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Ohio State at Iowa, Saturday, 8 PM, ESPN2

LitlBuck

Kevin Warren is an ass
Dan Dakich will be our color analyst for this game :biggrin:

Projected starters for Iowa: G Jordan Bohannon (6-0, Fr., 8.7 ppg); G Isaiah Moss (6-5, Fr., 6.8 ppg); G Peter Jok (6-6, Sr., 21.0 ppg); F Tyler Cook (6-9, Fr., 11.9 ppg); F Cordell Pemsl (6-8, Fr., 9.1 ppg).

Game notes:

* Ohio State and Iowa are two of six Big Ten teams currently with a 3-5 record in league play. There are three others with a 4-4 record. That's nine teams within striking distance of the No. 5 spot in the Big Ten.

"I know this, tomorrow's game turns the halfway point and I think there's still so much that has to be done," Buckeyes coach Thad Matta said. "There's a logjam or whatever, and we'll see how it plays out."

* If you're looking for an edge for Ohio State, it might be as simple as experience. Iowa starts four freshmen, and its consistent starting lineup is the youngest in program history. The Hawkeyes overall are are in the bottom 10 in the country (No. 343 overall) in experience.

Perhaps that's what's led to Iowa's 0-5 record on the road this year. But this is a better team at home. Iowa's coming in on a three-game losing streak, but is 3-1 at home in Big Ten play, including a win over No. 20 Purdue.
Ohio State basketball: Thad Matta breaks down JaQuan Lyle's play

* Iowa guard Peter Jok is the Big Ten's leading scorer at 21.0 points per game, but in the last five games he's seen that mark drop to 15.0 per game.

"He's been a big time scorer as long as I've been in college," Buckeyes forward Jae'Sean Tate said. "We're not gonna change anything we do, but we're gonna try to make him uncomfortable."

* The Buckeyes have lost the rebounding battle in five of their eight Big Ten games, and have lost some close games because of the amount of second-chance points they've allowed. Matta's solution to that is wanting to see the guards get more involved in rebounding.

"Our guards like to leak out, and they've gotta go in there and rebound the ball," Matta said. "We need those guys to lead us in rebounding maybe a game. That's one of the bigger challenges we've had. Our rotations haven't been great, and a lot of times it's the guards not sinking down."
http://www.cleveland.com/osu/2017/01/ohio_state_basketball_vs_iowa_1.html#incart_river_index
 
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I completely forgot about the game on Wed. From reading game threads on a couple boards it sounds like they were the same frustrating team I'm used to even in a win. I'm not terribly optimistic about their chances tonight but I'll be flipping back and forth between them and the hockey game. Just one Buckeye victory tonight and I'll be satisfied.
 
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It was nice of Dakich to sing Matta's praises for all he's accomplished at OSU. Then he went on to accurately point out how badly Matta's team is playing.

Yeah, the stuff he's praising that took place 5 years, or more, ago. He's right, Matta can coach. The problem has been the players he's (not) getting. Coaching will only take you so far, as we continue to see in recent years.
 
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