After letting one get away in Evanston a couple of weeks ago, Ohio State was able to get a little bit of revenge against the Northwestern Wildcats Wednesday. The Buckeyes led almost the entire game, absorbed a late run, but pulled away at the end to win a key Big Ten matchup 81-71
There’s a lot to unpack here since Ohio State was without its two main ball-handlers. The Buckeyes still found a way to beat a team that can get hot from beyond the arc and make life difficult on any team.
As we do after every game, here are three things we can take away from the OSU’ win over Northwestern to run their overall record to 10-3, and the Big Ten record to 4-3.
NEXT … Not bad at the point
Good job by Washington and Sueing on the point
Got the dub. #GoBuckeyes #Team122 pic.twitter.com/FWCtvI2dog
— Ohio State Hoops (@OhioStateHoops) January 14, 2021
The story coming into this one was the reality that Ohio State is without its two best ball-handlers because of injury, C.J. Walker, and Jimmy Sotos. We don’t know when either will be back, but it leaves a huge hole when it comes to running the show and bringing the ball up the court.
We saw Duane Washington fill that role a little last season, and it looks like he’s going to be one of the options along with Justice Sueing until one of those two injured come back. So, not too bad. The duo was able to get OSU in its offense and didn’t throw the ball away too much.
In fact, the two combined for only two turnovers, and the team gave the ball away only eleven times. That’s pretty good all things considered. Without that effort, Ohio State loses this game.
NEXT … Speaking of Justice being served
Justice Sueing’s brand
He attempted four shots, and finished with 12 points.
Oh, and he added 10 rebounds and five assists.
Give it up for @OhioStateHoops F @JusticeSueing. 👏 pic.twitter.com/KBqc8lgOVg
— Ohio State on BTN (@OhioStateOnBTN) January 9, 2021
I’m sure he’s been told this, but Justice Sueing is so good at going to the rim. He’s more than capable of shooting the ball, but with his strength and ability to finish through contact, he’s his best getting in the lane and making something happen.
With that mindset, he usually gets into double figures as he did in this one. Not only does Sueing get better looks, he often gets to the free-throw line for easy chances when he is driving the lane consistently. However, when he gets lost in the game by firing up shots and not looking to break down the defense with the dribble drive, he is not nearly as effective.
NEXT … Justin Ahrens, where have you been?
Does Justin Ahrens deserve more playing time?
The response we needed from @ahrensjustin12 ‼️#GoBuckeyes #Team122 pic.twitter.com/ydDgaxoFJj
— Ohio State Hoops (@OhioStateHoops) January 14, 2021
It seems like every opportunity Justin Ahrens gets, he’s bombing away with efficiency from deep. In this one, he nailed 4 of 5 three-pointers to chip in twelve key points that made all the difference in the world. Because of injury, he started in this one, and boy did he deliver.
He’s never going to give you much as far as going to the rim, and his defense needs a little more work, but the kid can shoot it better than anyone else on the team. It sure feels like he’s a weapon being under-utilized, and a guy that can stretch out the defense for others to get better opportunities by unclogging the lane. Yet he’s only averaging 13.9 minutes per game while shooting almost 50 percent from three-point range.
I’d love to see what would happen if those minutes went up a bit.
