• Follow us on Twitter @buckeyeplanet and @bp_recruiting, like us on Facebook! Enjoy a post or article, recommend it to others! BP is only as strong as its community, and we only promote by word of mouth, so share away!
  • Consider registering! Fewer and higher quality ads, no emails you don't want, access to all the forums, download game torrents, private messages, polls, Sportsbook, etc. Even if you just want to lurk, there are a lot of good reasons to register!

tOSU +5.5 at Duke (ov/un 142.5) Wed 9:30 ESPN

Jump to latest Follow Reply
Sort by date Sort by votes
buckeyesin07;2268477; said:
Craft was 3-15 from the field.
Smith was 4-12.
Scott was 1-8.
Thompson 2-6 (one of his makes I know was a dunk, can't remember the other make)

Point is, I could see this kind of shooting happening a lot this season. These guys are supremely talented at various aspects of the game. But none of them is a pure shooter or scorer. Only DT is, and, it seems from limited action, maybe Ross. That's why I think Ross needs more playing time if this team is to be successful--even if he's a liability on defense, OSU has to find another consistent source of points besides DT.
Click to expand...

All this and we only lost to Duke by 5 at Cameron Indoor.

Seriously you guys saying Ohio State isn't a top 10 are out of your minds. Name 10 teams better.
 
Upvote 0
bassbuckeye07;2268478; said:
Give me a fucking break....a 5 point loss in Cameron to a Duke team that just beat Ky and Luh ville right aftr we made a final 4 run and lost our best player... no shame in tonight at all

Does anyone want a different coach than Thad? If you do you dont remember Rick Yudt beating N western in OT
Click to expand...

Maybe it's me, but I don't see a lot of shame going on. In fact, there really hasn't been any cliff-diving at all surprisingly enough.

And absolutely no one is saying Thad needs to go.
 
Upvote 0
Well... I'm impressed

Honestly I thought we would get ran off the floor after Duke went on a run. Buckeyes held on strong. I just hope Matta can tweak the line up here & there.

Going down to the wire @ Duke & this being the first real challenge , Cupcake games before this one. Duke knocked down a NBA team 2 weeks ago. (Kentucky)

A lot to be happy about
 
Upvote 0
OhioState001;2268481; said:
All this and we only lost to Duke by 5 at Cameron Indoor.

Seriously you guys saying Ohio State isn't a top 10 are out of your minds. Name 10 teams better.
Click to expand...

I don't think they are a top 10 team YET.

They need some pieces to develop to get there. It's a good thing they play defense like all hell or else the shooting tonight (30% or so) would have led to a blowout.
 
Upvote 0
MaxBuck;2268479; said:
Final thoughts on this one.

1. Mason Plumlee has improved more than I thought possible. This kid can be a functional pro, for sure.

2. The next screen Duke throws that isn't an illegal moving one, will be their first. Frustrating as hell.

3. The Sulaiman kid is going to be a terror in the ACC this year.

4. Buckeyes showed grit and effort, but ultimately they're limited on O with the lineups Matta prefers to use.

5. LaQuinton Ross needs to play more. With Sam Thompson in the game, it's like 4 on 5. Just no offensive game there at all.
Click to expand...

I agree with everything here.
 
Upvote 0
Mike80;2268473; said:
Yep.

Ohio State is very perimeter oriented this year. In the previous years this has been the case, the Sweet 16 has been the very tip top limit (Lighty/Deibler).

Other years when this has been the case, it's been the round of 32 or the NIT at best. Granted they won the NIT one of those years, but the NIT is such that a superior player like ET could take it over.

Without a plus post guy, Ohio State's ceiling isn't anywhere near where it should be.
Click to expand...



There's a lot of inexperienced talent on this team. I'm confident that if this game is played on a neutral court in March, Bucks win by 5-10 pts.
 
Upvote 0
OSU is a top-10 team, they played them just as well as UK and Louisville. Hard to understand all the pessimism. It's early in the season. I think this OSU team should definitely be in the S16 - they don't play hostile road games in the NCAA tourney, they aren't going to face hostile crowds like that one. The talent is there along with good defense, toughness and great ballhandling, they will learn from this loss and get better. I think there were some guys who were pressing, and were off their game forcing shots, and that doesn't typically happen with OSU. There's a long time left to go in the season, and one loss like this won't keep you from playing for a championship or throw you off course, it will be a teaching tool and help the coaches get the team organized for the Big Ten and beyond.
 
Upvote 0
614;2268483; said:
Well... I'm impressed

Honestly I thought we would get ran off the floor after Duke went on a run. Buckeyes held on strong. I just hope Matta can tweak the line up here & there.

Going down to the wire @ Duke & this being the first real challenge , Cupcake games before this one. Duke knocked down a NBA team 2 weeks ago. (Kentucky)

A lot to be happy about
Click to expand...

I agree that the result (losing by 5 at Cameron) is better than I expected. However, things (especially in the first half) probably couldn't have gone more OSU's way, and the Bucks still lost. That's the downside, along with the fact that a lot of the preseason concerns (mainly lack of offensive weapons) were confirmed tonight.
 
Upvote 0
Yeah...if you told me before tip-off OSU would lose this game by 5, I honestly think I would have been surprised they kept it that close. I also think I would have felt pretty good after a 5 point loss, but I don't...at all.

There are glaring weaknesses everywhere. Unfortunately something that should be our biggest strength, is actually a huge weakness that won't get better any time soon. Our athletic ability to get near the rim is really something special. Unfortunately guys like Sam Thompson, Shannon Scott, Aaron Craft....they just can't finish. Unless it's a dunk (in Thompson's case) or a wide open lay-up, there just isn't any touch. None. And unfortunately you have that ability or you don't. Some games may be better than others but scoring close to the rim is about skill and ability, and these guys just don't have it.

Craft is great defensively, Scott has improved ten-fold and looks so much better with the ball in his hands, Sam Thompson showed a lot more confidence as well.....but that inability to score within 10 feet of the hoop is killer.

I agree with the assessment that Ross probably needs more time with Deshaun Thomas on the court. If Thomas and Ross aren't on the court at the same time, there is only 1 legitimate scoring option on the court for the Bucks. And really, there are issues with Thomas' shot selection as well. People like Brandon Castel can bitch and moan all they want, but did they see some of the forced shots Thomas took? He didn't make a single forced shot all night....which brings me full circle.

The difference in the game was how they played Ohio States wings. It isn't rocket science. Duke quit helping on dribble penetration in the second half and forced Ohio State to finish at the rim or on spot up jump-shots. And our wings struggled their collective asses off to put the ball in the hoop. And the rare time Thomas did get it in the second half, he took pretty terrible shots.

Pressed for an answer right now, I think OSU will not live up to expectations this year. I think Indiana is obviously the best in the league and Michigan is probably better as well. Minnesota probably has as much talent as OSU this year as well. OSU will certainly make the NCAA tournament, but the Big 10 schedule is going to be a dog-fight for them. Teams like Wisconsin, Northwestern, Michigan State, etc....none of those games are a given with the lack of offense this team possesses. Going on the road this year and getting W's will be at a premium for this squad.

On a positive note, I really think Amir is a force inside. Evan plays within himslef and takes great shots which is a positive. Shannon Scott can get inside the paint whenever he wants which is probably the best offensive characteristic any PG can have and his handle looks infinitely better than it did last year. Sam Thompson looked much more confident with the ball and I was glad he took a few confident jump shots even though they didn't drop. Just the look of those guys was supremely better than last year. They've grown a ton. I wish Aaron could become a legit threat offensively but until he develops a consistent jump shot it isn't happening. The only way for a PG to be really successful offensively without a jump-shot is to be an insane finisher at the rim and have crazy play-making ability a la Rajon Rondo, which Aaron just doesn't have. Great defender, just a little short offensively. It probably sounds like I'm being rough on him, but for OSU to be a legit threat this year, his offense was critical because Thompson, Smith, and Ravenal/Williams just aren't enough offensively to play at an elite level. I was hoping he had turned the corner or developed that game, but he isn't close.
 
Last edited:
Upvote 0
BUCKYLE;2268487; said:
There's a lot of inexperienced talent on this team. I'm confident that if this game is played on a neutral court in March, Bucks win by 5-10 pts.
Click to expand...

I think they win by 5-10 points on a neutral court tonight IF the shots are falling.

It all comes down to the shots falling and finishing the game. Everything else is there.

OhioState001;2268488; said:
Whose better right now? IU, Duke, scUM and?
Click to expand...

Syracuse and that zone would require Ohio State to shoot over it, I'm not confident they can do it yet.

Kentucky would be a hand full down low, and I think Florida is nearly equal to Ohio State on the perimeter.

I still think Louisville is out and out better, and more mature as a team.

We'll find out about Kansas - ok so maybe they are 10th right now.

that's the key, RIGHT NOW. They have to develop as the year progresses to get better.
 
Upvote 0
Most frustrating thing tonight was Lenzelle. I'm sure he wants to step up and be the big dog with Buford gone but he has to play his game. Thought he missed a big time oop to Amir mid way through the 2nd. Instead he took the contested fade away and missed.
 
Upvote 0
billmac91;2268493; said:
Pressed for an answer right now, I think OSU will not live up to expectations this year. I think Indiana is obviously the best in the league and Michigan is probably better as well. Minnesota probably has as much talent as OSU this year as well. OSU will certainly make the NCAA tournament, but the Big 10 schedule is going to be a dog-fight for them. Teams like Wisconsin, Northwestern, Michigan State, etc....none of those games are a given with the lack of offense this team possesses. Going on the road this year and getting W's will be at a premium for this squad.
Click to expand...

Agreed with your whole post, but this part in particular. Indiana and scUM (and believe me, I absolutely HATE to type this) would blow OSU's doors off right now. Each of them simply has too many scoring weapons. If Matta doesn't want to play Ross more, OSU's best bet may be to try to win by locking down teams on defense and by crashing the boards. That worked for a half tonight and will likely work against teams of inferior talent to Duke (of which Indiana and scUM are not--they'd crush Duke right now, IMO). Based on this approach, I could see OSU going about 10-8 in conference. Going something like 14-4 just doesn't seem possible to me.
 
Upvote 0
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top