Ohio State basketball survives slugfest with UCLA
By Ryan Stano
The Ohio State basketball team was able to survive a close call with the UCLA Bruins in a game that was close throughout the entirety of the contest.
The Ohio State basketball team was able to notch a win on Saturday evening to give two Ohio State squads a win on Saturday. It was a tough game with UCLA. It was never a double-digit game at any point in the contest and neither team could pull away.
It was a win the Buckeyes needed after dropping their first game of the season to Purdue on Wednesday night. E.J. Liddell made his return and it made an instant impact with the Buckeyes’ half-court offense. Even though Liddell fouled out with about 8 minutes left in the game, he was still effective while out there.
Liddell had 9 points and 3 rebounds. He hit the first bucket of the game which was a three from the top of the key. His backup, Zed Key, was also supremely effective. Key had 11 points and 6 rebounds off the bench. He continues to have a strong freshman season.
Speaking of freshmen, Eugene Brown hit two huge threes in the second half of this game. He finished with 9 points, hitting all three of his three-point attempts. Musa Jallow was also good off the bench, scoring 8 points of his own.
Duane Washington led the team in scoring with 14 but was once again inefficient in doing so. He only hit 4 of his 12 shots. C.J. Walker was more efficient, hitting 3-6 and scoring 10. The Buckeyes shot 50% from the field, much improved from the 38% they shot against Purdue.
Seth Towns saw his first action of the season. He played very briefly in the first half and didn’t do much. He missed his only shot and got called for an offensive foul while going for a rebound. It is nice to see him out on the floor tough.
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One source of concern for the Buckeyes is their free-throw shooting. They only shot 73% from the line. That has to improve now that they get back into Big Ten play. Having that improve while getting Towns comfortable on the court is key for Ohio State in conference play.