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SG JJ Sullinger (Official Thread)

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1/9/2011 - OSU vs Minnesota - Michael Redd (left) and J.J. Sullinger were two of the former captains honored during half time.
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Friday, January 28th, 2011
JJ Sullinger Q + A
On Ohio State basketball, and his youngest brother Jared.
by Brendan Bowers / @StepienRules

Jared Sullinger was ten years old when he first watched his oldest brother JJ take the floor wearing the Scarlet and Gray of their hometown Ohio State hoops squad. Eight years later, it?s the little kid who used to follow JJ around from theplayground to the hardwood who?s now put his name on college basketball?s marquee wearing those same colors.

JJ and the rest of the Sullinger family are front row for the show these days in Columbus, and they couldn?t be more proud. Coming off Ohio State?s recent beat down of 12th ranked Purdue, 87-64, I had a chance to catch up with the former Buckeye and talk all about it.

SLAM: You started your college career at Arkansas before playing your final three seasons (2003-06) as a Buckeye at Ohio State, what went into your decision to come home to Columbus back then?

JJ: When I originally chose and went to Arkansas, Nolan Richardson was a big part of that reason. When he got fired, I just felt like that wasn?t the place for me anymore, and decided to look elsewhere.

In my heart I always was a Buckeye, and I even wore the Block O at Arkansas. Most people thought it was the number zero on my jersey, but I wore the block O to represent Ohio.

So when Jim O?Brien offered me a scholarship to come back home, I didn?t even second guess it, I never thought twice about it and the rest is history.

SLAM: How would you describe your overall experience at Ohio State, and then eventually playing for Thad Matta specifically?

JJ: My overall experience at Ohio State is exactly what everyone has experienced, it was great, it was awesome. I enjoyed myself, made lifelong friends, and got to play some good basketball over the years.

I didn?t have the greatest experience with the first coaching staff, but when Coach Matta came in he absolutely resurrected the dead to be honest. He did wonders, he made me a believer, and for that I?ll always be appreciative.

SLAM: Would you say your decision to come back home to play three seasons in Columbus had an impact on Jared?s development, that maybe he wouldn?t have had the opportunity to experience had you played out your career down in the SEC as a Razorback?

JJ: Absolutely. When I was at OSU, I was so close to home Jared was always in the gym with me. He?d always come to practice with me, during the summer months he?d come work out with me, open gyms he was always there, and during the summer time pros would come back and play too. So Jared would be there with me playing against professionals and college athletes since he was about 13 or 14 years old, and that was absolutely a plus for him.

Then as far as me being at Ohio State and him seeing his oldest brother suit up every night in the Scarlet and Gray, that had an impact too. He idolized me growing up, we?re ten years apart so when I was 22 he was only 12 years old, and that was definitely something he was able to really see and know he wanted to be a part of from a young age.

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http://www.slamonline.com/online/college-hs/college/2011/01/jj-sullinger-q-a/
 
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Lucas wasn't the only alumnus who said he has faith in this squad. J.J. Sullinger, another former Buckeye basketball player and older brother of freshman forward Jared Sullinger, also weighed in on this team's chances.

"We have so many weapons. People talk all the time about how we don't have any depth. We absolutely have depth," J.J. said. "We have confidence in every Buckeye that goes into the game. If we play defense and rebound well, nobody's going to beat us."

J.J. had some advice for the younger guys, including Jared and freshman forward Deshaun Thomas, who have never played in the NCAA Tournament before.

"It's back to the drawing board. It's a new season and a different kind of commitment," J.J. said. "It's win or go home. They're celebrating right now, but once you step out of the shower it's a brand new season."

For their part, even the young Buckeyes seem to understand what's at stake, including being the No. 1 overall seed.

"It's something special," Sullinger said. "At the same time we still have a lot of work to do so it doesn't stop here. ? You just have to take it one game at a time and focus on your opponent."
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http://www.thelantern.com/sports/jerry-lucas-ohio-state-has-good-shot-at-winning-title-1.2106063

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Bob Hunter commentary: Brother J.J. showed Sullinger the way to OSU
Sunday, March 20, 2011
The Columbus Dispatch

CLEVELAND - Five years ago this weekend, the season ended suddenly for No. 6 Ohio State in a 70-52 loss to Georgetown in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

No one could know at the time what a positive day it was for the program, least of all J.J. Sullinger.

"It was a devastating loss," said Sullinger, a senior that season. "I don't want to say it was the lowest point in my life, but it was close."

It was an important moment, though, for second-year coach Thad Matta. J.J. met his little brother, Jared - then an eighth-grader and now the Buckeyes' star freshman forward - afterward on the court in the University of Dayton Arena.

"We met at half-court and (J.J.) was crying," Jared said. "He said, 'If Ohio State offers you, take it, because there's no coach like coach Matta.' That was kind of an emotional reason why I came here. It's my big brother and I always looked up to him, so why not follow his footsteps? So when (he) told me to go to Ohio State my mind was kind of made up at that point."

It's amazing the way past and present are intertwined as Jared's No. 1 Buckeyes prepare to play a third-round game today against George Mason. George Mason was also in Dayton that year, starting its Cinderella run to the Final Four.

Jared watched the Patriots upset North Carolina there. He doesn't want to see them upset his Buckeyes here. On Friday, before Ohio State played Texas-San Antonio, Jared received a text message from J.J., reminding him of the meeting.

"I told you if you came to State you would be in this position," part of the text read.

But J.J. said that his words weren't part of a bigger plan.

"No one thought that was going to be the last time I put on an Ohio State uniform," he said. "It wasn't like I had thought about it. The words just kind of flew out of my mouth. But I meant what I said. I felt strongly about that because I felt coach Matta and his staff would do a lot for him."

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http://www.dispatch.com/live/conten...-showed-sullinger-the-way-to-osu.html?sid=101

Brothers talk, and Ohio State is beneficiary
By Mike Popovich
CantonRep.com staff writer
Posted Mar 20, 2011

CLEVELAND —

Jared Sullinger saw his older brother J.J. in tears five years ago Saturday.

The elder Sullinger had just played his final game for Ohio State. The Buckeyes, the No. 2 seed in their region, were upset by Georgetown in the second round of the NCAA tournament. A postseason filled with so much promise suddenly was over.

When Jared consoled J.J., he heard his older brother say something that helped shape Ohio State into a national title contender this season. J.J. wanted Jared to be a Buckeye.

“If your big brother came up to you said ‘… I want you to go wherever,’ and it’s your big brother you always looked up to, why not follow in his footsteps?” Jared said. “When my brother told me to go to Ohio State, I was pretty much ‘OK.’ My mind was made up at that point.”

Sullinger is a big reason why the Buckeyes are a national title contender this season. He was the runaway winner for Big Ten Freshman of the Year and is a first-team All-America candidate.

Jared did not hesitate sharing a message he received from J.J. on his Blackberry before Friday’s second-round game against Texas-San Antonio. It was a reminder of their conversation after the Georgetown loss.

“Five years ago, you met me at half court, and I was crying,” Sullinger read. “We lost. I told you if you came to State, you’ll be in this position. Ball out. I love you. Big brother.”

“I kind of took it in perspective,” Sullinger later said. “Five years ago, he really did lose.”

J.J. Sullinger’s final game with the Buckeyes completed Thad Matta’s second season as Ohio State’s head coach. After the team completed a one-year ban from playing in the NCAA tournament for recruiting violations, Matta led the Buckeyes back to the tournament for the first time in four seasons.

Matta thinks J.J. — James as he calls him — has a tremendous influence on Jared. J.J. telling Jared to go to Ohio State was a strong endorsement for Matta’s program.

“For James to feel that way after playing for us, I’m extremely grateful to him for telling him that and even more grateful to Jared for listening,” Matta said.

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http://www.cantonrep.com/sports/x698061980/Brothers-talk-and-Ohio-State-is-beneficiary
 
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J.J. Sullinger is scheduled to do radio color commentary for the first of the four state title games at Value City Arena Saturday morning. If Northland wins Friday, it will play again Saturday at 8:30 p.m. for the state title in what certainly would be Satch Sullinger's final game on the bench. A starting time for a potential Ohio State regional final Sunday hasn't been released, but tipoff would probably in the late afternoon.
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http://www.foxsportsohio.com/03/22/...end-m/landing.html?blockID=445825&feedID=3724
 
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