Another game on a big stage, another disappointing outcome for Ohio State.
The Buckeyes played decently Saturday against second-ranked UCLA, but the Bruins' talent edge showed down the stretch in an 86-73 victory in Las Vegas.
| WHO | WHERE | WHEN | TV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Youngstown State (6-6) | Value City Arena | 7 p.m | ESPN3 |
For Ohio State, it was another missed opportunity in a big-time game. The Buckeyes now sit at 8-3 on the season and have just one victory against a top-50 KenPom team: a five-point win over No. 50 Providence.
The non-conference schedule is winding down as Ohio State has just two games remaining before Big Ten play begins. Up next for the Buckeyes is Youngstown State on Tuesday night at Value City Arena. Ohio State starts conference play Jan. 1 at Illinois.
There are no more chances for quality non-conference wins remaining on Ohio State's schedule. The hope now, of course, is to avoid any more disastrous losses. That begins with the matchup against the Penguins.
"Work them hard, practice, get after it," Ohio State coach Thad Matta said of how he plans to get his team to respond following the loss to UCLA. "Look at the game from Saturday and the things we've got to get corrected and then you shift to [Tuesday] night's game and say, 'Hey, these are things that are similar that we've got to get better at and these are things that are different that we've got to get better at.'"
"Collectively, looking at ourselves and saying what we have to clean up, what adjustments we have to make us better in terms of within what we do.”
Opponent Breakdown
While Youngstown State's football team is enjoying an incredible amount of success and advanced to the FCS national championship Saturday, it's been a bit of a different story on the hardwood so far this season for the Penguins. YSU enters Tuesday's game against the Buckeyes with a 6-6 record on the year.
The Penguins are coming off a 101-97 overtime victory against Niagara, one that snapped a two-game losing skid. Two of Youngstown State's six wins this season are against non-Division I teams and the Penguins rank just 277th in Ken Pomeroy's advanced statistical ratings.
Junior guard Cameron Morse does the majority of the shooting (and scoring) for Youngstown State. Morse averages a team-high 23.8 points per game and takes 37 percent of the Penguins' field goal attempts.
Other double-digit scorers include point guard Francisco Santiago (13.2 points per game) and forward Matt Donlan (11.8 ppg.). Jorden Kaufman averages 7.3 points and 7.2 rebounds per contest.
"We’re playing a very, very good opponent [Tuesday] night," Matta said. "They’re, in some ways with the way they can get rolling, like a UCLA. They score from deep, they can get to the hole."
Buckeye Breakdown
Ohio State trailed for the majority of Saturday's game, but the Buckeyes hung around with No. 2 UCLA and were within six points with six minutes to play. Down the stretch, however, the Bruins continued to make shots — they're one of the nation's best offensive teams — and Ohio State's cold shooting continued as UCLA pulled away for the 13-point win.
Off nights happen in basketball, but for the Buckeyes, this is starting to become a trend. They shot under 47 percent from the field for the game and were 5-for-24 from behind the 3-point line against UCLA. In Ohio State's last three games, it is shooting just 11-for-62 from downtown.
That's under 18 percent, and even for a team that doesn't shoot it that well from deep, it's still well below the season average of 32.6 percent. Before this three-game slump, the Buckeyes were shooting 38.4 percent from 3 as a team.
It's been a contagious funk and it starts with Ohio State's best shooter, redshirt junior guard Kam Williams, who is just 2 of his last 17 from downtown.
“We have other elite talents on this team so just because I’m not making shots I have supreme confidence in them and I know they have supreme confidence in me," Williams said of his slump. "I feel like that’s something that we really pride ourselves on. We have a strong support system here so even when I’m not making shots, Coach Matta is still telling me to shoot it."
The Buckeyes have two games left to break out of this current offensive funk they're in before Big Ten play begins. Matta said he has liked the shots his team is getting — they're just not falling.
The hope is for that to eventually change.
"We’re struggling from the 3, but our two-point percentage has been very good," Matta said. "You look at these last three games and I wouldn’t have traded a lot of the shots that we’ve gotten, but obviously, we’ve got to make a higher percentage and that would definitely help us.”
How It Plays Out
The last time Ohio State played a mid-major opponent following a loss in a big game the Buckeyes struggled. They earned just an eight-point win over Fairleigh Dickinson and then in the following game, Ohio State was stunned at home by Florida Atlantic.
That type of letdown simply can't happen again with two games to go before Big Ten play begins.
"Last time we played Virginia and we came back and I wouldn’t say we were feeling too good or whatever, but we played down to the level of our opponent versus Fairleigh Dickinson and we were in a dogfight that whole game," point guard JaQuan Lyle said. "This game after UCLA, we have to play hard from the jump, make a statement and try to win by as much as we possibly can.”
KenPom gives Ohio State a 98 percent chance to win and predicts a 22-point win for the Buckeyes. The Penguins are going to hoist up plenty of shots, but ultimately Ohio State's talent should overwhelm the visitors.
Tim's prediction: Ohio State 77, Youngstown State 62
