After winning a game on a last-second 3-pointer, Ohio State was on the other end of that on Wednesday night against Florida, dropping the final of the Fort Meyers Tip-Off by a score of 67-70.
The heroics on this night came from Gators’ guard Tyree Applebee, who sunk a long 3-pointer as time expired to send a large Buckeye contingent that made the trip to Fort Myers home unhappy.
To be fair, it’s amazing the Buckeyes were in the game in the first place. Ohio State actually led for most of the game, but had one whale of a time taking care of the ball. OSU turned the ball over a whopping eighteen times resulting in numerous scoring chances and conversions going the other way.
Rebounding and fouling was also a problem. The Buckeyes got beat on the boards 35-33, but 16 of those were the offensive variety for the Gators. Add that to 24 fouls that sent Florida players to the line 33 times, and there were just a lot more scoring chances for the Gators than what the Buckeyes earned. It’s simply not winning basketball, I don’t care who you play.
🚨 AT THE BUZZER!!!!!!!! 🚨 @Lil_App04 WINS IT FOR @Gatorsmbk‼️ pic.twitter.com/tMR5qUE9fd
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) November 25, 2021
E.J. Liddell led Ohio State in scoring once again, totaling 23 points on 7-of-11 shooting. Kyle Young also finished in double figures with 11 points but fouled out of the contest with 9:03 to play in a physical and challenging game to officiate.
With the loss, Ohio State drops to 4-2 on the young season and will have to find some way to move forward and try to keep improving. The season depends on it with such a challenging schedule.
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