The No. 12 Ohio State men's basketball team shot 57 percent from the floor and tallied a 21-3 advantage in second-chance points on its way to an 87-71 victory over Morehead State before a crowd of 14,578 on Saturday afternoon (December 13) at Value City Arena.
The Buckeyes, who compete in the Big Ten Conference, improve to 8-1 overall and 8-0 at home. The Eagles, who play in the Ohio Valley Conference, slip to 4-8 overall and 1-5 on the road. OSU has now won 11 straight at home, while MSU has dropped four in a row overall.
"Give Ohio State credit," Head Coach Sean Woods said. "They are a quality team in a very good conference. They are long, athletic and cause problems on both ends of the floor. We normally rebound the basketball very well, but Ohio State had 30 today and held us to 19."
Ohio State led from start to finish. The Buckeyes posted an early 8-0 run and held a 47-28 halftime advantage. OSU's biggest lead of 20 points came with 14:31 to play. Morehead State cut the deficit to 14 points with 12:00 remaining, but Ohio State answered with an 8-2 surge.
Ohio State registered a 30-19 upper hand in rebounding, including 13-6 on the offensive end. The Buckeyes knocked down 30-of-53 from the field, including 6-of-14 (43 percent) from beyond the arc. OSU made 11 more free throws and had 15 more charity tosses than MSU.
"Our guys really battled today," Woods said. "It's hard to come into a hostile environment and defeat the No. 12 team in the nation. Ohio State had 15 more free-throw attempts in this game, and that was one of the differences. They were aggressive and we fouled too much."
Senior Sam Thompson and freshman D'Angelo Russell paced four Buckeyes in double figures with 15 points apiece, while senior Amir Williams and freshman Jae'Sean Tate contributed 12 each. Thompson and Williams both made 5-of-6 from the field, while Tate hit 6-of-10.
Ohio State tallied advantages of 8-1 in blocked shots, 38-26 in paint points and 14-6 in fast-break points.
Morehead State drilled 55 percent (26-of-47) from the floor, which was its best effort against a Division I opponent in 2014-15. The Eagles connected on 44 percent (7-of-16) from long distance. Sophomore Corban Collins led MSU with 22 points on 8-of-11 overall and 6-of-7 from three-point range.
"Corban got in a rhythm early, and we continued to feed him the ball," Woods said. "Our outside shooting was good against Ohio State's zone. Corban has battled through a few injuries this year, but he's capable of helping us moving forward. This is the type of performance we need from him."
Junior Lyonell Gaines recorded 14 points and a team-best five rebounds for Morehead State, while three Eagles were credited with four assists apiece. MSU managed a 35-30 upper hand in bench points and converted on 63 percent (15-of-24) from the floor in the second period.
MSU continues non-conference action on Wednesday (December 17) at Horizon League foe Green Bay. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m., and the game will be televised by the American Sports Network. The Eagles will then host Atlantic Sun Conference opponent Northern Kentucky on Friday (Dec. 19) at 7 p.m.
