Men's Basketball
Buckeye Bubble Bursts in 42 Second Blitz
By John Porentas

(INDIANAPOLIS, In.)

Q: How long does it take to burst a bubble?

A: 42 seconds.

Ohio State (19-13) traveled to Indianapolis with high hopes of getting off the NCAA bubble and into the tournament with a third-straight win over a ranked team. For at least a half it looked like that was a reasonable expectation.

The Buckeyes managed to slug it out with the Spartans (25-7) for a half and earned a 30-30 tie at the intermission in a game that at times looked more like a cage fight than a basketball game. Play was rugged both inside and on the perimeter. Both teams dished out a little, both took a little, and the whistles remained silent. It went both ways. Everybody was OK with it.

The game remained tied at 34 with 14:33 left on the game clock, but over the next 42 seconds things got a little strange, strange enough to put the Buckeyes into a hole they couldn't quite crawl out of against a good team like Michigan State and the Spartans went on to post a 67-60 win and knock the Buckeyes out of the Big Ten tournament.

OSU center Kosta Koufos picked up three personal fouls in 28 seconds and Othello Hunter got called first for a foul that was at best phantom, then for a technical that should be grounds for a lawsuit for false accusation. Hunter's whistles came 42 seconds after Koufos' first personal.

When it was all over the Spartans had gone from tied to up five and the Buckeyes were fighting an uphill battle the rest of the way. The rash of personals also left the second-half foul count at OSU 8, MSU 2. That went a long way toward helping the Spartans get to the line 22 times in the second half where they connected on 16 of them. MSU ended up outscoring the Buckeyes 22-14 from the free throw line.

"We went through that stretch of the five fouls in 42 seconds and we never got recovered from that," OSU Head Coach Thad Matta said.

Players and coaches never, ever comment on officiating, but there was plenty of prodding from reporters following the game. Most players did the politically correct thing and bit their tongues, but there were some hints of incredulity. Koufos didn't comment, but when asked about the officiating in the 42 second period just stared at reporters with a smile that said it for him. Hunter was restrained as well, but was clearly disappointed in the foul and in particular with the technical foul.

"I just looked at him and said 'Daing, c'mon on,"' said Hunter.

"I didn't foul.

"I guess I just showed my emotions. I just looked at him with a pissed off look on my face," Hunter said.

Sometimes you can play over a 42 second interlude like that, but not on this night against the Spartans. MSU was a team on a mission and played like it. Guard Drew Neitzel was spectacular. After a disappointing six-point performance in Columbus last week Neitzel went off for 28 in one of his better performances of the year.

"I don't know why he's been a little more gun-shy this year, but he picked a good time to open it up," said a clearly pleased MSU Head Coach Tom Izzo.

"I tried to be on the attack rather than just sitting back and waiting for open shots," said Neitzel.

The Spartans dominated the glass 41-36 including 18 offensive rebounds. They also took care of the basketball. After turning the ball over 19 times against the OSU press last Sunday they gave it up just nine times this time around.

It was the kind of performance that is tough to beat under any circumstances, but the Buckeyes were right there until that little 42 second blip. After it however they were no longer staring at the Spartans eye-to-eye but were instead nipping at their heels, and against the Spartans on this night they just couldn't get over the hump. They managed to get it down to a one-possession game several times, but always slid back. The difference was that OSU's runs were now making up the lost ground from the 42 second blip, and MSU's runs were maintaining or extending the lead.

The loss leaves the Buckeyes in a very, very iffy position for the NCAA tournament. Izzo, who openly lobbied for the Buckeyes' inclusion in the NCAA tournament after last Sunday's game, did so again in Indianapolis.

"I think that's a team worthy of playing another game, an NCAA game, and I hope they do," he said.

Izzo, however, does not have a vote, and if the Buckeyes are not in the field of 64, they can look back at that mystifying 42 seconds as a key reason for being left out. Matta would not comment on the officiating, but when a reporter suggested that the 42 second blip was extremely difficult to understand given the way the other 39 minutes and 18 seconds were officiated his one-word answer was eloquent.

"Yes," Matta said.

What's certain is that the Buckeyes will be on that bus back to Columbus with a lot of nail biting to ensue between now and the announcement of the field of 64. Their angst will be a result of their own inconsistency at times throughout the season that at times was impossible to explain, and of 42 second of inconsistency by some officials that was equally hard to explain.

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