Ohio State and Auburn to Meet in Basketball for First Time – Ohio State Buckeyes
3/15/1999 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 15, 1999
By HANK LOWENKRON
AP Sports Writer
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Auburn and Ohio State, two teams without much NCAA history in the 90s, have no history against each other.
The two teams will meet for the first time Thursday in Knoxville, Tenn. Top-seeded Auburn (29-3) survived a stiff challenge from Oklahoma State to advance with an 81-74 triumph in Saturday’s opening second-round game at the RCA Dome.
Fourth-seeded Ohio State had a much easier time, holding Detroit scoreless for nearly 10 minutes to open their game and then cruising to a 75-44 victory over the Titans.
Ohio State (25-8) is completing one of the biggest turnarounds in college basketball history, having won only eight games last season. The Buckeyes are in the tournament for the first time since 1992.
Auburn, meanwhile, hasn’t been in the tournament since 1988.
O’Brien can’t be accused of looking past the Titans toward Thursday’s game.
“I didn’t see them for one second. I have obviously a lot of respect for them, they’ve had a great year, but I really don’t know much about them. I’ve spent no time thinking about Auburn,” he said after Saturday’s game, in which the Buckeyes limited Detroit to only 12 points in the first half and 31 percent shooting for the game.
“This is a real nice win for us. I am happy to see our kids be as happy as they are. The scene in our locker room at the end of the game, I won’t soon forget,” he said. “This is a happy bunch of kids, and all I’ve been telling them is they deserve it.”
The Buckeyes will be looking for more effective shooting from Scoonie Penn in Knoxville. He was 7-for-27 in the two games here after bringing a 46 percent mark to the RCA Dome.
However, O’Brien remains confident that the 5-foot-10 Penn, who was voted the Big Ten Player of the Year, will quickly regain his former shooting touch.
“I don’t know about him and all of the shots that he’s missed. I still believe that every time he pulls up to shoot it, I think it’s going in,” O’Brien said. “I have confidence in him. … I just like the idea that he’s involved and he gets his hands on the ball.” “If my shot is not on, I’m not going to be concerned about that,” said Penn, a third-team All-American. “I can be a floor leader or a rebounder like I was today, whatever it takes to win.”
Penn grabbed a career-high 12 rebounds, helping the Buckeyes outrebound Detroit 51-25. John Sanderson led Ohio State with 15.
Meanwhile, O’ Brien will have to decide how he’ll use Brian Brown. O’Brien put Brown in the starting lineup for both tournament games after not giving him a start all season. The reason was to make life tough for the other team’s leader.
Brown made life miserable for Aubrey Reese of Murray State in the opener and then he tormented Detroit’s Jermaine Jackson on Saturday.
Brown said starting makes no difference to him.
“I just want to go out and play good, hard defense,” said Brown.
That’s what he plans to do against Auburn, a team that dominated its opponents consistently and won 26 games by double-digit figures.
“Auburn is a good team and they are real physical,” Brown said. “If we play as good as we played tonight (Saturday), we could probably beat them.
“The thing about Brian is he may have some of the quickest feet I have ever seen on defense,” Penn said. “You may think you’re by him, then the next thing you know, he has caught up to you and turned you.
“I know, because he does it every day to me at practice.”
Thursday, he may be asked to do it against Auburn’s Scott Pohlman, who had a career-high 28 points in Saturday’s victory, or point guard Doc Robinson.
The Tigers will challenge the Buckeyes with a balanced offense that features four starters averaging in double figures. And the Buckeyes will also have to keep an eye out for 7-foot center Mamadou N’diaye, who in two seasons has topped the school record for blocks in a career set by Charles Barkley.
