Greg Oden led the way with 17 points and 17 rebounds while the ghost of Ivan Harris had 18 points and 7 rebounds as the Buckeyes recorded their 9th straight victory against Northwestern. OSU found themselves in a 20-11 hole with 8:41 left in the first half before closing with a 16-4 run to take a 27-24 lead at intermission. Harris paced OSU with 14 first half points on 5-6 shooting but the Wildcats stayed close on the strength of 5-9 shooting on threes.
OSU started the second half with a 9-2 run to stretch the lead to 36-26 at the 17 minute mark but Northwestern hung around and trailed just 49-46 with 5:23 left after a Kevin Coble three. The OSU defense then tightened, allowing just four points over the final five minutes to seal the win.
Tim (Prancer) Doyle led NU with 15 points on 7-11 shooting while Sterling Williams had 11 and freshman Kevin Coble scored 10. For the Bucks, Jamar Butler finished with 9 points and hit 3-4 free throws in the final minute to ensure victory. Mike Conley had an off night with 7 points, 4 assists and 3 turnovers while Daequan Cook was held scoreless for the first time this season. On the bright side, OSU outrebounded Northwestern 38-15. Now, it's back to Columbus for a Saturday showdown with the Spartans as OSU welcomes the Gameday crew to the Schott. I can almost smell Erin Andrews already.
