Men’s Basketball Defeats Alabama – Ohio State Buckeyes
11/15/1998 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 15, 1998
By RUSTY MILLER
AP Sports Writer
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) – Michael Redd scored all but two of his 17 points in the second half and had four points and a steal in the final 1:06 as Ohio State beat Alabama 78-70 Sunday in the dedication game of the new Value City Arena.
The Buckeyes took control with an 8-0 run in the closing minutes before a crowd of 16,763 in the 19,500-seat building.
After the game, team members and coaches placed a game ball, an autographed ball, a Buckeye uniform and a program in a time capsule. Ohio State officially opened the $110 million facility at Friday night’s 89-61 victory over Oakland University.
Scoonie Penn led the Buckeyes with 23 points, while Jason Singleton had 19 to go with Redd’s 17.
Jeremy Hays scored 18 points, Chauncey Jones had 15 and Chris Rollins 11 for the Crimson Tide (0-1).
Ohio State (2-0) trailed 64-62 after Tarik London hit a 15-foot pull-up jumper with 5:55 left.
George Reese hit a free throw to pull the Buckeyes within a point. Then Singleton picked off a pass deflected by teammate Boban Savovic and dribbled the length of the court for a dunk at the 4:51 mark to give Ohio State the lead for good.
Redd flipped in a short jumper after another Alabama turnover, before Neshaun Coleman stole the ball from Rollins. Singleton was fouled and hit two free throws, with Reese closing the run with another foul shot.
Alabama pulled to 70-68 on a foul shot by Jones and a 3-pointer from the top of the key by London.
But Redd drove the right baseline and hit a bank shot in traffic at the 1:06 mark. He then stole the ball from Jones and was fouled with 44.6 seconds left, converting both shots for a 74-68 lead.
Penn hit four free throws down the stretch to put the game away.
Despite the importance of the foul shots they made in the closing minutes, the Buckeyes made only 24-of-41 free throws to Alabama’s 17-of-24. There were seven ties and 20 lead changes as both teams struggled to find a rhythm for most of the game. Penn, who had 17 points, 8 assists and no turnovers in 23 minutes in the opener, had 6 turnovers and only 2 assists against Alabama.
The Tide led by as many as six points in the first half, then overcame a six-point deficit to go ahead 49-47 with an 8-0 run – Jones and Williams each scoring three points – midway through the second half.
Alabama shot 59 percent in the second half and finished at 52 percent (25-of-48), while Ohio State hit half of its 24 second-half shots to end up at 46 percent (25-of-55).
Ohio State had set school records with its 13 3-pointers and 28 attempts against Oakland, but mustered just 4-of-13.
The loss dropped Alabama to 71-14 in its season-openers.
