Ohio State Basketball: Buckeyes must finish the half against Terrapins
In last Friday’s game against Wisconsin, Ohio State would have won if each half was only 16 minutes long. Unfortunately for the Buckeyes they last 20 minutes.
Ohio State led Wisconsin with four minutes to play in each half but lost the game. Unfortunately for the Buckeyes they were outscored 24-12 by the Badgers in those eight minutes and lost 61-57.
Ohio State took a 7-0 lead and was still up 19-17 at the four-minute mark in the first half. Wisconsin then went on a 12-6 run to take a 29-25 lead into the break.
The Buckeyes erased the deficit quickly and took another seven point lead 38-31 before the Badgers battled back. They tied the game at 47 but still trailed 51-49 with four minutes remaining before scoring 12 of the last 18 points to pull out the win.
It would appear that it’s a fatigue issue for the team. With Kyle Young out Chris Holtmann only has eight players he can rely on and two are true freshmen. It often takes time for young players to build up the stamina to perform well for significant minutes during the grueling Big Ten schedule.
Now for short takes:
The Buckeyes really miss Young. In addition to his 8.3 points and 6.8 rebounds per game he brings much more to the floor. The junior forward brings an energy the other players feed off, alters shots playing help defense and is quite simply a thorn in the side of the opposing team.
With his short bench I can understand coach Holtmann not have his team running up and down the court looking for fast break points but it would be nice to see the ball pushed up a little quicker. That seems to help the offense get into a better flow.
When a team is shorthanded, and not shooting lights out from the field, total shots are important. With the Buckeyes losing the offensive rebounding and turnover battles the Badgers had 9 more field goal attempts.
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It will be quite a challenge for Chris Holtmann’s team to straighten up issues that led to the loss to Wisconsin against a strong Maryland team. But by finishing strong in each half it could result in a good road win for Ohio State.