The Buckeye Blog

The Boss may have been at the Schott but the show was at St. Johns as Ohio State dominated Cal during the second half to move into the quarter finals of the NIT tournament. Maybe it was the old hardwood, maybe it was the ghosts of great games past, whatever it was, the Buckeyes were on fire and St. Johns was rocking. While the Schott may be nice, it was good to see a return to a classic arena built before the days of naming rights and corporate owned “club level” seating.

After the game, the ESPN commentators were quick to point out that the Buckeyes were a NCAA Tourney caliber team and it is somewhat frustrating to say the least. Considering the Buckeyes beat Michigan State only a week before tournament selection. Meanwhile, a fifth seeded Michigan State advances to the Sweet Sixteen while an overrated Duke gets to watch from the sidelines.

So what…bring on the NIT. More important, bring on a rematch with Florida. An Ohio State/Florida NIT final would be the biggest game the NIT has seen in years.

It’s official. Terelle Pryor announced today that he is going to Ohio State. After holding up his decision because daddy wanted him to give Penn State a look, in the end it was all Buckeyes.

That should about do it for the preseason rankings. The biggest hurdle standing in the way of a Buckeye #1 ranking next fall is a general sense of amazement from those outside of Buckeye Nation who just can’t stand the fact that the Buckeyes are set and in position for another run at the BCS Championship game. If the Buckeyes can beat USC at USC in the second game of the season, there should be no question about where they belong in the rankings. The best thing Ohio State has going for them in that game is that it doesn’t take place six weeks after the regular season.

As for next year’s team, think this past season’s Buckeyes with Vince Young at the helm.

As good as seeing Pryor come to Ohio State is seeing him not go to Michigan. At one point, the Wolverines had pretty much banked everything on Pyor and they as are about to find out, it can be pretty difficult to run a spread offense without a quarterback. I’m going to love watching Rodriguez fall flat on his face in his opening season.

As for Pryor, he said he felt a little bad for Michigan. The Columbus Dispatch reported today that he told those gathered at today’s announcement, “It makes me feel bad that they had their hopes on me.”

Isn’t that nice…don’t worry Terrelle, those feelings will pass.

Michigan State coach Tom Izzo may have summed it up best when he told the AP that it’s not a bubble the Buckeyes are sitting on, it’s a rock. When asked if he felt Ohio State deserved a tournament bid, he continued, “Hands down.”

Say what you will but something has happened to the Buckeyes during the past week. After a four game loosing streak, one of the longest in coach Thad Matta’s tenure, Ohio State has come to life the last two games playing great basketball against two top 20 teams. What I want to know, can they carry the momentum into the Big Ten tourney.

There is no question that big wins over both Purdue and Michigan State have got to help. If nothing else, the confidence has to be up and they know that the Buckeyes can keep up with the top teams. Actually, it’s probably more important to know that they can keep up with Michigan as they open the Big Ten tournament next Friday (2:00p.m.) against the Spartans.

Earlier in the season, the Buckeyes looked dead. Suddenly, during the last two games, they have come to life. If they can keep it up and score a much needed win against MSU, they belong in the NCAA tournament.

It took an overtime to do it but the Buckeyes came from behind at the half to put an end to Purdue’s Big Ten Championship dreams. If ever there was a game Matta’s boys needed to win, this was it. A loss to the Boilermakers and the tournament dreams would have been about dead. However, with a win over the #15 team, the Buckeyes place themselves firmly on the tournament bubble. A win over Michigan State would pretty much secure the spot.

Aside from tournament hopes, there was a lot on the line tonight. Purdue hasn’t won a game in Columbus since 1998 and have never won a game in the Schott. The game also brings an end to a painful four-game losing streak for the Buckeyes. Coach Matta has never lost five in a row with the Buckeyes.

Purdue wrapped up the first half with a four-point play to take the lead. Any momentum was killed as the game was delayed for almost 20 minutes due to a problem with the shot clocks. By the time the game got back underway, the Buckeyes recovered quick, exchanging leads but trailing Purdue for most of the second half.

Toward the end of the second half, OSU stymied Purdue forcing three consecutive turnovers. After forcing Purdue to use their last time out on the baseline, the Buckeyes recovered the ball with the score tied and the shot clock turned off. They failed to convert forcing overtime.

Getting more than a little help from the crowd, the lead changed back and forth until finally, the Buckeyes got on top to hold on for the win, 80-77.

The Buckeyes will have a chance to prove that this wasn’t just a flash in the pan as they take on Michigan State Sunday to wrap up the regular season. A win over the Spartans would probably put a look at an at large position in the NCAA Tourney. After seeing what the Spartans did to Indiana however, it looks like the Buckeyes have their work cut out for them.