The Ohio State basketball team finally experienced the sweet taste of victory in 2020. It had lost four games in a row and looked like a shell of itself against West Virginia and once the Big Ten teams started elbowing their way into the schedule.
What’s a bit ironic is that the Buckeyes did it as a shell of itself — with two starting guards missing from the lineup. Both Luther Muhammad and Duane Washington, Jr, were suspended prior to the game for “failure to meet program standards and expectations.”
The team responded and hit the Cornhuskers on the chin with the Buckeyes separating early and rolling the rest of the way through the remainder of the game. It all led to an impressive 80-68 win in front of the home crowd.
Here are three things we learned.
Next … Better shooting
Ohio State found its shooting groove again
On the surface, this game seems pretty easy. Get the ball in position for a good shot, then knock it down. There’s obviously more to it than that, but the Buckeyes have struggled in both of those departments recently, but not Tuesday night.
It’s been a while since we’ve seen a shooting percentage better than 50 percent, but it happened Tuesday. Ohio State lit the nets on fire at times, specifically from deep, going 10 of 22 from beyond the arc (45.5 percent). Add in an overall shooting percentage of 54.5 percent, and that’s more like it.
Next … Turnovers were better
Ohio State took better care of the ball
It’s still not where you’d want things, but experiencing twelve turnovers as opposed to an average of sixteen over the last few games is more like it — especially against a Nebraska team that works really hard to create chaos and pressure on the defensive end.
It’s hard to figure out why the ball security and care are better in some games and not others, but hopefully this is the start of a good trend towards maximizing possessions and not giving the opposition run-outs and easy baskets on the other end.
Also worth noting is the assist-to-turnover ration. A 17:12 ratio speaks volumes for this team working together better and working within the flow of things.
Kaleb Wesson having four turnovers is still a concern though. He sure brings a lot to the table, and if he can start to cut down on offensive fouls and issues when getting double-teamed, everything will be all the better.
Next … Balance in the scarlet and gray force
The scoring is better when it’s balanced for Ohio State
A lot of what made this team so successful early on in the year was the balance in scoring. Buckets could come from multiple spots and positions on the floor, so it was hard to game-plan against. However, when the offensive woes began, everything was more predictable, with a focus on playing through the known commodity, Kaleb Wesson.
Tuesday night, the Buckeyes had six guys in double-figures. C.J. Walker led all scorers with 18 points, but Kaleb Wesson and D.J. Carton each had 13, Andre Wesson chipped in 11, and both Kyle Young and E.J. Liddell each posted ten points.
This team has a lot of interchangeable parts around its big man, and the way things went Tuesday night with sharing the ball and scoring from the best position is what this team has to be about.
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