Ohio State coach Thad Matta wasn’t 100 percent serious, but with the way Michigan State senior guard Bryn Forbes has been shooting the ball lately, it certainly didn’t seem like the most out-of-this world comparison.
“Obviously he’s shooting the basketball at a level right now that is as good as anybody in the country, probably including Steph Curry," Matta joked Friday afternoon.
Matta made it clear he was being a bit facetious and was quick to point out that of course Forbes is not playing at the level of Curry, who is the best basketball player on the planet right now; Matta actually compared him to one of his former players, Jon Diebler. The point here was to attempt to shed light on exactly how lethal Forbes has been in the Spartans’ last few games.
Forbes' last four times out — which have resulted in four double-digit wins for Michigan State — he is a ridiculous 26-for-40 from behind the 3-point line. That’s 65 percent; a level that’s almost impossible to comprehend. Forbes' latest showing was Wednesday night when he made a Big Ten-record 11 3-pointers in a win against Rutgers.
Ohio State got a first-person view of the Bryn Forbes’ show during that stretch, too, as the 6-foot-3 sharpshooter had a 7-for-10 performance from deep at Value City Arena just last week in the Spartans’ 81-62 win.
For the Buckeyes to have any chance to pull an upset Saturday at Breslin Center, they must do a better job defending Michigan State on the perimeter and, in particular, defending Forbes.
“Don’t let him get easy looks early on in the game, be on his hip going around screens,” Ohio State sophomore forward Keita Bates-Diop said of the key to defending someone like Forbes. “But probably the biggest thing is making him drive. He likes to shoot 3s obviously, but I don’t know how good he is at getting to the basket so you have to make him do things he’s not comfortable doing.”
Much easier said than done, of course. So, what exactly can Ohio State do to make sure it doesn't happen again?
Well, things are obviously going to be difficult for the Buckeyes as this is a complete contrast in styles on the perimeter. Forbes, Denzel Valentine and Eron Harris all start for Michigan State and all three are a bit quicker than anybody who starts for Ohio State. The Buckeyes, who only start one guard in JaQuan Lyle, are bigger and longer on the perimeter and they must find a way to use that to their advantage.
The clear edge in the perimeter matchup favored the Spartans' quickness in the first meeting, though, so that must change for Ohio State to have a chance Saturday.
“We have to do what we’re supposed to do, and when I say that, everything we’ve practiced for 125 times we have to stick to it even if it doesn’t look — if you think you can shortcut something, don’t shortcut it," Matta said. "Our defense is designed for all five guys to be involved in a play and like I said, in Game 1 we just made some bad decisions because it looked like it was easier and we ended up paying the piper.
"With that said, to use our length, we have to do what we do because the other guys are hopefully going to be where they’re supposed to be and that’s what makes us effective.”
The Buckeyes only have three scholarship guards on their roster in Lyle, A.J. Harris and Kam Williams so they’re not going to be able to keep up with Michigan State’s quickness. That's what Matta was referencing. They must find a way to use their length and athleticism in their favor.
“Our length should be able to disrupt them, disrupt timing a little bit,” Buckeyes junior forward Marc Loving said. “They’re a very time-oriented offense, things have to flow at a specific pace. So, just pressuring the ball and try to use our length to our advantage to try and take them out of their rhythm should be a pretty big key for us.”
If Ohio State is ineffective guarding the Spartans on the perimeter again, it'll likely be another long night for the Buckeyes. And for a team fighting for its NCAA tournament life, Ohio State can't afford another long night.
"As we told our guys, we made a couple mistakes going into last game and they made us pay for them," Matta said. "We’ve made some changes of how we want to guard and what we want to do and hopefully we’re better at it."
