No. 16 Ohio State crushes Rutgers 79-62 on Senior Night
By Willie Lutz
Senior night was very friendly to an Ohio State team looking to get back to business.
Following a pair of tough losses on the road last week, Ohio State looked for and found comfort at home tonight. In the senior night victory, the Buckeyes returned to Columbus to take care of business in their final home game of the 2017-2018 season.
In the first half, Ohio State looked mostly prepared for an easy victory. After jumping out to a 30-11 lead, Rutgers cut the Buckeyes’ lead down to just 32-27 at the half. However, Rutgers played off of Ohio State’s disinterest, something Chris Holtmann adjusted in the locker room.
When play resumed, the Buckeyes played devastating defense and shot the ball with proficiency. After the final twenty minutes clicked away, Ohio State cruised to a decisive victory. As a team, Ohio State shot 58.2-percent while Rutgers shot just 39.6-percent.
Following a weak two games following a three-game suspension, senior guard Kam Williams played a great game of basketball. His 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting (3-of-5 from three) were crisp and quite refreshing after a rough few games.
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Keita Bates-Diop, who walked as a graduate, struggled in the victory. After struggling against Penn State and Michigan last week, Bates-Diop scored only 6 points on 3-of-11 shooting against Rutgers.
However, it seems like Bates-Diop might simply be dealing with fatigue. Considering he has never played a full season as a starter it is certainly a possibility. KBD was still effective on the boards though as he grabbed eight rebounds.
One of the most exciting parts of the victory was watching the young players at work. Freshman Musa Jallow played heavy minutes off the bench, while Kaleb Wesson scored 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting.
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Overall, the Buckeyes looked like they had a blast beating the tar out of Rutgers. They played great team basketball and generally looked excited to share the rock. Importantly, Ohio State once again looked like a top-tier NCAA Tournament who can take care of business.