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Men's Basketball Buckeye Tidbits 2005-2006 Season

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1/25/06

Big Ten started trend toward defensive play

Shortage of good shooters also explains lower scoring

Wednesday, January 25, 2006

Bob Baptist
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

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If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, the Big Ten should be flattered, for once.

It has been disparaged in the past for playing physical, unathletic basketball that yielded final scores in the 50s and 60s. The signature moment was halftime of the 2000 NCAA semifinal between Michigan State and Wisconsin, when the Spartans led 19-17. They won 53-41.

After that, then-Kansas coach Roy Williams spearheaded changes in rules governing physical play. Coaches from other conferences tried to sway recruits by saying, in essence, "Why would you want to play in that league?"

Six years later, scoring averages and the number of shots attempted per game continue to fall across college basketball. Scoring in Division I is down six points per game from 12 years ago. Shot attempts are down by five per game during the same span.

Defense, that staple of Big Ten men’s basketball since the heydey of Bob Knight at Indiana and Gene Keady at Purdue, appears to be gaining converts.

"It seems like across the country teams are not shooting that well and still winning," Northwestern coach Bill Carmody said. "So it might be true that coaches are spending a little more time on it and scouting other teams’ offenses and sort of taking pet plays away.

"Or that and maybe there just aren’t that many good shooters and scorers as there have been. I don’t know. It just seems like things are dropping. I remember 15 years ago, we had some very good shooters at Princeton, guys who were shooting 54, 53, 52 percent from three-point range. Now, that’s pretty rare."

Of the six major conferences that send the most teams to the NCAA Tournament each year, the Big Ten still has the lowest scoring average and field-goal percentage in conference play. But only .11 of a percent separates the six in shooting accuracy.

"I see more high-scoring teams playing lower-scoring games, whether it be UConn or Syracuse or Villanova or Louisville or Arizona," Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said. "It’s not that people can’t score. It’s just that, if you really are good, you should be good on both ends, and if you’ve got great athletes that can do things, they should be able to light it up at one end but also be able to shut people down at the other end.

"I think you’re seeing that people realize that to be able to move on at the end of the year and have a chance to win a championship, you just can’t rely on that jump shot all the time."

Izzo said that’s the reason Michigan State has beaten Iowa, Ohio State and Indiana after starting the Big Ten season with losses to Illinois and Wisconsin. He said it’s the reason Illinois is having another successful season after losing three starters from its Final Four team.

"It’s not three yards and a cloud of dust. We’re trying to run and score points like a lot of teams are," Izzo said. "But I think there is a value on defense and on each possession.

"If you can just score and you can’t check, your days are numbered."

Ohio State coach Thad Matta hopes his players heed that warning as January rolls into February and teams’ fates play out. No Big Ten team is scoring more or shooting better in conference play than the Buckeyes. But only one team is allowing a higher percentage of shots to be made against it.

"They know how important (Matta considers defense by) the way we structure practice," Matta said. "They always laugh, like, ‘Geez, coach, it’s all defense again today.’

"But there’s no doubt in my mind that, especially with this team, for us to be a good basketball team, we’ve got to defend."

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1/26/06

OSU MEN’S BASKETBALL

Setbacks haven’t deterred Harris

Former can’t-miss prospect struggles to find playing time

Thursday, January 26, 2006

Bob Baptist
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
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Ivan Harris came to Ohio State as the first McDonald’s All-American in the men’s basketball program in more than a decade.

Two years later, he’s still the only one on the team. That distinction and 99 cents will buy him a value meal. All it was worth all along, really, was a sack full of expectations — he played on the same team in the all-star game with LeBron James, Charlie Villanueva and Chris Paul — that Harris was not equipped to meet.

Give him this much, though: He’s trying, maybe more than he ever has.

"He has come in every day and practiced hard on the things we’ve asked him to do," coach Thad Matta said. "Hopefully we can reward him a little bit more with some more playing time."

Matta made that comment after Harris acquitted himself well in a meaningful 13 minutes against Wisconsin last Thursday. The 6-foot-7 junior from Springfield scored six on a of three-point baskets, had his first assist of the season and held his own defensively against the Badgers’ size on the perimeter.

Typical of the way Harris’ career has gone, however, one good outing did not necessarily portend a breakthrough. Against a smaller lineup at Penn State on Saturday, he picked up two fouls in three minutes midway through the first half and did not figure in the rotation the rest of the game.

How much time Harris gets when the 16 thranked Buckeyes (14-2, 4-2 Big Ten) play at Iowa (15-5, 4-2) on Saturday night again will depend on the matchups. He had one of his best games last season at Iowa with 13 points, seven rebounds and two assists. But he was playing another position than he is now.

Harris came to Ohio State in 2003 as former coach Jim O’Brien’s power forward of the future. The Big Ten game was evolving at that time to more four-outside, one-inside offenses, and O’Brien saw in Harris a long athlete who could use his quickness inside to score and rebound and his shooting ability outside to stretch defenses.

In two seasons, however, Harris didn’t rebound or play tough enough inside to take ownership of the position. O’Brien once mused that if he could put former forward Shun Jenkins’ aggression and Harris’ skill into the same body, "you’d have a superstar."

Before this season, Matta switched Harris to the wing, where Harris’ challenge has become staying in front of shorter, quicker opponents on defense and handling the ball against them on offense. Consequently, he has found playing time tough to come by behind J.J. Sullinger and Ron Lewis. Harris averages only 9.2 minutes.

If the turn of events has bothered him, though, he doesn’t show it. He goes about his business as placidly as ever.

"I’m a very calm person," Harris said. "I just know I have to work hard every day in practice and earn my minutes coming off the bench."

When preseason practice began in October, Harris said he started guarding Jamar Butler, Je’Kel Foster and Lewis in drills to try to improve his quickness and footwork. When he barely played during most of the nonconference season, he said he realized he needed to play even harder and tougher.

Matta has been nothing but complimentary of Harris’ effort all season. He knows what a threat a 6-7, long-armed guard could be if Harris ever developed an ability to defend and dribble to complement his career .423 shooting percentage from three-point range.

Harris, for his part, tries to do what is asked of him and not lament what might have been here or what could have been elsewhere. The vultures circled when Ohio State’s fall quarter ended in December, a time of year when players unhappy with their roles transfer to other schools. Harris had options. But he said he did not consider leaving then and, regardless how the rest of this season goes, will not consider it in the spring.

"I love Ohio State," he said. "This is my place to be. I’m staying."

[email protected]
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ABJ

1/31/06

Family's roots in basketball court

KSU's Sullinger and his brother at Ohio State continue a tradition

By Gary Estwick

Beacon Journal sportswriter

Julian Sullinger spent the summer afternoons of his childhood in Southeast Columbus playing basketball in an alley behind his house.
During one particular game with older brother J.J. and a neighbor, 4-year-old Julian eyed a loose ball.
Without hesitating, he dived head-first for the rebound, just like he had watched players on the club basketball team that his father, James, coached.
He got the ball but badly scratched his knees on the asphalt.
His brother brought him inside where his mom cleaned the wound with peroxide.
Afterward, he went back to the game.
``I knew right then, I had something special,'' James Sullinger said.
The scar that formed on Julian's left knee recently faded, unlike the strong work ethic that he learned all those years ago.
He's needed every bit of that determination to find his own path as the younger brother of J.J. Sullinger, now a senior guard at Ohio State, and to earn a Division I scholarship as an undersized power forward.
``People used to always talk about how good he was and how good I could be; at the time I wasn't fully developed,'' said Julian, now a 6-foot-5 freshman at Kent State. ``It's good hearing it, but at the same time, I had to work hard and try to make my own identity.''
Julian's journey started at Northland High, where immediately after earning Columbus Co-Player of the Year honors his senior season, he was passed over by Division I schools. His journey continued at Fork Union (Va.) Military Academy where he wondered if an extra year of basketball would be enough to realize his dream of playing college basketball.
Family affair
Julian Sullinger never had to search far to find basketball in his family.
His father played at Oberlin College. He serves as head coach at Columbus Northland, where he once coached Julian.
Julian's uncle Harold Jr. played at Iowa. Julian's grandfather Harold Sr., played for a professional black basketball league in which he earned the nickname ``Suitcase Sully.''
``His hands were so big, when he walked down the street, it looked like he had a suitcase at the end of his arms,'' said his son, James Sullinger.
That's why James got the nickname ``Satch,'' which is short for ``Satchel,'' and Harold was called ``Brief'' as in ``Briefcase.''
This family history explains why nobody had to push Julian or his older brother into basketball. One of their favorite outings as children was working as managers on their father's team. They were always at practice and in the locker room on game nights.
James Sullinger had no idea how much his little guys were absorbing.
Brotherly influence
Three years after J.J. earned Ohio Co-Division I Player of the Year honors (2001) and a scholarship to Arkansas, Julian realized that he could do the same.
He often listened to J.J.'s advice, but in the end, he dealt with situations his own way. There were times that J.J. thought Julian should shoot more in games, especially in the final minutes. Julian didn't always agree. ``Sometimes that helped him, and other times, it kinda hurt him,'' J.J. said. ``But he always thought team first.''
Julian still averaged 21.3 points and 11 rebounds his senior year at Northland.
His brother had several Division I choices after high school, but Julian's heroics only earned offers from West Virginia State, Savannah State and several Division II schools.
As Julian dealt with this disappointment, there was an unspoken understanding between the brothers that he would earn his scholarship on his own.
Near the end of the school year, Julian learned about Fork Union Military Academy, which would allow him one more season to impress college scouts.
He received his lone Division I offer from Coastal Carolina that summer; he already had decided to attend the military academy.
When he arrived at Fork Union, he wondered if the freedoms he gave up to attend the military school were worth it.
``What if I still end up going to the same school I could have went to last year?'' he often thought. As a reserve, Sullinger averaged 17 points and eight rebounds.
He sparked interest from Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne, where he later gave an oral commitment. Several days before he was scheduled to sign scholarship papers, Kent State called.
Re-evaluating his situation, he opted for Kent State, a school he had admired since their 2002 Elite Eight run.
Staying in touch
Perhaps the toughest challenge for the Sullinger brothers is staying in touch.
J.J. moved closer to Julian when he left Arkansas in 2002. Just 140 miles separate their colleges, but they often play on the same night.
``Every time I get a chance, or every time he has a game, I tell him to call me after the game,'' Julian said.
Sometimes, Julian receives a pep talk. Other times, he gives one.
Their conversations often aren't about basketball. That's allowed the invisible line between older and younger brother to disappear, except when they're playing one-on-one -- Julian won their last competition this summer in Columbus.
J.J. is averaging 9.5 points and seven rebounds for Ohio State. Julian has appeared in 14 games this season. He is averaging 5.1 minutes per game, and 0.9 points and 1.2 rebounds.
He some times thinks that he's not living up to his family's rich basketball tradition.
``But you really are because I have a Division I scholarship, I'm happy, I'm working hard and I'm on a good team,'' he added.
His family also reminds him that his high school career started on the bench.
It's this type of encouragement which makes Julian so lucky to have J.J. as his brother.
``He doesn't realize the impact he's had on me since my early days playing when I was five, six years old,'' Julian said. ``Just to have him in my life is great.''
J.J. has a different perspective about their friendship.
``I don't think Julian understands how much I look up to him,'' he said. ``I've always been his big brother, he's always looked to me for insight. But I do as well.''
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1/31/06

COMMENTARY
Early results bode well for Matta era

Tuesday, January 31, 2006


ROB OLLER

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</IMG> RENEE SAUER | DISPATCH PHOTOS Coach Thad Matta, shouting instructions during a 95-53 win over Florida A&M, has Ohio State on the right track.


Fifty games into an Ohio State coaching job does not constitute a career, but it’s long enough to know whether Thad Matta has the genes for the job.

Matta might or might not be a great X’s and O’s coach — too early to tell — but there is no doubt he has the requisite X’s and Y’s to turn the Buckeyes into a consistent challenger for a Big Ten Conference title and annual NCAA Tournament bid.

Matta has the chromosomes, the right makeup, to win championships where they are usually won — with talent. Which means they are won with strong recruiting, and recruiting is about God-given personality as much as anything.

Matta’s outgoing personality is a hit with recruits, who consider him to be equal parts big kid and big brother. Super recruit Greg Oden, who plans on spending at least next season with the Buckeyes before turning pro, recalled how the personable Matta made him laugh out loud during the recruiting process.

Matta also loves the thrill of the chase, which makes him a dogged pursuer of the best talent in the land.

Secondarily, Matta gets high marks for his powers of persuasion. Last season, he turned what many thought to be a .500 Ohio State team into a 20-12 overachiever.

The ability to motivate, like the ability to recruit, is more innate than learned. Making the proper inbounds calls and creating a game plan, meanwhile, can be learned through trial and error. Experience teaches a young coach what works and what should be left on the locker-room chalkboard. Fifty games into his career at OSU and Matta so far has not shown himself to be the supreme strategist equal of his predecessor, Jim O’Brien. But give him time.

On the other hand, Matta, 38, already excels in recruiting, an area in which O’Brien showed weakness. His ability to recruit is all the more remarkable considering Ohio State continues to dance on a minefield set up by O’Brien, whose decision to pay a former recruit put the program in hot water with the NCAA and caused the university to impose a postseason ban last season.

The result is that Matta must recruit without knowing for certain what is behind door No. 3. Nothing? Another postseason ban? Scholarship losses?

"The problem with the (NCAA governing) system that’s in place is that it’s a little bit you’re guilty until proven innocent," said Dan Monson, the Minnesota coach who arrived in Minneapolis in the midst of an NCAA probe of its men’s basketball program. That’s why, from a recruiting standpoint, Matta has done "a phenomenal job selling that ‘We’re OK,’ " Monson said, adding that the coaching job Matta did last year got lost in the shuffle of the NCAA mess.

OSU’s success last season and this year — a winning season became a certainty last night with a 95-53 win over Florida A &M — gives a strong hint that Matta is more than a recruiting salesman. Even if he isn’t, talent can take you a long way.

So can inner strength. Not knowing what’s over the NCAA infractions horizon has created a strain on Matta and the program, though it’s difficult to see because of the wins.

"In the time we’ve been here, I don’t think there’s a coach in the country who can say he’s been through what we’ve been through. Fifty games of always having an uncertainty," he said. "It’s worn on me a little bit, from the standpoint that (the NCAA hearing) has continuously been pushed back. . . . I’ll be glad when everything is behind us."

When that happens, after the NCAA has made its decision and the dust has cleared, probably by mid-March, we’ll get a better look at how well Matta can coach. One potential drawback of being dubbed a brilliant recruiter is that it focuses more attention, perhaps unreasonable attention, on sideline success.

Matta already has shown he can bring the talent to town. In the next 50 games, we’ll see whether he can win with it. Here’s betting he can.

Rob Oller is a sports reporter for The Dispatch .


[email protected]
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Ohio State on CNN World Sports "Play of the Day"

I just missed a monster smash dunk set up by Foster (looked like Twigs but I was just walking into the room). Anyway, try to see if this is showing in your market at the end of the World Sports broadcast.

Really featured Ohio State big time and everyone here was excited to see it in the family. Dad...Dad...come quick...
 
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2/2/06

Buckeyes football, men’s basketball ticket prices up $1

Thursday, February 02, 2006

FROM STAFF REPORTS




Football and men’s basketball tickets at Ohio State are going up by $1 for the 2006-07 season.

The change, approved by the school’s Board of Trustees yesterday, means football tickets will cost $59 each for the public, $48 for faculty and staff and $29 for students.

Men’s basketball tickets will cost from $14 to $26 for the public, $19.50 for faculty and staff, and $13 for students.

Other sports ticket prices remained the same.

The board also added an initiation fee to join Ohio State golf courses, beginning this year.

Faculty and staff will pay $800 and alumni will pay $1,000 to join, plus an annual membership fee of $1,625 and $2,025, respectively. Students will continue to pay just a membership fee, which is $550 a year. The membership fees were not increased.
No decision has been made on green fees, which are expected to rise.
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Blurb from today's Dispatch....

Former Ohio University coach Danny Nee hasn’t written the turnaround he hoped for in five seasons at Duquesne — the Dukes are 3-15 this season and 42-92 during his tenure — and first-year athletics director Greg Amodio might decide to fire him.

If Amodio does, one name on his list could be Ohio State assistant John Groce. Amodio worked at Xavier for 10 years before moving to Duquesne last summer. Groce, 34, was an assistant coach at Xavier for three of those years before accompanying Thad Matta to Ohio State in 2004.

Groce, who also worked four years at North Carolina State before moving to Xavier, is Matta’s right-hand man in recruiting and was heavily involved in the "Thad Five" class of 2006.

Then again, Groce might decide that staying at Ohio State to work with Greg Oden is a better career move. Two years from now, he could have better suitors than Duquesne.
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