Men’s Basketball Wins its Final Home Game – Ohio State Buckeyes
2/24/1999 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
February 24, 1999
Box Score
By RUSTY MILLER
AP Sports Writer
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) – Ohio State coach Jim O’Brien has run out of ways to describe his team’s remarkable turnaround from Big Ten doormat to the second-best team in the league.
“At the risk of keeping on saying the same thing over and over and over again, they just refuse to lose,” O’Brien said Wednesday night after Scoonie Penn scored a career-high 30 points to help the No. 10 Buckeyes beat No. 16 Wisconsin 63-54.
Ohio State (22-6), which was 1-15 and last in the conference last year, improved its league record to 12-3 and locked up the No. 2 seed behind champion Michigan State in next week’s Big Ten tournament.
The Buckeyes closed the game with a 14-3 run to win their seventh straight and ninth in their last 10. Penn, whose previous career high was 27, scored nine points in the run.
“It looked bleak there for a while, but Scoonie just willed us to come back,” O’Brien said.
Penn was 9-of-14 from the field, including a career-best six 3-pointers in nine tries. He was 6-of-6 from the line and added six rebounds and three assists.
“That was just one guy taking over and whipping us,” Wisconsin coach Dick Bennett said.
Wisconsin (21-7, 9-6) outscored Ohio State 34-15 to build a 39-30 lead in the second half, but Ohio State quickly rallied to tie it 42-42 on a free throw by Jon Sanderson.
Penn, whose previous career high was 28, hit two free throws, a 3-pointer and a jumper during the spurt.
Wisconsin took a 51-49 lead on Sean Mason’s free throw with 6:28 remaining, but Ohio State then took command with a 14-0 run.
“We didn’t hang our heads,” Penn said. “I felt it was time for me to step up. I hit a couple of shots and after that the guys followed.”
After Jason Singleton hit a foul shot, Penn made two free throws to give the Buckeyes the lead for good. While Wisconsin continued to misfire from the outside, Redd hit a foul shot and Penn sank a 3-pointer to push the lead to 59-49 with 1:27 left. Bennett said Penn made the difference for Ohio State.
“We simply didn’t have anyone who could play with him,” Bennett said.
Andy Kowske and Mason each scored 13 points for the Badgers, who lost to the Buckeyes in overtime on Jan. 2.
