The Road of Ohio State to the Final Four

Despite some up and downs during the season, the Buckeyes are playing their best  basketball of the season right now.  Deshaun Thomas and Jared Sullinger are just having monster NCAA tournament’s.   They cannot be stopped.  Aaron Craft is showing he is one of the best all point guards in the nation. Lenzelle Smith Jr.  has stepped his game up big time.  The Buckeyes need to get William Buford going if they want to cut down the nets in New Orleans.  Below is a recap of Ohio State’s wins in the tournament to get to New Orleans.

Second Round

Ohio State-78 Loyola-59

- Everyone always talks about Jared Sullinger but Deshaun Thomas is also pretty darn good. In this game he had 31 points and 12 rebounds. Along with Crowder from Marquette Thomas was one of the best players on Thursday.

- William Buford had a strong game with 17 points including 3 three’s.

- Aaron Craft finished with 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals.

- The Buckeyes were dominant on the glass doubling Loyola up on the glass 46-23.

- Despite the score the Buckeyes had some negatives in this game. They had 18 turnovers and only got 8 points off their bench. Sullinger was just 4 of 14 from the field.

Third Round

Ohio State-73 Gonzaga- 66

- This game was all about Ohio State point guard Aaron Craft. He has always been a great defender, rebounder, and passer but today he showed off his scoring ability. Craft had 17 points against the Zags. He shot 7 of 9 from the field and most of those were lay ups after he beat his man 1 on 1.

- After scoring 31 points last game Deshaun Thomas had 18 points in this one including 3 three’s. Thomas also added 5 offensive rebounds.

- Jared Sullinger also added a very efficient 18 points. He was 5 of 9 from the field including 2 for 2 from three. Sullinger was 6 of 7 from the free throw line.

- Last year the Buckeyes were a great three point shooting team; this year not so much. In this game, though, the three point shoot was the difference for the Buckeyes as they made 9 three’s.

- William Buford did not have his best game for the Buckeyes; he finished shooting 4 of 13 from the field. The Buckeyes also got zero points from their bench.

Sweet 16

Ohio State-81 Cincinnati-66

- Wow Deshaun Thomas is the hottest basketball player in the country. Against the Bearcats he had 26 points and 7 rebounds. He also added three three’s. He can score in multiple ways, and that’s what makes him so tough. In three NCAA tournament games Thomas is averaging 25 points per game.

- Jared Sullinger also stepped his game up big time. He wasn’t at his best in the first two tournament games but in this one he was unstoppable. He finished the game with 23 points, 11 rebounds and 3 assists. Sullinger was 9 of 10 from the line. He also shut down Cincinnati big man Yancy Gates.

- Lenzelle Smith Jr. had a huge game in the two previous NCAA games; he a combined 10 points. Against Cincinnati he had 15 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals. He shot 6 of 7 from the field including 3 of 4 from three.

- Aaron Craft is the best on the ball defender in the nation and it’s not even close. Cincinnati had 18 turnovers for the game, and a lot of those where because of Craft. For the game Craft finished with 11 points, 6 steals, 5 assists, and 4 steals. Talk about filling up the stat sheet.

- The only negative for the Buckeyes was the play of William Buford. Buford finished the game with 4 points on 1 of 8 shooting. If the Buckeyes want to win a national championship they need Buford on his game.

- The Buckeyes are still not getting any production from their bench. In three tournament games the Buckeyes have a combined total of 9 points off their bench.

- The Buckeyes are getting hot from three at the right time; they struggled during the regular season.

Elite 8

Ohio State-77 Syracuse-70

The story of this game for the Buckeyes was great offensive balance and the Buckeyes got solid play off their bench.

-Despite getting in foul trouble early and being forced to sit most of the 1st half Jared Sullinger had a huge game with 19 points and 7 rebounds. He just had too much muscle for Syracuse inside. Sullinger got to the foul line and finished the game 9 of 12.

-Lenzelle Smith Jr. despite getting knocked in the head early had a huge game. He finished with 18 points including three three’s and 7 of 9 shooting from the free throw line. Smith is only averaging 6 points per game for the season.

-Deshaun Thomas didn’t have a monster game but he still finished the game with 14 points and 9 rebounds. Coming into this game he was averaging 25 points in the tournament.

-Aaron Craft only had 5 points but once again he proved that he is the best on the ball defender in the country. Scoop Jardine and Dion Waiters really struggled. Craft also added 4 rebounds and 4 assists.

- The scary thing is Ohio State is winning and William Buford has not had a great game yet. In this game Buford was 3 of 12 from the field. Last game he was just 1 of 8. Buford did however finish with 9 rebounds. If Buford gets going, watch out.

- In the first 3 NCAA tournament games the Buckeyes got a total of 9 points off their bench. In this game they got 8 points. Big men Evan Ravenel and Amir Williams had big minutes with Sullinger in foul trouble. They especially played great defense Williams finished with 4 rebounds.

-The Buckeyes just dominated Syracuse on the glass. For the game they were plus 15 and had 13 offensive rebounds.

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Tags: Jared Sullinger, Ohio State