Tim Miles said he couldn’t really figure out a way to explain it.
Thad Matta didn’t have much to say, either.
Ohio State fell to Nebraska at home Saturday night in stunning fashion, 58-57, and neither head coach really had any idea what happened in the immediate aftermath.
“I’m still just honestly trying to process everything I just witnessed before my eyes,” a stunned Matta said postgame. “I’ve gotta get back down there, kind of gather my composure and think this thing through.”
The Buckeyes led by as many as 11 in the second half, were up by seven with under three minutes to play and had a five-point lead with 32 seconds remaining on the clock following a 3-pointer from senior forward Marc Loving.
But yet there was Nebraska, after a jump ball gave the Huskers possession with 21 seconds to play, with a chance to tie or take the lead. Glynn Watson Jr. drove the line, flipped up a shot that banked in and drew a foul. Watson made the ensuing free throw to give Nebraska a one-point advantage and Jae’Sean Tate’s desperation shot attempt after a busted play missed to give the Huskers the win.
A surefire win turned into a stunning loss just like that.
“Just lack of thinking, not being on the same page,” Tate said. “In the second half, I felt at times we didn’t take care of the ball when we needed to and then that last two-minute stretch, they hit a big shot, got the jump ball and then we sent them to the line with an and-1. We’ve got to be smarter.”
“We beat ourselves tonight and we deserved it.”
Ohio State is now just 15-13 on the season and 5-10 in Big Ten play. The Buckeyes are fighting for an NIT berth at this point, and Saturday’s loss assured Matta will finish with a losing record in conference play for the first time in his 17 seasons as a head coach — 13 of which are at Ohio State.
Prior to Saturday’s game, Matta was asked if he felt his team turned a corner when it came to an energy and effort standpoint despite a pair of recent losses. He hoped it had.
But as we’ve seen so many times with this team this season, when things seem like they’re getting figured out a step backward comes next.
Saturday night was a giant leap in the wrong direction.
“Ultimately, I’m responsible and obviously I’ve got to do a better job of those things,” he said. “It was just a weird game today.”
The loss to Nebraska looked like so many others for Ohio State this season, but for some reason, it felt totally different. In a season filled with quite a few low points, Saturday may have been the lowest.
“That last little stretch right there, it wasn’t just the shot, it was that last little war,” Tate said. “We sent them to the line, getting a jump ball, turning it over, not communicating. When you do things like that back-to-back-to-back-to-back, the outcome is going to be very difficult to swallow.”
Saturday’s certainly was.
Trevor Thompson joined Tate at the podium for the postgame press conference and said no more than five words the entire time.
Matta had a difficult time explaining things, too, and for a team with just three games remaining in the regular season, that’s perhaps the most concerning part. A team with this much experience — despite having just one senior — continues to make the same mistakes.
And when Matta was asked about that postgame, he again struggled to find an answer.
“I don’t know. Not sure,” he said. “I’m not trying to dodge the question. I’m like you: dumbfounded.”
