The Ohio State basketball program has a lot of momentum. They were able to take down the fourth-ranked team in the country last weekend when they took down Kentucky. That was an early defining moment in Jake Diebler's coaching career. It gave him a signature win in his first season.
Following up a performance like that was going to be tough. After over a week off, the Buckeyes got to take on the Indiana State Sycamores at home at the Schott. They were expected to win the game, but it was rough going in the first half for them because of some poor free-throw shooting.
The Ohio State Buckeyes were up just five points at halftime because they shot 13-20 from the free-throw line in the first half. They also played bad defense beyond the arc. That changed in the second half and the Buckeyes won 103-83 thanks in part to a strong performance from Bruce Thornton.
Ohio State basketball player Bruce Thornton scores a career-high 33 against Indiana State
Thornton had a career-high 33 points on 11-16 shooting. This comes after he put up 30 on the Wildcats a week ago. He is clearly the best player on this Ohio State basketball team and he put that on display against the Sycamores. As the leader of this team, he's leading by example.
The Buckeyes had five different players score in double-figures in this game. They need to keep up that kind of balanced scoring in order to keep stacking up wins. This win put the Buckeyes up to 9-4 on the season as they end their non-conference schedule.
Ohio State will now resume Big Ten play with a lot of confidence. They play Michigan State this week in the Schott. The Buckeyes could get a ranked victory if they are able to win that one.