justingolba
Guest
Ohio State men’s basketball vs. Kentucky Game preview and prediction
justingolba via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Jordan Prather-Imagn Images
The shorthanded Buckeyes will look to keep their winning record in the CBS Sports Classic against the Wildcats.
The Ohio State Buckeyes (7-4, 1-1) will look to keep its one-game winning streak going as they head to Madison Square Garden to take on the No. 4 Kentucky Wildcats (10-1, 0-0) in the CBS Sports Classic. The Buckeyes have lost two of their last four games by 25 or more points to Maryland and Auburn, losing to Auburn 91-53 last Saturday before a 22-point win over Valparaiso on Tuesday.
Now they get a Kentucky team that has not lost a step under Mark Pope. The Wildcats’ only loss is to Clemson by four points, and have wins over Duke, Gonzaga, and Louisville already on the ledger this season.
The CBS Sports Classic is an annual American men’s college basketball event that began in 2014. This year’s participants include Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio State, and UCLA. Each team has played one game each year (except for 2021 due to Covid cancellations), with the four teams completing a doubleheader. Both games are annually broadcast on U.S. television on CBS, the Classic’s namesake.
On July 21, 2022, the CBS Sports Classic was renewed through 2026. It is uncertain what will happen with UCLA & Ohio State, as UCLA has since moved to the Big Ten, and neutral events generally avoid including multiple teams from one conference.
For the 2024-25 season, CBS Sports launched the CBS Sports Classic: HBCU Showcase featuring North Carolina A&T, North Carolina Central, Hampton, and Howard.
Ohio State is 5-4 all-time in the CBS Sports Classic, with the 2021 matchup getting canceled due to COVID-19. The Buckeyes are 2-0 against Kentucky, 3-1 against UCLA, and 0-3 against North Carolina. North Carolina is 6-4 all-time, Kentucky is 5-5 all-time, and UCLA is 3-6 all-time.
Ohio State defeated No. 4 Kentucky 74-67 in 2015 at the Barclays Center, and No. 5 Ohio State defeated No. 6 Kentucky in 2019 71-65 at T-Mobile Arena.
The Buckeyes are coming into this one shorthanded, as they were down four rotation players against Valparaiso. Meechie Johnson Jr. is currently not with the team as he handles personal matters, and Aaron Bradshaw, Ques Glover, and Colin White were all out but with the team. Bradshaw is a Kentucky transfer, so he would love to return to the lineup for this contest.
Head coach Jake Diebler was hopeful they may have one or two of those players back for Saturday, but as of right now they are all questionable. Bradshaw is back with the team after missing time for a university investigation, but according to Diebler, he is back and going through a, “ready to play” process.
With these players all missing the Valpo game, Micah Parrish played 37 minutes, John Mobley Jr. played 34 minutes, and Devin Royal played 33 minutes. Bruce Thornton would have played more, but he was in foul trouble.
Ohio State is not deep right now and will need these guys back sooner rather than later as they enter conference play shortly.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25798699/usa_today_25012584.jpg "Syndication: The Columbus Dispatch")
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Ohio State is led into this contest by sophomore forward Devin Royal, who is averaging a team-high 15.6 points and a team-high 7.9 rebounds per game. Royal is coming off his best game as a Buckeye, recording 31 points and 15 rebounds against Valparaiso. Royal is shooting 61.1 percent from the field.
According to Ohio State men’s basketball Sports Information Director Gary Petit, the last Buckeye with a 30-point and 15-rebound game was Jared Sullinger, with 30 points and 19 rebounds against South Carolina on Dec. 18, 2010.
Junior point guard Bruce Thornton is averaging 14.8 points, 5.1 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game. He is shooting 52.5 percent from the field and 48.7 percent from the three-point line. Thornton is No. 9 in the country in assist-to-turnover ratio at 4.14 with 58 assists to only 14 turnovers. Thornton is the only player averaging over 30 minutes played per game for Ohio State.
Freshman standout John Mobley Jr. is averaging 12.1 points on 53.6 percent shooting from three-point range. He has struggled to finish from inside the three-point line and at the rim, shooting only 46.2 percent from the field overall.
Micah Parrish is averaging 10.5 points and 4.7 rebounds per game. Meechie Johnson is averaging 9.1 points per game, but he will not be available for this contest.
Ohio State is still shooting the ball from deep at an elite level. It ranks No. 12 in the country at 40.57 percent from three-point range, and has made 99 threes on 244 attempts this season.
Kentucky enters this game with the No. 1 scoring offense in the country, averaging 91.3 points per game, and is the only team nationally averaging over 90 points per game. For context, Auburn and Maryland are No. 6 and No. 9 in scoring offense, and both of those teams blew out Ohio State.
Oklahoma transfer Otega Oweh leads the Wildcats with 15.7 points per game, while San Diego State transfer Lamont Butler is averaging 15.1 points, 3.1 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. BYU transfer Jaxson Robinson and Dayton transfer Kobe Brea are averaging 12.5 and 12.2 points per game, respectively. Brea is shooting 53.1 percent from three-point range.
Wake Forest transfer Andrew Carr is averaging 10.9 points and 6.5 rebounds per game, while Drexel transfer Amari Williams is averaging 10.2 points and 9.1 rebounds per game. Oklahoma State transfer Brandon Garrison is averaging 5.9 points and 5.1 rebounds per game.
Arizona and West Virginia transfer guard Kerr Kriisa will miss this contest with an injury he sustained two games ago.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25798698/usa_today_25002293.jpg "NCAA Basketball: Louisville at Kentucky")
Jordan Prather-Imagn Images
It is hard to imagine the Buckeyes can win this one. They beat Texas to open the season, but other than that, they have been beaten by double digits in all of their games against great opponents — and Kentucky is great.
Hopefully the Buckeyes will get Bradshaw back for this game, and he can help slow down the dynamic front court that Kentucky has. Ohio State just doesn’t have the depth right now to keep up with this Wildcat offense.
The Buckeyes need to show they can keep the game close and not be down by 30 at the half against a quality opponent. Then maybe — just maybe — shock the world in the Big Apple.
ESPN BPI: Kentucky 66.0%
Time: 5:30 p.m. ET
TV: CBS
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
Jordan Prather-Imagn Images
The shorthanded Buckeyes will look to keep their winning record in the CBS Sports Classic against the Wildcats.
The Ohio State Buckeyes (7-4, 1-1) will look to keep its one-game winning streak going as they head to Madison Square Garden to take on the No. 4 Kentucky Wildcats (10-1, 0-0) in the CBS Sports Classic. The Buckeyes have lost two of their last four games by 25 or more points to Maryland and Auburn, losing to Auburn 91-53 last Saturday before a 22-point win over Valparaiso on Tuesday.
Now they get a Kentucky team that has not lost a step under Mark Pope. The Wildcats’ only loss is to Clemson by four points, and have wins over Duke, Gonzaga, and Louisville already on the ledger this season.
The CBS Sports Classic is an annual American men’s college basketball event that began in 2014. This year’s participants include Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio State, and UCLA. Each team has played one game each year (except for 2021 due to Covid cancellations), with the four teams completing a doubleheader. Both games are annually broadcast on U.S. television on CBS, the Classic’s namesake.
On July 21, 2022, the CBS Sports Classic was renewed through 2026. It is uncertain what will happen with UCLA & Ohio State, as UCLA has since moved to the Big Ten, and neutral events generally avoid including multiple teams from one conference.
For the 2024-25 season, CBS Sports launched the CBS Sports Classic: HBCU Showcase featuring North Carolina A&T, North Carolina Central, Hampton, and Howard.
Ohio State is 5-4 all-time in the CBS Sports Classic, with the 2021 matchup getting canceled due to COVID-19. The Buckeyes are 2-0 against Kentucky, 3-1 against UCLA, and 0-3 against North Carolina. North Carolina is 6-4 all-time, Kentucky is 5-5 all-time, and UCLA is 3-6 all-time.
Ohio State defeated No. 4 Kentucky 74-67 in 2015 at the Barclays Center, and No. 5 Ohio State defeated No. 6 Kentucky in 2019 71-65 at T-Mobile Arena.
The Buckeyes are coming into this one shorthanded, as they were down four rotation players against Valparaiso. Meechie Johnson Jr. is currently not with the team as he handles personal matters, and Aaron Bradshaw, Ques Glover, and Colin White were all out but with the team. Bradshaw is a Kentucky transfer, so he would love to return to the lineup for this contest.
Head coach Jake Diebler was hopeful they may have one or two of those players back for Saturday, but as of right now they are all questionable. Bradshaw is back with the team after missing time for a university investigation, but according to Diebler, he is back and going through a, “ready to play” process.
With these players all missing the Valpo game, Micah Parrish played 37 minutes, John Mobley Jr. played 34 minutes, and Devin Royal played 33 minutes. Bruce Thornton would have played more, but he was in foul trouble.
Ohio State is not deep right now and will need these guys back sooner rather than later as they enter conference play shortly.
Preview
Ohio State is led into this contest by sophomore forward Devin Royal, who is averaging a team-high 15.6 points and a team-high 7.9 rebounds per game. Royal is coming off his best game as a Buckeye, recording 31 points and 15 rebounds against Valparaiso. Royal is shooting 61.1 percent from the field.
According to Ohio State men’s basketball Sports Information Director Gary Petit, the last Buckeye with a 30-point and 15-rebound game was Jared Sullinger, with 30 points and 19 rebounds against South Carolina on Dec. 18, 2010.
Junior point guard Bruce Thornton is averaging 14.8 points, 5.1 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game. He is shooting 52.5 percent from the field and 48.7 percent from the three-point line. Thornton is No. 9 in the country in assist-to-turnover ratio at 4.14 with 58 assists to only 14 turnovers. Thornton is the only player averaging over 30 minutes played per game for Ohio State.
Freshman standout John Mobley Jr. is averaging 12.1 points on 53.6 percent shooting from three-point range. He has struggled to finish from inside the three-point line and at the rim, shooting only 46.2 percent from the field overall.
Micah Parrish is averaging 10.5 points and 4.7 rebounds per game. Meechie Johnson is averaging 9.1 points per game, but he will not be available for this contest.
Ohio State is still shooting the ball from deep at an elite level. It ranks No. 12 in the country at 40.57 percent from three-point range, and has made 99 threes on 244 attempts this season.
Kentucky enters this game with the No. 1 scoring offense in the country, averaging 91.3 points per game, and is the only team nationally averaging over 90 points per game. For context, Auburn and Maryland are No. 6 and No. 9 in scoring offense, and both of those teams blew out Ohio State.
Oklahoma transfer Otega Oweh leads the Wildcats with 15.7 points per game, while San Diego State transfer Lamont Butler is averaging 15.1 points, 3.1 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. BYU transfer Jaxson Robinson and Dayton transfer Kobe Brea are averaging 12.5 and 12.2 points per game, respectively. Brea is shooting 53.1 percent from three-point range.
Wake Forest transfer Andrew Carr is averaging 10.9 points and 6.5 rebounds per game, while Drexel transfer Amari Williams is averaging 10.2 points and 9.1 rebounds per game. Oklahoma State transfer Brandon Garrison is averaging 5.9 points and 5.1 rebounds per game.
Arizona and West Virginia transfer guard Kerr Kriisa will miss this contest with an injury he sustained two games ago.
Prediction
It is hard to imagine the Buckeyes can win this one. They beat Texas to open the season, but other than that, they have been beaten by double digits in all of their games against great opponents — and Kentucky is great.
Hopefully the Buckeyes will get Bradshaw back for this game, and he can help slow down the dynamic front court that Kentucky has. Ohio State just doesn’t have the depth right now to keep up with this Wildcat offense.
The Buckeyes need to show they can keep the game close and not be down by 30 at the half against a quality opponent. Then maybe — just maybe — shock the world in the Big Apple.
ESPN BPI: Kentucky 66.0%
Time: 5:30 p.m. ET
TV: CBS
LGHL score prediction: Kentucky 80, Ohio State 66
Continue reading...