Nice Game Preview
Ohio State (5-1) at Clemson (2-1)
The Sports Network
DATE & TIME: Wednesday, December 1st, 7:30 p.m. (et).
FACTS & STATS: Site: Littlejohn Coliseum (10,980) -- Clemson, South Carolina. Television: ESPN2. Home Record: Ohio State 4-0, Clemson 2-0. Away Record: Ohio State 0-0, Clemson 0-1. Neutral Record: Ohio State 1-1, Clemson 0-0. Conference Record: Ohio State 0-0, Clemson 0-0. Series Record: First-ever meeting.
GAME NOTES: Taking aim at their sixth victory of the 2004-05 campaign already, the Ohio State Buckeyes march into Littlejohn Coliseum in South Carolina tonight to take part in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge as they confront the Clemson Tigers. Although they have one of the highest win totals in the nation heading into this week, the Buckeyes are not nearly close to breaking into the national rankings because of the competition against which those victories have come. During the Guardian Classic, Ohio State swept past Towson, Robert Morris and Houston before being held down by the Creighton Bluejays in overtime, 65-63, last Wednesday. More recently the Buckeyes got back into the win column with a dominating 84-67 decision over Chattanooga at St. John Arena in Columbus. As for the Tigers, they beat Hampton and UNC-Asheville out of the gate, but then suffered a 79-70 loss to Boston College in Chestnut Hill on Friday. Oddly enough for these two programs, this is the first-ever meeting between them on the hardwood. While the teams may not be familiar with each other, OSU's Tony Stockman certainly knows his way around the campus in Columbia since he played for Clemson for two seasons before transferring to Ohio State.
Stockman was one of four players, all of them being starters, to score in double figures for the Buckeyes in their win over Chattanooga last week as he tallied 16 points, grabbed four rebounds and handed out a team-high four assists. J.J. Sullinger sank 4-of-5 attempts beyond the arc to tally 21 points, Ivan Harris added 5-of-7 behind the three-point line to finish with 17 points as well. Terence Dials kept his game on the inside as he posted 11 points and a team-high eight rebounds. The team made more than half it's field goals (17-of-31) from the perimeter to put the game out of reach. Stockman, shooting 53.0 percent form the field over six games, leads the team in scoring with 14.7 ppg, while Sullinger and Dials check in with 13.8 and 10.3 ppg, respectively. Although he is shooting only 1-of-8 from long range and is averaging just 5.2 ppg, Brandon Fuss-Cheatham is critical to the success of the program as he has 27 assists against just five turnovers already.
Sharrod Ford posted a double-double with team-highs of 15 points and 10 rebounds, but his efforts fell short as the Tigers lost to Boston College on the road. Shawan Robinson and Cliff Hammonds each tallied 12 points, shooting a combined 6-of-11 from beyond the arc as the only players on the squad to make a long-distance attempt. Not only did Clemson turn the ball over 18 times on the night, it also shot just 2-of-4 at the free-throw line, compared to 18- of-27 for the Eagles. Robinson, an amazing 68.4 percent shooter from behind the three-point line already (13-of-19), not only leads the team in scoring with 18.7 ppg but also has a team-high 13 assists after three games. Vernon Hamilton (9.0 ppg) places second with 12 dishes and has a team-high 15 steals, the team registering 58 thefts and 82 forced turnovers after only three outings. Although the Tigers are shooting just 54.8 percent at the free-throw line, they are still outscoring opponents by 18 points per game.
Certainly Stockman has a lot of incentive to make this a successful trip for the Buckeyes, but he can't do it all himself. Luckily Ohio State has shown the ability to compete in both a fast-paced setting and a slow half-court affair, which means the squad is ready for anything that the Tigers throw at them.
Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Ohio State 67, Clemson 61
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