Ohio State 2010 NCAA Tournament Preview

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Ohio State Buckeyes - Big Ten Conference (27-7, 14-4)

Seed: #2 - Midwest Region

Big Wins: 11/20 vs California (76-70), 1/12 at Purdue (70-66), 1/16 Wisconsin (60-51)

Bad Losses: 11/19 vs North Carolina (73-77), 1/3 at Michigan (64-73), 1/9 at Minnesota (62-73)

Last NCAA Appearance: 2009, First Round loss to Siena

Coach: Thad Matta (12-7 in 7 NCAA appearances)

Probable Ohio State Starters:

• William Buford, Sophomore, Guard, 14.3 ppg, 3.3 apg, 5.6 rpg

• Jon Diebler, Junior, Guard, 12.8 ppg, 1.5 apg

• Evan Turner, Junior, Forward, 20.3 ppg, 9.3 rpg, 6.0 apg

• David Lighty, Junior, Forward, 12.7 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 1.6 spg

• Dallas Lauderdale, Junior, Forward, 6.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 2.1 bpg

Key Ohio State Roleplayers:

• P.J. Hill, Senior, Guard, 3.1 ppg, 1.2 apg

• Kyle Madsen, Senior, Center, 2.6 ppg, 1.9 rpg

• Jeremie Simmons, Senior, Guard, 4.8 ppg

Why The Buckeyes Can Surprise:
The Buckeyes sport one of the most talented starting fives in the nation. Evan Tuner is a superstar and just about everybody’s national player of the year, William Buford can explode for 25 points on any given night, Jon Diebler is a lights out shooter from long range and David Lighty does a little bit of everything. And all those guys are at least 6-5. That is one heck of a backcourt.

Buford has been relatively inconsistent as a sophomore, but he is certainly capable of scoring in a variety of ways. He is also a pretty good passer and the ball is safe in his hands. Like any shooter, Diebler is also streaky. He has had some slow stretches, but Diebler has connected on 3.1 three-pointers per game and connects on about 42 percent of his attempts. And even if those two are struggling to score, Lighty and Turner will take over. Lighty can do it all and is averaging an impressive 12.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.6 steals per contest.

Why The Buckeyes Can Disappoint:
With so much size on the perimeter, one would expect the Buckeyes to dominate on the glass. However, that has not been the case. Turner is a beast on the boards, but Lighty’s numbers are a little disappointing and starting big man Dallas Lauderdale averages 5.0 boards per contest. Despite the somewhat disappointing rebounding numbers, Lauderdale does plenty of other things to help out this team. He is averaging 6.7 points per game and is a beast on the defensive end, blocking 2.1 shots per contest. There is really no easy way to stop this team, especially when Diebler is hitting the outside shot, so the best way to beat the Buckeyes is to outscore them. And the best way to do that is to shoot the three-pointer that Ohio State does not defend very well.

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Who To Watch for Ohio State:
When Turner was out for six games with a back injury, Ohio State was not the same team. Three of their losses came during that stretch. Before the injury, Turner tallied two triple-doubles in the first five games of the season. Back at full strength, the point forward is the superstar of this team and will simply take over a game whenever he feels the need. However, his brief absence gave the guys on the bench a little more playing time. Guards P.J. Hill and Jeremie Simmons are experienced players and center Kyle Madsen can at least give Lauderdale a break, but he does not help out on the glass very much and that remains the Buckeyes biggest problem.

Ohio State By the Numbers:

Scoring Offense: 73.5 (80 th in nation, 1 st in conference)

Scoring Defense: 60.4 (20, 2)

Field-Goal Percentage: 49.3 (7, 1)

Field-Goal Defense: 40.8 (59, 5)

Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.1 (72, 4)

Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 37.9 (37, 2)

Free-Throw Percentage: 68.9 (170, 11)

Rebound Margin: 2.2 (110, 4)

Assists Per Game: 14.7 (54, 5)

Turnovers Per Game: 11.2 (18, 5)

Joel’s Bracket Says: Sweet 16 loss to Georgetown