It’s been a frenetic pace the Houston Cougars have set, and despite some pretty good shooting from the Buckeyes, they have been unable to keep up, and trail the Cougars 39-31 at halftime.
Houston has used an attacking and trapping defense on the post and an aggressive on-ball defense on the perimeter to force Ohio State into eight turnovers, far too many to keep pace with a team that maximizes possessions with a high shooting percentage.
Kaleb Wesson has struggled to find space to roam in the lane and score because of great help defense by Houston. He also had to sit because of foul trouble late in the half. Wesson only has six points at halftime and both came on deep three pointers from the top of the key.
Perhaps the only thing keeping Ohio State in the game is the blistering pace it’s shooting from beyond the arc. It has hit eight of seventeen for 47.1 percent — a clip that is unlikely to hold up. If the Buckeyes can’t start getting stops on defense, slow things down and get Kaleb Wesson involved, this one could get away from them.
Time to tighten up the turnovers, play more solid defense and hope for the best.
