Men’s Basketball Set To Open Up Big Ten Play At Purdue – Ohio State Buckeyes
1/1/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 1, 2002
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Opponent Purdue
Site Mackey Arena (14,123)
Game Time 7 p.m. (EST)
TV ESPN Plus
Local TV WBNS TV 10
TV Talent Mike Gleason (Play-by-Play), Bob Ford (Color)
Radio OSU Radio Network (64 stations)
Local Radio WBNS FM-97.1 AM-1460
Radio Talent Paul Keels (P-by-P), Ron Stokes (Color)
Ohio State Buckeyes
Probable Starters (8-2, 0-0)
G 4 – Brent Darby, 6-1, Jr.
G 21 – Boban Savovic, 6-5, Sr.
G 13 – Brian Brown, 6-4, Sr.
C 14 – Velimir Radinovic, 7-0, So.
F 33 – Zach Williams, 6-7, So.
Purdue Boilermakers
Probable Starters (8-6, 0-0)
G 11 – Austin Parkinson, 6-0, So.
G 00 – Willie Deane, 6-1, Jr.
C 54 – John Allison, 6-10, Sr.
F 33 – Darmetreis Kilgore, 6-5, Jr.
F 31 – Rodney Smith, 6-6, Sr.
Brown Reaches 1,000 Career Points
Ohio State senior guard Brian Brown reached the 1,000-point mark in his Buckeye career against UNC-Greensboro. Brown became the 40th player in Ohio State history to reach 1,000 points. He has scored 1,001 points in 107 career games for an average of 9.4 points a contest. He scored 10 points vs. UNCG. He needs seven points to pass Chris Jent (1989-92), who is 39th all-time in career scoring at Ohio State with 1,007 points.
Darby, Connolly Lead OSU vs. Purdue
Ohio State junior guard Brent Darby is the leading score for the Buckeyes in games vs. Purdue. Darby is averaging 10.5 points in a pair of meetings against the Boilermakers. He has connected on 50 percent of his shots from the field (7-14) and from 3-point range (4-8). Darby’s scoring average vs. Purdue is the highest he has vs. any Big Ten team. He averages 9.3 points in three career games against Illinois. Sean Connolly, who played one game vs. the Boilermakers as a freshman at Providence, is averaging 9.0 points in two games vs. Purdue. He also is OSU’s top rebounder in games vs. the Boilers. He averages 5.5 boards.
OSU on 5-Game Big Ten Road Win Streak
Ohio State started the Big Ten season with a 4-5 record last year before going on a seven-game win streak to finish third with an 11-5 record. Five the last seven victories in the conference were on the road. After dropping a home game to Indiana (70-67, Jan. 31, 2001), the Buckeyes rattled off Big Ten road wins over Minnesota, Iowa, Purdue, Northwestern and Penn State and a pair of home victories over Wisconsin and Illinois.
Buckeyes Reach 1,000,000 at VCA
In the fourth season of play in Value City Arena, the Buckeye men’s basketball team has drawn an average of 17,369 per game (58 gms.) for a total of 1,007,375.
Purdue Owns Edge in Series
Ohio State and Purdue have met 145 times in the all-time series with the Boilermakers owning the series edge 77-68. The Buckeyes have narrowed the advantage of late with four-consecutive victories. Ohio State is 22-51 in West Lafayette, including wins in the last two trips. The Buckeyes nipped Purdue 65-64 last year in Mackey Arena on a putback at the buzzer by Will Dudley.
Deane Leads Four in Double Digits
Junior guard Willie Deane leads Purdue with a scoring average of 17.2 points per game. Senior Maynard Lewis follows with 11.4 ppg. Senior John Allison (10.9 ppg.) and junior transfer Darmetrias Kilgore (10.0 ppg.) round out the top scorers for the Boilermakers. Allison is the team leader with 6.4 rebounds per game.
Purdue Opens Big Ten Play 8-6
Purdue dropped Robert Morris 87-53 in the final tuneup before Big Ten Conference play to improve to 8-6 overall. The win snapped a two-game losing streak to Texas A&M and Cincinnati at the Las Vegas Classic.
Keady Dean of Big Ten Coaches
Purdue head coach Gene Keady is in his 24th season as a collegiate head coach. He has spent the last 22 seasons at Purdue. His teams have compiled a career record of 502-231, which includes a 464-212 mark at Purdue, for the 1958 graduate of Kansas State.
Buckeyes Limit Foes’ Long Range Shooting
Six of the 10 teams Ohio State has played this season have been held at or below 25 percent shooting from 3-point range. None of the six connected on more than four 3-pointers. Four opponents have not reached 17 percent shooting from long range.
Opponent Pct. 3FG-A Winthrop 16.7 3-18 N.C. State 14.8 4-27 UNC-Wilmington 15.4 2-13 Santa Clara 25.0 4-16 at Louisville 14.3 4-28 Eastern Illinois 20.0 3-15
O’Brien 31-3 in VCA vs. Non-Conference Foes
In four seasons at Value City Arena, Jim O’Brien and the Buckeyes have a combined record of 31-3 (.912) against non-conference opponents. Ohio State was 7-0 in 1998-99, 8-1 in 1999-00 and 8-1 in 2000-01 in non-Big Ten home games. The Buckeyes are 8-1 at home this year. Home losses have come to Notre Dame (59-57) in the 1999 Preseason NIT (11/16), Kansas (69-68) Dec. 23, 2000 and Pittsburgh Dec. 19, 2001 (62-55). O’Brien is 38-5 in non-conference home games in five seasons at Ohio State, which includes a 7-2 record his first season at St. John Arena. The Buckeyes are 20-4 (.833) in Big Ten play at home in VCA.
Savovic, Brown Climbing 3-point Chart
Boban Savovic is ninth on the Top 10 list for career 3-pointers made with 87. He has connected on 22-of-43 3-point shots this season for a shooting percentage of 51.2 percent. Savovic passed Jim Jackson (1990-92), who finished his career with 82 treys. Brian Brown, who started the season 10th all-time, is just outside the Top 10 with 79. He has made 6-of-25 on the season (.240). Brent Darby could crack the Top 10 this season as well. He has made 69-of-185 (.372) for his OSU career. Sean Connolly has made 119-of-300 career 3-pointers, which includes a 64-of-165 (.388) long range shooting effort as a freshman at Providence. At Ohio State, Connolly had connected on 55-of-135 treys (.407).
Brown Reaches 300 Assists, Moves in Top 10
Brian Brown passed former teammate Scoonie Penn on the Ohio State career assists list with five against IUPUI. Brown is now 10th all-time with 303. Carter Scott (1978-81) is ninth with 326.
Noting the Win Over UNC-Greensboro
The Buckeyes are 51-7 in Value City Arena since it opened forthe 1998-99 season. OSU is 31-3 against non-conference opponentsand 20-4 in Big Ten games. With his 10-point performance BrianBrown topped the 1,000-point mark. He scored his 1,000th point at6:26 mark of the second half on an offensive put back. He is the40th Ohio State player to reach 1,000 points. With 15 points,Terence Dials set a career high. His previous high was sevenagainst Santa Clara earlier this season (Dec. 12). It marks thefirst time in his Buckeye career that he has scored double figuresin a game. On the season, he is 19-27 from the field for a shootingpercentage of .704. Sean Connolly kept the 3-point streak alivewith his field goal at the 3:05 mark in the first half. Ohio Statehas made at least one 3-point basket in 291-consecutive games. OhioState went into halftime with a 39-31 lead, with 22 of those pointscoming from the bench. The Buckeyes opened the first 10:54 of thesecond half on a 26-9 run behind 10 points from Brent Darby andfive from Dials. Boban Savovic finished the game with a season-highsix assists. He has had five or more assists in seven of the 10games. Ohio State shot a season-high .638 (37-58) from the field inthe game against UNC-Greensboro. The Buckeyes have shot over .500from the field in 6-of-10 games this season. The .638 tied theValue City Arena record for shooting percentage. The Buckeyes shot37-58 against Tennessee-Martin (12/14/98). The Buckeyes turned theball over nine times, marking the fewest turnovers in a game thisseason. The Ohio State defense caused UNC-Greensboro to turn theball over 23 times. OSU has forced 163 turnovers on the season. All13 players that dressed for Ohio State saw playing time.
Brown Holds Team Lead in Scoring
Senior Brian Brown owns the team lead in scoring following an 10-point effort against UNC-Greensboro. He tops four Buckeyes in double digits in a well-balanced offensive attack. Brown is averaging 13.7 points per game followed by Boban Savovic with 11.9. Brent Darby (11.1 ppg.) is just ahead of sophomore Zach Williams (10.3).
Ohio State Tops Big Ten in Several Areas
Ohio State is among the top two Big Ten teams in several league statistical categories. The Buckeyes are No. 1 in scoring margin (+16.7), 3-point field goal percentage defense (.229) and rebounding defense (29.8). Ohio State is No. 2 in scoring defense (57.6), field goal percentage (.488), 3-point field goal percentage (.380), rebounding margin (+7.1) and assists (16.56).
Value City Arena Serves Buckeyes Well
Ohio State has played 58 home games at Value City Arena since the facility opened for the 1998-99 season. Those fans have been instrumental in the Buckeyes’ 51-7 (.879) home record at Value City Arena.
Buckeyes Enter 103rd Season
Ohio State has a record of 81-22 (.786) in season-opening games over the 103 years of men’s basketball at OSU. The Buckeyes are 85-18 (.825) in home openers and 49-53 (.480) in road openers. Ohio State did not play a road game in 1900-01. This is the 90th season of Big Ten membership in men’s basketball for the Buckeyes. Ohio State is 49-40 (.551) in conference openers, 60-29 (.674) in league home openers and 33-56 (.371) in the first road game of the season in Big Ten play.
Foul Line Familiar, Comfortable for Connolly
Junior Sean Connolly has made 84 percent (111-132) of his foul shots in three seasons of college basketball. He was 60-of-70 (.857) as a freshman at Providence in 1998-99. As a Buckeye sophomore last year, he drilled 42-of-50 free throws (.840) and was a remarkable 27-of-28 (.964) in Big Ten games. He had a stretch of 25-consecutive made foul shots in the conference season a year ago. He is 9-of-12 from the line this season.
Senior Class Continues Successful Run
Ohio State seniors Brian Brown, Will Dudley and Boban Savovic have been a part of three of the more successful seasons in Ohio State history. As freshmen, the trio helped the squad reach the 1999 Final Four. As sophomores, they were a part of a Big Ten Championship team and another trip to the NCAA tournament. As juniors, they were instrumental in taking Ohio State to its third-consecutive NCAA tournament appearance and 20-win season. Combined, these seniors have been a part of 78 wins (29 defeats), three NCAA tournaments, three 20-win seasons, the 1999 Final Four and the 2000 Big Ten Co-Championship. Another senior, Tim Martin, did not play for OSU until the 2000-01 season. Martin, a transfer from Kent State, sat out the 1999-00 season to satisfy NCAA transfer rules.
A 4th-consecutive NCAA trip, 20-win season?
The Buckeyes have been to 21 NCAA Tournaments in the history of the program, including the past three. No Ohio State coach has ever led four-consecutive teams to the NCAA Tournament. The Buckeyes have made three-consecutive trips four times (1944-46, 1960-62, 1990-92 and 1999-01). Ohio State also has a streak of three-consecutive 20-win seasons. The only time the program enjoyed four-consecutive 20-win campaigns occurred from 1960-63 with 25, 27, 26 and 20 wins, respectively. Ohio State won the national championship in 1960 and won four of five-consecutive Big Ten titles during that span.
Summer in Europe
Ohio State spent 16 days (Aug. 20-Sept. 4) traveling through Italy, Switzerland, France and The Netherlands in preparation for the 2001-02 season. Ohio State won all six contests with the guards leading the way. Senior Boban Savovic averaged 17.5 points (105 total) to lead all scorers. Senior Brian Brown and junior Brent Darby each scored 96 points for 16.0 averages. Sean Connolly scored 10.5 points a contest and was the only Buckeye to connect on at least one 3-pointer in each of the six games. Sophomore Zach Williams registered a pair of double-doubles and led the Buckeyes with 7.3 rebounds a game.
Buckeyes to Play in 2003 Maui Invitational
The Maui Invitational will draw attractive fields for the following three seasons. Chaminade, the NCAA Division II school from Honolulu, will serve as host as it has every year since 1984. The 2002 field includes: Arizona State, Gonzaga, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Utah and Virginia. The 2003 participants are: California, Dayton, Florida State, Hawaii, Ohio State, San Diego State and Villanova. The 2004 field, which could be subject to change pending NCAA legislation regarding early season tournaments, is: Iowa, Louisville, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Tennessee, Texas and Stanford.
Ohio State Successful on This Date in History
Jan. 2 has been a great day for Ohio State to play over the years. The Buckeyes are 16-3 all-time on this date, which includes a streak of 11-consecutive wins on this date, the last two on the road over Big Ten squads.
Ohio State Among Attendance Leaders
The Buckeyes have been among the Top 7 teams nationally in average home attendance in each of the last three years. Ohio State averaged 17,540 fans in 2000-01 to rank No. 4, its highest ranking in team history. The Buckeyes have been a draw on the road as well. Ohio State has been among the Top 10 in NCAA all-games attendance the last three seasons, including a No. 2 ranking in 1999.
