Men's Basketball
Buckeyes Overpower Oilers in Season's First Exhibition
By John Porentas

Thad Matta previewed his second OSU basketball team on Sunday with an exhibition contest against Division II powerhouse Findlay University. The Buckeyes came away with a relatively easy 83-53 win, and the notion that they have a lot of work to do in the next two weeks before their season opener, particularly in the area of team effort.

"I was a little bit shocked with the lack of intensity that we came out with. I didn't think that we were competing at the level that I thought we would going into this game," said Matta.

The Buckeyes led throughout the contest, but after an opening salvo that took them to a 20-6 lead, OSU watched the lead erode to 21-17 with nine minutes to go in the half.

"The first half we didn't play hard," said senior guard J. J. Sullinger.

"I don't think we got one loose ball. They were on the floor, they out-toughed us in the first half. We said that at half time. You've got to give credit to Findlay. Findlay played hard, they played extremely hard and they outworked us," Sullinger said.

The Buckeyes held a 40-32 advantage at the half, mostly on the strength of 15 first-half points by senior center Terence Dials. Dials dominated down low, but OSU's offense could not generate much in the way of easy baskets. OSU scored just two points off fast breaks in the first half, a fact that bothered Matta.

"I've always wanted to get up and down and go," said Matta.

"Even when we ran and Findlay was able to set their defense we had that transition period where it was too slow. That's something we've worked on and that's why I was a little bit stymied with what we were doing," Matta said.

The second half was a bit of a different story. OSU picked up the defensive intensity and was able to generate 14 points off fast breaks after the intermission.

"We got a lot more run outs because we played better defense," said Dials.

"It all starts at the defensive end. You can't get fast break points unless you get defensive stops. That was our emphasis in the second half, playing a little better defense, get a few more stops, and we could run. That's our goal this year, to be a running team, and in the second half we saw glimpses of what we can do."

Matta was disappointed in OSU's first half production, and was also concerned by the lack of production from the point guard position. The Buckeyes got very little penetration from its ball handlers, making things difficult for them in half-court situations.

"That's why I was thrown today, because we've been very good at that," said Matta.

"For the first three weeks I was very pleased with what we were doing. We weren't attacking enough the way I wanted to with the ball because we've worked how to play off the penetration and it wasn't there enough."

Dials led all scorers with 22 points, and Ron Lewis had a good second half to finish with 20 after netting just six in the first half. J. J. Sullinger also reached double figures with 10 points.

"I thought Ron did a nice job of letting the game come to him. He picked up intensity in the second half and ended up with three steals and got a little more active. Hopefully he can continue to score the ball like that. He is explosive. He's able to get down there and score around the basket. Those are areas we need to improve," said Matta.

"I though James (Sullinger) today was possibly the MVP for our team because he was the one guy I thought was giving everything he had. It's funny, but that's the way he's been practicing, and to see that carry over, I think he now understands that the harder he plays, the better things are going to happen for him," Matta said.

Findlay Head Coach Ron Neikamp said his team had no answer for Dials in the paint, and like Matta, was impressed with Sullinger's game as well.

"The other player that really impressed me was J. J. Sullinger. He's so strong on the glass, he intimidates shots, anytime anyone tries to get in the gaps with the seams offensively he's there. He's a veteran guy, he's been around. He's a real physical presence on the floor," said Neikamp.

OSU enters the season with a focus on improving its rebounding and did outrebound Findlay 44-25, but Matta attributed most of that to the fact that the Buckeyes were able to simply out-athlete the Oilers.

"I think we got some fools gold tonight with rebounding, because we weren't blocking out at the level we're going to need to block out," said Matta.

"We were able in spots to just go up side-by-side and get the ball. I know we're not going to be able to do that so we're going to continue to hammer that home. I know as shots were going up I was looking at guys and we weren't making the contact at every position."

A crowd of 7,282 was on hand for the exhibition.

Box Score

Photo Gallery

Notes

* The Buckeye starting lineup against Findlay included Je'Kell Foster, Matt Sylvester, Terence Dials, J. J. Sullinger and Ron Lewis. The lone real surprise was the absence of Jamar Butler on the floor for the opening tip.

"I think that we went with more of the group that was a veteran group. We went off those guys that we felt off practice statistically, we chart everything we do, and those guys were at the top of the ladder," said Matta.

* Freshman Brayden Bell had a nice first outing as a Buckeye. Bell his his first field goal attempt, a three pointer, and also earned three assists in the game. Bell finished with eight points on two threes and a field goal.

* Matta substituted early and often in the game, trying out different combinations throughout the contest. All ten roster players got double-digit minutes ranging from 10 for Bell to 24 for Lewis and Foster.

* J. J. Sullinger ended the game with a double-double on the strength of 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Return to O-Zone Column and and Features

Return to O-Zone Front Page