Ohio State head coach Thad Matta had a simple message to his team about what lies ahead following its 76-54 season-opening win over Mount St. Mary’s on Sunday.
“I just told them after the game, I said, ‘All you guys want to play in the NBA, well we’ve got an NBA schedule this week,’” Matta said. “From today to Tuesday to Friday and as I challenged them after the game, we’ve got a quick turnaround, we’ve got to prepare for Grambling, but we’ve also got to look at what we’ve gotta get better at.”
| WHO | WHERE | WHEN | TV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grambling State (1-1) | Schottenstein Center | 7 p.m. | BTN |
As Matta stated, the Buckeyes played Sunday and they must quickly turn around and play Grambling on Tuesday night. Ohio State also hosts Texas-Arlington on Friday. That makes three games in six days to open the 2015-16 season.
Quick turnarounds are nothing new to college basketball teams, but it’s the first time Matta’s young group will have experienced such a thing. Perhaps that’s a good thing, though, as the young guys just want to get out and play as much as possible.
Having just one day to prepare for an opponent, however — despite the Buckeyes’ large talent advantage — can be difficult for any staff.
“It’s going to be a heavy film day, it’s going to be a heavy walk-talk type thing getting ready for Tuesday night’s game,” Matta said.
Opponent Breakdown
The Tigers come to Columbus 1-1 on the short season, fresh off a 85-26 victory over Mid-Atlantic Christian, a junior college located in North Carolina. Grambling lost its season-opener, 61-53, to East Carolina.
Leading the way so far for the Tigers is junior wing Michael Bethea Jr., who is averaging 14 points per game on the young season. Freshman guard Nigel Riberio is also averaging in double-figures thus far, scoring 10 points per game for Grambling.
Through two games, the Tigers have attempted a total of 46 3-pointers so expect them to come out firing against the Buckeyes. Grambling has made just 12 of those attempts, however, shooting 26 percent from deep as a team.
The Tigers were just 2-27 overall a year ago and went winless in the Southwestern Athletic Conference.
Buckeye Breakdown
Ohio State played about as well as it could in the first half Sunday against the Mountaineers, building a 21-point halftime lead.
“We executed about as well as we could in the first 20 minutes,” Matta said after the game.
The Buckeyes put five players in double-figures led by Jae’Sean Tate’s 21 points and nine rebounds. Marc Loving and Keita Bates-Diop each recorded double-doubles, and JaQuan Lyle and Daniel Giddens each reached double digits in the scoring column.
Ohio State also held a significant advantage on the interior as it outrebounded Mount St. Mary’s by 28 and had an 18-point edge in points in the paint. The play of Giddens and Tate inside had a lot to do with both of those advantages.
“It’s definitely an advantage for us, the stat shows even in practice when we go inside and the defense has to coral, if we pass inside-out then our shooting percentage goes up,” Tate said. “During the game we really focus on getting the ball in the post because it makes our team a better team.”
Added Giddens: “As a big man, we just want to make sure we’re doing our job and helping the team out as much as we can.”
The win over Mount St. Mary's was the 300th in Matta's career at Ohio State, which is the most in the school's history.
How It Plays Out
Despite Matta admitting he wasn’t sure how the opener was going to play out, there shouldn’t be as much doubt about this one; the Buckeyes should roll.
It’s just one week into the season but Grambling ranks 351st out of 351 Division I teams in the KenPom ratings, which are an advanced statistical measure of a team. Ohio State, for example, currently ranks 38th after one week.
The Buckeyes have a significant advantage at every spot on the floor and should cruise to a victory despite Matta’s concerns about the quick turnaround.
“With this team, we go not day-by-day,” Matta said. “We go second-by-second.”
Tim's Prediction: Ohio State 84, Grambling 51
