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2011-2012 Men's Buckeye Basketball (Final Four Season)

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Ohio State Buckeyes

The Buckeyes went from a very good team to a title favorite when big man Jared Sullinger decided to stay in school for his sophomore season. Sullinger was the best and most productive low-post big in the nation in his freshman season, and there is no reason to believe that he won't be even better in Year 2 in Columbus. A bonus is the decision of Deshaun Thomas, who could blossom next season with more playing time. For those that doubt Thomas could have bolted after being a sub, I submit the cases of Daequan Cook and Daniel Orton. With Sullinger surrounded by Aaron Craft, William Buford, Thomas and newcomers Shannon Scott, Amir Williams and Sam Thompson, there will be openings for the supporting cast to shine because of the attention paid to Sullinger. Ohio State will always be talented under Thad Matta, but if players like Sullinger decide to stay longer than one year, the Buckeyes will be dangerous for years to come.
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http://insider.espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/blog?name=bilas_jay&id=6432413
 
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I'm liking the OOC schedule... Florida and Duke (Big10/ACC Challenge, Duke is a rumor, not yet confirmed) at home, Kansas and South Carolina (return game for last year) on the road. I'm sure most of the rest of the schedule will be home cupcakes. They need those big time national matchups with a more than likely down year ahead for the Big Ten.
 
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bkochmc;1912511; said:
I'm liking the OOC schedule... Florida and Duke (Big10/ACC Challenge, Duke is a rumor, not yet confirmed) at home, Kansas and South Carolina (return game for last year) on the road. I'm sure most of the rest of the schedule will be home cupcakes. They need those big time national matchups with a more than likely down year ahead for the Big Ten.
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Not sure but I think that UNC also owes us a home game. A game with them will be very difficult since Henson and Barnes decided to stick around for another year not to mention Zeller.
 
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LitlBuck;1912574; said:
I realize that the ACC/Big Ten challenge game will be played in Columbus this year but for some reason I thought we also had a home and home with UNC:confused:
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Nope... we played at UNC in 2006 as a part of the Big10/ACC Challenge then UNC came to Columbus in 2007, again as a part of the Challenge. That's what makes me believe it will be Duke.

EDIT: Now that I look at the history, OSU and Duke did play in 2002... that game was kind of overshadowed by what the football team had just done (beat Michigan to go undefeated). That game was technically on a neutral court but it was in Greensboro... Duke won 91-76.
 
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LitlBuck;1912668; said:
you have to get them out of North Carolina first:)
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I can't find it off-hand (though I thought it was from The Dispatch's Buckeye Basketball blog), but there was an announcement for the ACC/B10 Challenge and who would be receiving home/away games this year. The matchups obviously have not been decided upon, but you can normally deduce who will be playing each other based on that, as well as prior year standing in each conference.

Needless to say, OSU should be receiving a home game, and Duke is in line to play on the road in the Challenge this year. UNC played at Illinois this past season, so they should be getting a home game as well in 2011. OSU/Duke in Columbus is a pretty safe bet.
 
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If you look at the overall home/away/neutral history of Duke and UNC in the Challenge, they are both perfectly balanced. So while Duke played at home and UNC on the road last season, that isn't a compelling reason to make them have the opposite this year. It could easily be UNC @ OSU and UM @ Duke. If they match up UNC against ANY other Big Ten team, that Big Ten team will be a decided underdog - maybe they don't mind that, but in the past they've tried to get a big marquee matchup every year. OSU will almost certainly host either Duke or UNC, but I think it's about 50-50. Again, since both Duke and UNC have been perfectly balanced home/away in the Challenge and neither has had two consecutive road games, it would be fair for either of them to be on the road in the Challenge this year.
 
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Where does Ohio State fit into the equation? Are there three clear national title favorites?

Leung: Ohio State is right there with North Carolina and Kentucky because the Buckeyes have the best big man in the nation. Jared Sullinger is an absolute force and a national player of the year candidate. He bucked the one-and-done trend and sent a message by telling everyone how he couldn't stomach going out with a loss. Yes, Ohio State loses experience with Jon Diebler and David Lighty completing their eligibility, but it would seem that point guard Aaron Craft is more than ready to take on a larger role. The Buckeyes are the clear favorites in the Big Ten and definitely should be in the national title conversation. Andy had them ranked third in his preseason top 25 poll, and I think that's on the mark.

Katz: The separation begins after Ohio State. The Buckeyes have the talent to compete with North Carolina and Kentucky for the national title at the outset of the regular season. Sullinger will be the most dominant true big man in the country. William Buford should star whenever there is a double-team. Craft will only get better defending on the ball, and he's already a solid point guard for this club. Thad Matta continues to recruit at a high level and will have the necessary personnel to handle various matchups. Ohio State is the clear choice in the Big Ten and a top-three team.

Brennan: At the risk of being boring and agreeable, you guys are both right. Ohio State appears to be the clear No. 3 but well within striking distance of a national championship run, given the mix of talent and experience Matta will bring back this fall. Also keep an eye out for forward Deshaun Thomas. He played in spot duty last season and was better known for his propensity as a conscience-free chuck artist, but he's a big, strong, talented player. Thomas was one of the best recruits in the country last season but fell back in the shadow of Sullinger, and he should excel in a larger role next season.
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http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=6539655
 
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Ohio State men's basketball coach Thad Matta missed the spring meeting of Big Ten coaches and athletic directors in Chicago this week to rest his chronically ailing lower back. Matta had an epidural last Friday to relieve pain in a herniated disk and was told not to sit in one place too long - so, no air travel or long meetings.

Among the items discussed by Matta's colleagues was possibly moving some conference games to early or mid December to eliminate the conflict with football bowl games. Ohio State's basketball game at Iowa on Jan. 4 started a half-hour after the Buckeyes football team kicked off in the Sugar Bowl.

Meanwhile, Matta has yet to fill the video coordinator vacancy on his staff created when Kevin Kuwik left for Dayton. But one name keeps popping up in conversations with those in the know: former Duke guard Greg Paulus, who was a first-year assistant at Navy last season. Navy coach Billy Lange resigned this month to become an assistant at Villanova.
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http://www.dispatch.com/live/conten...20/rumblings-5-20-art-gm8co2js-1.html?sid=101
 
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