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Ohio State Men’s Basketball vs. Iowa: Game Preview and Prediction
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Can the Buckeyes find the magic of last year's Big Ten Tournament again?
The Big Ten Tournament is back, and somehow, someway, the Ohio State men’s basketball team is playing for something other than pride.
The No. 10 seed Buckeyes (19-12, 9-11) will take on the No. 7 seed Iowa Hawkeyes (18-13, 10-10) in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Ohio State has an interesting road to Sunday, as they play Iowa on Thursday and then No. 2 seed Illinois on Friday if they win. If they get past the Fighting Illini, they will play either No. 3 Nebraska, No. 6 Indiana, or No. 11 Penn State. If they play Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska, and Purdue, they would be playing the top four scoring teams in the conference.
The Buckeyes are 5-1 and are currently on a four-game winning streak since firing head coach Chris Holtmann and appointing Jake Diebler interim head coach. With wins over Purdue and Michigan State, the Buckeyes find themselves on or close to the NCAA Tournament bubble. However, there is still work to do.
Iowa is squarely on the bubble as well, so tonight’s contest is an NCAA tournament elimination game. If the Buckeyes can win this one and beat Illinois tomorrow as well, they will either punch a ticket to the tournament, or be teetering right on the edge of making it.
The Buckeyes and Hawkeyes played once this season. Iowa won at home 79-77 and scored 43 points in the second half. The Buckeyes had the ball, down one point with 23 seconds remaining, but a Felix Okpara turnover handed it back to Iowa, who then salted it away with free throws until the end.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25335296/2041450765.jpg "COLLEGE BASKETBALL: FEB 27 Penn St at Iowa")
Photo by Keith Gillett/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Ohio State is led into this one by sophomore point guard Bruce Thornton, who is averaging 16.1 points 3.5 rebounds, and 4.3 assists per game. Minnesota graduate transfer Jamison Battle is averaging 14.4 points and 4.8 rebounds per game, and leads the Big Ten in three-point percentage at 44 percent and three-pointers made per game at 2.7.
Sophomore guard Roddy Gayle is averaging 13.8 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game. Sophomore center Felix Okpara is averaging 6.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game.
For Iowa, Payton Sandfort leads the high-octane Hawkeye offense, averaging 16.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. Sandfort is shooting 37.1 from three-point range and has made the most three-pointers in the conference at 83 — two more than Battle, who is at 81. Guard Tony Perkins is averaging 14.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game. Ben Krikke is averaging 13.5 points and 4.7 rebounds per game, and Big Ten Freshman of the Year Owen Freeman is averaging 10.6 points and 6.5 rebounds per game.
Iowa is the third-highest-scoring offense in the conference, averaging 83.1 points per game. They are ranked No. 15 on KenPom in offensive efficiency, but is No. 149 in defensive efficiency — the second worst mark in the Big Ten.
Thornton has been playing some of his best basketball this season recently, and Roddy Gayle is starting to find his footing on offense again. The offense tends to go as those two do, so their production will be key.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25335299/2078770801.jpg "Ohio State v Rutgers")
Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images
This one will be pretty simple. Can Ohio State slow down Iowa’s offense enough to keep up with them, or can they have one of their best offensive outputs of the season and outscore Iowa?
Over the last seven games, a key to the Buckeye's success has been the bench production. Freshmen Devin Royal and Scotty Middleton have been productive, and Dale Bonner has given the staff good minutes when Thornton or Royal need a break. They will have to continue this trend if they want to win multiple games in multiple days.
Everyone knows the Buckeyes went on a run last year, becoming the first “Wednesday team” to win three games and make it all the way to the semifinal round of the Big Ten Tournament before falling to Purdue. Last year, three wins didn’t mean anything, but this year, three wins would almost certainly place Ohio State in the NCAA Tournament.
If they can find that magic again, the Buckeyes would go from firing their coach at a painfully low and hopeless time, to an NCAA Tournament team that no one wants to play.
ESPN BPI: Iowa 50.9%
Time: 6:30 p.m. ET
TV: Big Ten Network
Continue reading...
justingolba via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images
Can the Buckeyes find the magic of last year's Big Ten Tournament again?
The Big Ten Tournament is back, and somehow, someway, the Ohio State men’s basketball team is playing for something other than pride.
The No. 10 seed Buckeyes (19-12, 9-11) will take on the No. 7 seed Iowa Hawkeyes (18-13, 10-10) in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Ohio State has an interesting road to Sunday, as they play Iowa on Thursday and then No. 2 seed Illinois on Friday if they win. If they get past the Fighting Illini, they will play either No. 3 Nebraska, No. 6 Indiana, or No. 11 Penn State. If they play Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska, and Purdue, they would be playing the top four scoring teams in the conference.
The Buckeyes are 5-1 and are currently on a four-game winning streak since firing head coach Chris Holtmann and appointing Jake Diebler interim head coach. With wins over Purdue and Michigan State, the Buckeyes find themselves on or close to the NCAA Tournament bubble. However, there is still work to do.
Iowa is squarely on the bubble as well, so tonight’s contest is an NCAA tournament elimination game. If the Buckeyes can win this one and beat Illinois tomorrow as well, they will either punch a ticket to the tournament, or be teetering right on the edge of making it.
The Buckeyes and Hawkeyes played once this season. Iowa won at home 79-77 and scored 43 points in the second half. The Buckeyes had the ball, down one point with 23 seconds remaining, but a Felix Okpara turnover handed it back to Iowa, who then salted it away with free throws until the end.
Preview
Ohio State is led into this one by sophomore point guard Bruce Thornton, who is averaging 16.1 points 3.5 rebounds, and 4.3 assists per game. Minnesota graduate transfer Jamison Battle is averaging 14.4 points and 4.8 rebounds per game, and leads the Big Ten in three-point percentage at 44 percent and three-pointers made per game at 2.7.
Sophomore guard Roddy Gayle is averaging 13.8 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game. Sophomore center Felix Okpara is averaging 6.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game.
For Iowa, Payton Sandfort leads the high-octane Hawkeye offense, averaging 16.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. Sandfort is shooting 37.1 from three-point range and has made the most three-pointers in the conference at 83 — two more than Battle, who is at 81. Guard Tony Perkins is averaging 14.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game. Ben Krikke is averaging 13.5 points and 4.7 rebounds per game, and Big Ten Freshman of the Year Owen Freeman is averaging 10.6 points and 6.5 rebounds per game.
Iowa is the third-highest-scoring offense in the conference, averaging 83.1 points per game. They are ranked No. 15 on KenPom in offensive efficiency, but is No. 149 in defensive efficiency — the second worst mark in the Big Ten.
Thornton has been playing some of his best basketball this season recently, and Roddy Gayle is starting to find his footing on offense again. The offense tends to go as those two do, so their production will be key.
Prediction
This one will be pretty simple. Can Ohio State slow down Iowa’s offense enough to keep up with them, or can they have one of their best offensive outputs of the season and outscore Iowa?
Over the last seven games, a key to the Buckeye's success has been the bench production. Freshmen Devin Royal and Scotty Middleton have been productive, and Dale Bonner has given the staff good minutes when Thornton or Royal need a break. They will have to continue this trend if they want to win multiple games in multiple days.
Everyone knows the Buckeyes went on a run last year, becoming the first “Wednesday team” to win three games and make it all the way to the semifinal round of the Big Ten Tournament before falling to Purdue. Last year, three wins didn’t mean anything, but this year, three wins would almost certainly place Ohio State in the NCAA Tournament.
If they can find that magic again, the Buckeyes would go from firing their coach at a painfully low and hopeless time, to an NCAA Tournament team that no one wants to play.
ESPN BPI: Iowa 50.9%
Time: 6:30 p.m. ET
TV: Big Ten Network
LGHL Score Prediction: Ohio State 78, Iowa 72
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