not playing deep in the second half is very confusing for me personally.

Lewis = bad shot selection and jacking 22 footers.

yup thats what im saying...

but then matta brings in cook/lighty for off/deff situations at the end of the game

 

[crazybuckfan40]

Maybe I should be, but I just don't see any reason to really be that concerned, you have a young team on the road, that got lazy and let an inferior team come back on them...

We know what we have, we really havent seen this team play at high intensity some of the last couple games probably for whatever reasons, of being bored and things of that nautre...

I still think that the measuring stick is the Wisky game...

If we would of won this game by 30 we would of all been excited, but what did it really prove...

In a way that game kinda reminded me of the Illinois game a couple years ago, when we were gunning for the big upset against Illinois, the only difference was that we made the shot and PSU didnt. All teams have lapses, and basketball is a game of runs, but it is a matter of stopping the runs once they get started and going on big runs of your own...

The one problem that I see is defense, and I am really not sure why...We have great defenders in Butler, Conley, Lighty on the perimeter we have Oden and Hunter down low who stop people form even coming in there...

The question is why are teams scoring so many points and making these big runs...If someone would of told me last nite that PSU was going to score 43 in a half I would of said you are crazy...

Then you look at teams that always seem to shoot so well against us, and times I think you can chalk it up to bad luck b/c they are knocking down all their shots, but other times I wonder why it seems they all shoot so well against us...

I mean look at Neitzel we were all over him and he was knockin' shots down, last nite that guy was shooting off balanced 3's with one hand and they were going down...

 

[LitlBuck]

i dont see cook replacing harris. lewis maybe, but not harris. cooks a 2/3 and harris is a tweener forward playing the 4.

Well, if Cook can't replace Harris, Hunter certainly can. I know that Hunter does not have a great outside shot but in the majority of games neither has Harris. But at least Hunter will go for a rebound and play some defense. When Harris quit penetrating like he was doing at the beginning of the season, he stopped bringing something to the table that Hunter does not have.

I really don't see Harris as a true 4. And in fact, I don't think 2/3 or 3/4 make much of a difference when you are comparing Harris and Cook.

Also, for some reason, I think TM has some type of love affair with Lewis because he never sits him down when all he is looking for is his 25' shot. And as I stated, I think Lewis has regressed and certainly isn't showing any senior leadership for whenever that might be worth.

 

[BIGBLUEHART]

Then you look at teams that always seem to shoot so well against us, and times I think you can chalk it up to bad luck b/c they are knocking down all their shots, but other times I wonder why it seems they all shoot so well against us...

I mean look at Neitzel we were all over him and he was knockin' shots down, last nite that guy was shooting off balanced 3's with one hand and they were going down...

I agree it seems like the games that have been tight the teams seem to come out in the 2nd half and make some shots that they usually don't make, some of that is they usually don't take those shots but you get them down so much in the first half that they are forced to take those shots. Still for them to make as many as they do just seems like bad luck for osu, there really isn't much more you can do can they are still getting out and doing a good job of closing out.

 

[Steve19]

I probably take guidance from computers more than others on BP, I guess due to my daily use of multivariate statistics. So, take this in that light...

When I look at Ken Pomeroy's computer ratings http://www.kenpom.com/rate.php, the thing that strikes me is that this team is ranked 4th on offense but only 18th on defense. Our SOS indicates that we have faced the #10 schedule when teams are ranked on their defense. We can play against good defenses but we just tend to get sloppy on defense, especially when we get ahead of a team that we are supposed to blow out.

I don't know what to make of last night, but these kids need to look at that last three minutes, especially the last run after Lewis missed the free throw. We were out of position, people did not let Oden handle the space under the basket and left that three open.

In my mind, this team needs to work on discipline. They need to understand that pulling together is not just an emotional thing. It's about everybody doing their job. That isn't what happened. Lewis didn't get it done with the free throw. The defense fell apart at the end.

Coach Matta, a little Bobby Knight might not hurt right now.

 

[crazybuckfan40]

Another thing I don't understand is all the Lewis/Harris hate...

People are ready to put them on the bench, so we will get less experience from younger guys...

Cook has proven that while he has a great offensive game that he does some stupid things at times...Like 3 TO's in the second half...

I think that Matta has seen Lewis do things for 2 years now and he knows what he brings to the table, he knows that he will knock down those shots that some on here criticize, and same goes with Harris...

Hunter while he has improved a great deal, has shown that he can still struggle at times.

We know what we have, we have seen it for 26 games, we have seen ups and downs which all teams and players go thru, it is about other guys stepping up and picking the other guy up, and the coach having confidence in his guys that they will get the job done. Do you think that it would help team if Matta were to bench 2 seniors this late in the season even tho we are 23-3. Well I don't.

Same thing happened to my team in football my senior year of high school. We lost a tough game on the last play of the game, after we had already beaten the State champs from the year b4 and the same team that would go on to win the state championship that year. Well coach desided to bench some seniors, cause problems with the chemistry and wouldnt you know it we ended up 5-5 no playoffs all b/c of what a loss to an eventual playoff team with 1 second left on the clock.

We thought there were chemistry issues earlier in the season and we have seen people saying that they feel the upperclassmen are taking too many shots, what would happen if Matta benched those guys...

The team knows it is going to take all 9 of them playing together to win, and they realize that their performance wasnt a good one in the second half, but you can't go making rash decisions after a couple sloppy perfomances. You stick with what got you to where you are...

 

[LitlBuck]

Maybe I should be, but I just don't see any reason to really be that concerned, you have a young team on the road, that got lazy and let an inferior team come back on them...

40, that is a lame excuse for a team that is supposed to be the #2 team in the country. It is not like they have been blowing out people as of lately. A good team does not get lazy. Do you think Michigan State or Wisconsin would have let PSU comeback on them like they did on us.

We know what we have, we really havent seen this team play at high intensity some of the last couple games probably for whatever reasons, of being bored and things of that nautre...

I am not really sure what we have after the last month of games. There needs to be a reason why we are performing at this level with supposedly so much "talent".

]I still think that the measuring stick is the Wisky game...

I think after last night we shouldn't be looking past Minnesota who will throw up a zone defense plus it is an away game and they might get "bored" again. If they survive Minnesota, I don't think PSU will be much of an issue the next time just because of talent.
However, you are correct, the Wisconsin game will be a true measuring stick for this team although it is a home game.

 

[crazybuckfan40]

40, that is a lame excuse for a team that is supposed to be the #2 team in the country. It is not like they have been blowing out people as of lately. A good team does not get lazy. Do you think Michigan State or Wisconsin would have let PSU comeback on them like they did on us.

Not sure if you have checked it out, but check out post #211, I think it gives a little perspective on why we went into the lapses we did.

I understand that it is not a good trend to get into, but when you look at Florida, they have been getting killed early in games, only to come back and win...For examples see the Vandy game and last nite against Bama...

I am not really sure what we have after the last month of games. There needs to be a reason why we are performing at this level with supposedly so much "talent".

The thing is, just kinda like you see with these highly touted guys in high school like Lauderdale, Koufos, etc. they will take plays off, b/c they know they are better than the other team, it is better known as playing to the level of compeition, the thing is we don't do that for awhile and build a lead and then we relax...The only thing they have shown really is their ability to close out games, and that they are more talented than the teams they are playing.

I think after last night we shouldn't be looking past Minnesota who will throw up a zone defense plus it is an away game and they might get "bored" again. If they survive Minnesota, I don't think PSU will be much of an issue the next time just because of talent.
However, you are correct, the Wisconsin game will be a true measuring stick for this team although it is a home game.

Could we lose? Well yeah, but once again Minny is a terrible team and we know all we basically have to do is show up...If we lose I don't think it would be a bad thing, well maybe on the boards, but it will maybe the wakeup call that this team needs to just kind of drain their heads as they seem to be getting some big heads...

I just feel that we will flip the switch for the Wisky game and let that lead us into the big ten tourney and on into the big dance...

 

[LitlBuck]

People are ready to put them on the bench, so we will get less experience from younger guys...

No that is not the reason to sit them down. I am not trying to give the younger players experience.
You tell me what Harris brings to the table if he is not hitting his outside shot that Hunter would not bring to the table.

Lewis has not been lighting things up as you would like to think. I would like to see him take the ball to the basket and a little more. Perhaps, he could even look for Oden once in awhile.

Sometime take a look at Lewis when he was not in the game and he is on the bench. Sometimes, I think his body posture will tell you something.

I do not think that there is a lot of Lewis and Harris "hate". I just think people would like to see something different to see if things to improve because I think the team has regressed a little.

 

[crazybuckfan40]

No that is not the reason to sit them down. I am not trying to give the younger players experience.
You tell me what Harris brings to the table if he is not hitting his outside shot that Hunter would not bring to the table.

Lewis has not been lighting things up as you would like to think. I would like to see him take the ball to the basket and a little more. Perhaps, he could even look for Oden once in awhile.

Sometime take a look at Lewis when he was not in the game and he is on the bench. Sometimes, I think his body posture will tell you something.

I do not think that there is a lot of Lewis and Harris "hate". I just think people would like to see something different to see if things to improve because I think the team has regressed a little.

What I meant by that comment was if you put Cook and Hunter in the starting lineup you are going to have less experience...Not put them into try to get them more experience...

Harris has improved his play this year...I am not contending that Hunter doesnt bring something to the floor on the defensive end, but how do you the next 3 from Harris isnt the one that gets him hot again and knocking them down like he was early in the season. He took over in the NWestern game on the road and won it for us. He also had a great game at UNC.

I totally agree that I would like to see Lewis take the ball to the hole more and maybe step up about 5 feet on his 3's to be right on the line instead of miles behind it. The thing is Thad doesnt have a problem with it, and last nite Lewis showed the old Lewis in the first half, so we know it is there, it is just a matter of him gaining that swagger back that he has always had.

I understand that we as fans don't like it when guys struggle and we think we have all the answers, and I kinda compare it to the backups always being the fans favorite players, but there is a reason that that guy is the starter or else he wouldnt be starting...

Also some guys play better when coming off the bench and some guys play better in certain situations...