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2012-13 Men's Basketball (B1G Tourney Champs, NCAA Elite Eight)

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For someone like me that absolutely loves point guard play- this year is going to be extra fun to watch.

Big Ten alone has Appling, Burke, Craft, Ferrell, and Frazier.

Then across the country names like Pressey, Siva, Lyons, Napier, Pierre Jackson...Texas continues it's strong PG tradition with Kabongo. Add in Cook for Duke if he plays like this.

Plus smaller schools with guys like McCullum Jr., Isaiah Canaan, and DJ Cooper for the Bobcats.

Guards on guards on guards everywhere.
 
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OHSportsFan;2255482; said:
For someone like me that absolutely loves point guard play- this year is going to be extra fun to watch.

Big Ten alone has Appling, Burke, Craft, Ferrell, and Frazier.

Then across the country names like Pressey, Siva, Lyons, Napier, Pierre Jackson...Texas continues it's strong PG tradition with Kabongo. Add in Cook for Duke if he plays like this.

Plus smaller schools with guys like McCullum Jr., Isaiah Canaan, and DJ Cooper for the Bobcats.

Guards on guards on guards everywhere.
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Mike Gesell for Iowa is going to be a nuisance, too.
 
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Jared Sullinger?s rear end was such a big part of Ohio State men?s basketball the past two years that it spawned its own Twitter account.

His former teammates are just now finding out how big it really was.

?Jared had the ability to box out two or three people at a time,? guard Lenzelle Smith Jr. said.
The Buckeyes no longer have that luxury.

?Now it?s everybody boxing their man out,? Smith said, ?and if you?re that one guy not boxing your man out, he?s most likely going to be the one coming up with the ball.?

Therein lies the conundrum for fourth-ranked Ohio State as it prepares to play twice in the next two days, against Rhode Island today and Seton Hall or Washington on Sunday in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off in Uncasville, Conn.

Without having to wait anymore for Sullinger to get down the floor and set up in the post, the Buckeyes want to get out and run more on offense. But when running off a missed shot rather than a turnover, they must remember to rebound before they can run.

They still are learning how to achieve that delicate balance. In their first two games ? an exhibition against Walsh and the season opener last weekend against Albany ? they did no better than break even each game on the glass against undersized opponents.

?Rebounding is our biggest concern,? center Evan Ravenel said before the team left for Connecticut and the Mohegan Sun Arena on Thursday. ?We?ve got to find a way to rebound the ball. We can?t just depend on one person to grab 10 or 15 rebounds. It?s got to be all of us. We?ve got to gang-rebound because that?s just the team we are.?

Smith and forwards Sam Thompson and LaQuinton Ross led Ohio State with five rebounds apiece against Albany. Ravenel and backup center Amir Williams combined for six in 31 minutes. Forward Deshaun Thomas had three in 30 minutes.

?It?s something we?re taking a look at and studying and trying to get a better appreciation for,? coach Thad Matta said. ?One of the greatest luxuries of coaching a guy like Jared Sullinger was that every time the (other) team shot, I knew he was going to get the rebound if they missed. We?ve got to get something of that nature back.
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more
http://buckeyextra.dispatch.com/content/stories/2012/11/17/rebounding-void-without-sullinger.html
 
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Ohio State needs more than Deshaun and Craft
By Jeff Goodman | College Basketball Insider
November 18, 2012

UNCASVILLE, Conn. -- There's the known and the unknown in Columbus. What Thad Matta can rely on is that Deshaun Thomas can -- and will score frequently -- for the Ohio State Buckeyes. The question is who will help in that regard.

If there was any doubt, all you had to do was watch the Buckeyes first half against Washington Sunday afternoon. Thomas drained a 3, buried a couple of mid-range step-backs, got a couple of offensive putbacks, hit a runner and converted a layup off an inbounds pass. Before the 12-minute timeout, he had 15 points and hadn't missed any of his first seven field goal attempts. He went into the break with 21 and finished with a career-tying 31 points.

The issue for Buckeyes coach Thad Matta is who else -- besides Thomas -- will put points on the board in Columbus.

"Coach always asks who else is going to score the ball," Thomas said after the 77-66 victory. "We need a third guy."

cont....
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http://www.cbssports.com/collegebas.../ohio-state-needs-more-than-deshaun-and-craft
 
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I hope the third scorer is LaQuinton Ross. Q actually played a very good floor game against Washington; his defense was a quantum improvement relative to last season, and he has a good knack for getting boards. I think now it may just be getting more comfortable so he can be more aggressive on O.
 
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Lenzelle did it in the tournament and he did it the first two games this year. Had an off night yesterday. Not so much worried about scoring because we haven't turned the ball over and we have The Microwave on our team for christs sake. I'm more worried that we don't have a big man that can rebound the basketball. Plumlee scares me with our centers.
 
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MaxBuck;2260195; said:
I hope the third scorer is LaQuinton Ross. Q actually played a very good floor game against Washington; his defense was a quantum improvement relative to last season, and he has a good knack for getting boards. I think now it may just be getting more comfortable so he can be more aggressive on O.
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Agreed. He looks a little afraid to do anything with the ball. I'm hoping he'll go off in a couple of these cupcake games and be ready for the scoring load for B1G play.

I think Lenzelle can be counted on for 10 a game or so. Thompson doesn't look like he's ready for double digits, and neither does Williams or Scott. Process of elimination leaves us with Ross as the guy who we need to step up.
 
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OhioState001;2260204; said:
I'm more worried that we don't have a big man that can rebound the basketball. Plumlee scares me with our centers.
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Another reason we need Ross to take on serious minutes. He has all the rebounding ability you want in a 3.
 
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MUBuck said:
Another reason we need Ross to take on serious minutes. He has all the rebounding ability you want in a 3.
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I am a little surprised that Thompson doesn't show more on the boards with his hops. This team really needs to rebound as a team. I was hoping to see more improvement from Williams this year and so far I have not seen it. You can leave a big man like him on the floor if he is not going to produce.
 
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There is no question this team is not hitting on all cylinders. Williams is very inconsistent on both ends. Ross is clearly struggling to get into the flow. I see each of them becoming very different players by the time we enter the B1G.

We are three games in. Team chemistry is not there yet. I don't expect them to be ready for Duke. I do expect them to be ready for Kansas.

Meanwhile I am enjoying being #4 in both football and basketball.
 
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LitlBuck;2260214; said:
I am a little surprised that Thompson doesn't show more on the boards with his hops. This team really needs to rebound as a team. I was hoping to see more improvement from Williams this year and so far I have not seen it. You can leave a big man like him on the floor if he is not going to produce.
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It looks to me that Williams is around the ball a lot of the time, just can't seem to pull it in. Hopefully PT will get him a little more comfortable.
 
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MUBuck;2260222; said:
It looks to me that Williams is around the ball a lot of the time, just can't seem to pull it in. Hopefully PT will get him a little more comfortable.
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He catches the ball just fine but he starts at his waist with the ball and doesn't appear to be strong with his hands which consequently leads to getting the ball stripped. Fortunately he seems to get foul calls on some of those strips and unfortunately he doesn't appear to be a proficient free throw shooter.

I've been saying for some time that a third scorer is needed. Smith is the obvious choice but he has to be able to create his opportunities on the break and with offensive rebounding and so far that isn't happening. They aren't going to run sets that are designed for Smith to get the ball as a primary option.

They ran a set for Ross on Sunday which resulted in a layup. He needs sets where he is an option (sometimes primary) because his tendency is to stand around on offense instead of finding that open spot for his jumper. I do like his ability to handle the ball and get into the lane.
 
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Wth? cbs says we need more than two scorers? well DUH, hell all of us knew that much. Hey! maybe we can all get a job sports writing.
I know that all those other sports writing businesses need us too.
Sign me up .
 
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