To Advance, Ohio State Must Emulate 1987 Buckeyes' Feat

As the Buckeyes prepare for a game against VCU, the Buckeyes are in an uncomfortable situation: they are the lower-seeded team in a first round NCAA Tournament game. It is rarer than you might imagine.

Since the NCAA began seeding tournament teams in 1982, Ohio State has been to the Big Dance 17 times. 15 times, Ohio State has been the higher-seeded team in its round of 64 matchup. The other two times are this year, with Ohio State as a 10 seed, and 1987, as a 9 seed. In each case, there was reason to doubt the Buckeyes.

1986-87 was a year of transition for Ohio State. Gary Williams was in his first year as Ohio State men's basketball's head coach, having been hired from Boston College to replace Eldon Miller and turn the Buckeyes into an up-tempo team. He would succeed, turning Ohio State into one of the nation's best teams in the late 1980s and early 1990s before departing to Maryland.

The unquestioned leader of the 1986-87 team would be Dennis Hopson, a lanky, powerful forward with a sweet shooting stroke. As a senior, Hopson scored 29 points per game, the second-highest scoring average in the country. He also led the Buckeyes in rebounds, and he placed second in assists.

Ohio State had some scoring backup to Hopson, but no one as proficient. Curtis Wilson was the team's starting point guard, and he kicked in 14.3 points per game. Jay Burson and Jerry Francis were fine as third and fourth options and John Anderson was a decent center, but the team had little depth. The Buckeyes were 19-12 entering the NCAA Tournament, and a sixth place finish in the Big Ten was good enough to garner a nine seed.

The 1987 team faced a tough challenge against the Kentucky Wildcats, who were coached by future College Basketball Hall of Famer Eddie Sutton and led by Ed Davender and future NBA star Rex Chapman. The Wildcats had faced a difficult schedule, like the Buckeyes, and had gone 19-10 on the year. With the game in Atlanta, Kentucky had a stronger fan presence presence than Ohio State. The winner would face top-seeded Georgetown, which defeated Bucknell earlier in the day.

The prospect of facing the Hoyas was daunting; nevertheless, Ohio State beat Kentucky 91-77 to advance to the round of 32. Hopson had to be spectacular for Ohio State to win, and he was, scoring 32 points. Wilson and Burson each passed out six assists, and Wilson also contributed 19 points. Six Buckeyes grabbed at least four rebounds, and even though Ohio State shot fewer threes than Kentucky, it played better in nearly every facet of the game.

The Buckeyes gave Georgetown all it could handle in the next round, hanging tough in a 91-87 loss to a team two years removed from a national championship. Ohio State bowed out of the 1987 NCAA Tournament on the opening weekend, but with head held high. In essence, that's what this 2015 Ohio State team needs to do.

Like in 1987, the Buckeyes are built around one star player, D'Angelo Russell. Of his teammates, one (Sam Thompson) averages 10 points a game, and three others (Marc Loving, Jae'Sean Tate and Shannon Scott) are close. The Buckeyes have more depth than the 1987 team did, but not the dependable center. In other words, this bunch is similarly flawed.

Virginia Commonwealth has a few similarities to 1987 Kentucky as well. VCU coach Shaka Smart is on a trajectory to becoming a Hall of Famer, and VCU plays aggressively while shooting many three-pointers. The Rams are smaller than the 1987 Wildcats, though, and they are missing their top player, Briante Weber. As a result, the lower-seeded Buckeyes are actually favored by four points.

If the Buckeyes defeat the Rams, they will almost surely face Arizona in the round of 32, and almost as surely lose. Rather than worry about Arizona, the Buckeyes must pour everything into the matchup today with active, alert basketball. This first round game against VCU is the most important game of Ohio State's season.

The round of 64 game against VCU is the 2014-15 Buckeyes' last chance to define themselves. If they lose, they will be remembered (right or wrong) as a team of underachievers who checked out mentally. If they win, they will be remembered as a team that kept fighting, even through disappointment.