Ohio State sophomore forward Keita Bates-Diop called Saturday’s win over Kentucky “a turning point in our season” on Monday. And while that remains to be seen with over three months to play in the year, there’s no denying the Buckeyes’ stunning upset of the now-12th-ranked Wildcats was critical for this young team.
The win had a little added meaning for head coach Thad Matta.
| WHO | WHERE | WHEN | TV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mercer (9-2) | Schottenstein Center | 9 p.m. | ESPNU |
“I’ll be honest with you, [the win] was big," Matta admitted Monday. "One thing I thought about going into the game was when Brandon Knight hit that shot on us [in the 2011 NCAA tournament] and we had the best team in college basketball that year and I felt like we had a chance to win the national championship with that team.
"I was walking off the floor thinking about those guys and what that locker room was like as opposed to what it was going to be like when I got in there on Saturday.”
The Buckeyes celebrated on the court and in the locker room after their upset win. They earned that moment by outplaying the heavily-favored Wildcats from beginning to end.
But life in the college basketball world moves quickly. Ohio State knows it can’t follow its best performance of the season by laying an egg its next time on the floor.
That comes Tuesday night when the Buckeyes welcome a 9-2 Mercer team to the Schottenstein Center for a 9 p.m. game. Ohio State has a chance to build momentum with Big Ten play one week away and put some truth behind Bates-Diop’s turning-point statement.
“[Kentucky was] definitely a good win, a big win, but we have a good opponent coming in on Tuesday and our focus is directly on them," sophomore center Trevor Thompson said. "We enjoyed the win when the game was over, but now it’s 100 percent Mercer.”
Opponent Breakdown
Mercer is not Kentucky. That doesn't mean the Bears aren't a quality opponent, though.
Mercer has played one of the weaker schedules in the country to date — the Bears' slate currently ranks 298th nationally, according to KenPom — but it compiled a 9-2 record to start the season and is coming off a 69-66 overtime win at Arkansas.
Another team with a balanced attack, Mercer's leading scorer, senior guard Jestin Lewis, averages just 12.6 points per game. The Bears have a trio of other capable scorers in sophomore forward Stephon Jelks (12.0 ppg.), senior guard Phillip Leonard (9.9 ppg.) and sophomore guard Demetre Rivers (9.5 ppg.).
Mercer is one of the top rebounding teams in the country; the Bears ranked 25th nationally heading into Monday's games averaging 42.6 rebounds per game. Mercer has also played stellar defense so far, surrendering just 62.4 points per game — 27th in the country.
Currently ranked 139th in KenPom's advanced statistical ratings, Matta knows Mercer isn't a pushover. The Buckeyes are going to have to play well in order to avoid another home upset loss to a mid-major program.
"They probably execute offensively as well as any team that I’ve seen this year," Matta said. "Definitely they are going to change it up, they’ll play man, zone. They’ve historically in the past, you run an action and they switch from man to zone, they’re constantly trying to take you out of your rhythm. For us we’ve got to have great patience and understanding of what we’re going against.”
Buckeye Breakdown
It goes without saying, but I'll say it anyway: Ohio State played its best game of the season against Kentucky. The Buckeyes executed their offense — for the most part — and played high-level defense against a usually potent Wildcats attack.
Bates-Diop (14 points), Marc Loving (12), JaQuan Lyle (11) and Thompson (10) were all in double-figures, while the other four players who saw game action all scored at least six points. Ohio State made 9 of its 18 attempts from behind the 3-point line and held an edge on the glass, outrebounding Kentucky 42-40.
“I think we had a very good understanding of what we needed to do," Matta said. "It was not a complex, it wasn’t real difficult to understand what we were attempting to do. ... I saw our guys during the game thinking what they needed to doa dn that to me is a big step in the right direction.”
The Buckeyes went through a week filled with highs and lows leading up to that game against the Wildcats. Freshman guard Austin Grandstaff transferred two days before the game. Then, the following day, freshman forward Mickey Mitchell was finally declared eligible for competition by the NCAA Eligibility Center after being forced to sit out the first 10 games of the season.
Mitchell did not play against Kentucky. Matta said, "Saturday wasn’t the day to probably do that." Matta is hopeful Mitchell will have the opportunity to make his debut Tuesday against the Bears.
“He’s good to go," Matta said. "Like I said, hopefully we can get him in there and get him some game experience. The scrimmage at the beginning of the year and the exhibition game for freshmen, those things are huge, and unfortunately he just hasn’t had the opportunity to do that. But hopefully we can.”
How It Plays Out
If you are an Ohio State fan, the obvious concern for this game is a letdown. The Buckeyes seem like they could have turned a corner, and a disappointing performance would fall into the classic "one step forward, two steps back" cliché.
It's hard to envision a letdown happening, though, as Ohio State seems to have a newfound confidence. In the game of basketball, it's sometimes crazy what confidence can do for individual players and teams.
The Bears will likely keep this one close throughout — as we've touched on, they're no pushover — but in the end, a second-half run will allow the Buckeyes to build a comfortable lead before they cruise to a win down the stretch.
Tim's prediction: Ohio State 71, Mercer 61
