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12/12/05
12/12/05
Buckeyes in midst of very busy schedule
Monday, December 12, 2005
Bob Baptist
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
The preparation for tonight’s game did not start two nights ago when the Ohio State men’s basketball game returned from Philadelphia with a win over Saint Joseph’s.
It started in October and carried into November, here and there, without the players even knowing it. A play used by Norfolk State, which visits Value City Arena tonight, might have been discreetly folded into a practice drill so that if and when the Buckeyes see it again, they might remember how to react.
"It’s our ‘Maize and Blue session,’ " coach Thad Matta joked yesterday, referring to the extra work the OSU football team puts in throughout the season to get ready for its finale against Michigan.
"We tell our guys we’ve guarded every action a team could run against us. You hope that when they see something in the course of a game that it doesn’t surprise them."
Time to prepare for the next game is not a luxury the Buckeyes have this week. They played Saturday, play host to Norfolk State tonight and Belmont on Wednesday, and face Iowa State on Saturday in Des Moines.
That’s four games in eight days, an uncommonly busy schedule for a team not involved in an early-season event such as the Preseason NIT.
But it’s not a grind the players are sweating. On the contrary, school is out until Jan. 3 and life is good.
"We love this," center Terence Dials said. "We’d rather come in and have games than come in and have practice. I’ll take that any day."
Unfortunately for the players, they’ll have to take more of each.
When school is in session, NCAA rules limit student-athletes to no more than four hours of participation a day and 20 hours a week. They also must be given at least one day off a week.
But when school is not in session, those restrictions are not in force.
"We have unlimited time," Matta said, smiling.
They will spend it doing "a little bit of everything," he said. "Maybe it’s individual film (study), maybe it’s team film (study), maybe it’s two practices in a day."
Before practice yesterday, he planned to cover everything in 2½ hours.
"Depending on how it goes," he said, "we may bring them back in tonight and cover more."
Depending on how it goes?
"Right," Matta said. "That usually gets their attention."
That elicited a smile from Je’Kel Foster, who said he has heard it before.
"He always has a set amount of time he wants us to practice," Foster said, "but if he doesn’t get what he wants, we have to come back or practice longer."
Norfolk State has not played in nine days. But Matta said he did not plan to ease off much on his players, who competed hard for well over two hours Saturday before leaving the Palestra with an 81-74 victory.
"We’ll cut back," Matta said, "but we’re going to cover what we cover because . . . we want to be a better team than we were yesterday. For us, it’s just all about us getting better. Our focus is a lot on us and not so much on the opponent."
The Saint Joseph’s game was a coach’s dream. The Buckeyes showed heart in repelling two comebacks in the second half. They also left much to be desired — and much to work on — with bad decisions, turnovers and spotty rebounding that allowed the Hawks to have hope until the final 30 seconds.
"Whatever it takes, whatever needs to be done, we’re going to do," J.J. Sullinger said. "If that means spending time early, spending time late, we’re going to do it.
"It’s kind of like the NBA season now. It’s all basketball. We really don’t have too much else to focus on."
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