Saturday, March 31, 2007
IN ACTION: OSU vs. Georgetown
By John Chandler
ATLANTA - Hard to believe, sitting here at center court of the Georgia Dome, that Ohio State will run out of the tunnel in 10 minutes for a Final Four matchup with Georgetown. Shoulda lost to Xavier, shoulda lost to Tennessee--that's what I'm hearing a lot of from just about every direction here. Some look at the Buckeyes as undeserving; others see a team of destiny. What do I see? Ohio State played two of its worst games of the season in this NCAA Tournament (Xavier, Tennessee) and won. What happens when they play their best?
Pregame Points
* Roy Hibbert is legitimately 7'2" tall, just as Greg Oden suspected. He's easily the biggest matchup of Oden's brief career. I asked Greg if he'd rather be challenged by a talent like Hibbert, and he said he'd rather go against a 6 footer. Something tells me he'd find a way to handle both.
* Ohio State wearing white, Georgetown wearing blue.
* What a sight: Hoyas coach John Thompson III on the bench, directly across the court from John Thompson, Jr. in the first row media table, calling the action on radio. Father and son, both pretty impressive coaches in their own right.
* Jim Tressel is in the house, right next to soon-to-be-alum Anthony Gonzalez. Both wearing scarlet OSU warmups, and wide smiles.
* I pity the poor souls in the last row of the Georgia Dome, behind the curtain atop the far end zone. Binoculars don't help from those seats, TV's do.
First Half
Ohio State wins the tap, and goes right to the well, i.e. Greg Oden. He muscles up on Roy Hibbert and draws a foul. Right idea, except he misses both free throws. Hibbert answers with a sweet sky hook in Oden's face. 2-o, Hoyas.
Jamar Butler gets the Buckeyes on the board with a three. Jonathan Wallace answers with three more. 5-3, Hoyas. Detecting a trend, here?
17:19, 1st half: Oden picks up his second foul, an offensive on a low post move. Technically, it was a foul. But why spoil this matchup with quick whistles? Unless it's blatant, the stripes should let it be and swallow the whistle.
Fit To Be Tie-d
Thad Matta's daughter picked a good tie. Red, blue, orange stripes. Sharp, really. Must be a Brooks Brothers. Matta is so superstitious, he asks his daughters to pick out his tie before every game to keep with tradition. Can't skip. And can't turn down the tie, even if it's the Christmas one with the blinking nose on Rudolph. Actually, that would fit here, since Thad's face is beat red. Love his energy.
Sizing Up Hoyas
Othello Hunter and Matt Terwilliger check in, with Oden sitting four seats in on the bench. With the shot clock down to four seconds, the Hoyas feed right into Hibbert for two. They can do that all day, with Oden out.
Ohio State needs O and Twigs to just survive, and Mike Conley to control this game. His speed can't be matched, as demonstrated on an explosive drive and finish through the lane for a 14-7 lead.
Daequan Cook has created three very generous looks for himself, but failed to finish each one. This kid's streaky, and I'm not sure Ohio State can afford that righ tnow.
10:00, 1st half: OSU 14, GU 7.
ATLANTA - Hard to believe, sitting here at center court of the Georgia Dome, that Ohio State will run out of the tunnel in 10 minutes for a Final Four matchup with Georgetown. Shoulda lost to Xavier, shoulda lost to Tennessee--that's what I'm hearing a lot of from just about every direction here. Some look at the Buckeyes as undeserving; others see a team of destiny. What do I see? Ohio State played two of its worst games of the season in this NCAA Tournament (Xavier, Tennessee) and won. What happens when they play their best?
Pregame Points
* Roy Hibbert is legitimately 7'2" tall, just as Greg Oden suspected. He's easily the biggest matchup of Oden's brief career. I asked Greg if he'd rather be challenged by a talent like Hibbert, and he said he'd rather go against a 6 footer. Something tells me he'd find a way to handle both.
* Ohio State wearing white, Georgetown wearing blue.
* What a sight: Hoyas coach John Thompson III on the bench, directly across the court from John Thompson, Jr. in the first row media table, calling the action on radio. Father and son, both pretty impressive coaches in their own right.
* Jim Tressel is in the house, right next to soon-to-be-alum Anthony Gonzalez. Both wearing scarlet OSU warmups, and wide smiles.
* I pity the poor souls in the last row of the Georgia Dome, behind the curtain atop the far end zone. Binoculars don't help from those seats, TV's do.
First Half
Ohio State wins the tap, and goes right to the well, i.e. Greg Oden. He muscles up on Roy Hibbert and draws a foul. Right idea, except he misses both free throws. Hibbert answers with a sweet sky hook in Oden's face. 2-o, Hoyas.
Jamar Butler gets the Buckeyes on the board with a three. Jonathan Wallace answers with three more. 5-3, Hoyas. Detecting a trend, here?
17:19, 1st half: Oden picks up his second foul, an offensive on a low post move. Technically, it was a foul. But why spoil this matchup with quick whistles? Unless it's blatant, the stripes should let it be and swallow the whistle.
Fit To Be Tie-d
Thad Matta's daughter picked a good tie. Red, blue, orange stripes. Sharp, really. Must be a Brooks Brothers. Matta is so superstitious, he asks his daughters to pick out his tie before every game to keep with tradition. Can't skip. And can't turn down the tie, even if it's the Christmas one with the blinking nose on Rudolph. Actually, that would fit here, since Thad's face is beat red. Love his energy.
Sizing Up Hoyas
Othello Hunter and Matt Terwilliger check in, with Oden sitting four seats in on the bench. With the shot clock down to four seconds, the Hoyas feed right into Hibbert for two. They can do that all day, with Oden out.
Ohio State needs O and Twigs to just survive, and Mike Conley to control this game. His speed can't be matched, as demonstrated on an explosive drive and finish through the lane for a 14-7 lead.
Daequan Cook has created three very generous looks for himself, but failed to finish each one. This kid's streaky, and I'm not sure Ohio State can afford that righ tnow.
10:00, 1st half: OSU 14, GU 7.
Posted at 2:51 PM
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