Men’s Basketball Continues Road Trip, Heads To Northwestern – Ohio State Buckeyes
1/11/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 11, 2002
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Opponent Northwestern
Site Welsh-Ryan Arena (8,117)
Game Time 8 p.m. (EST)
TV ESPN Plus
Local TV WBNS TV 10
TV Talent Trey Bender (Play-by-Play), Bill Hosket (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 (11-2, 2-0)
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.
Northwestern Wildcats
Probable Starters (8-5, 0-2)
G 25 – Jitim Young, 6-2, So.
G 23 – Drew Long, 6-2, So.
C 55 – Aaron Jennings, 6-11, Jr.
F 33 – Tavaras Hardy, 6-8, Sr.
F 3 – Winston Blake, 6-5, Jr.
Wildcats Play Host to Ohio State
Ohio State enters its road matchup with Northwestern with an overall record of 11-2 and a 2-0 Big Ten mark after league-opening wins over Purdue and No. 9 Iowa. Northwestern enters with an overall mark of 8-5. The Wildcats are 0-2 in the league with losses to Indiana and Iowa. The Buckeyes are looking for a 3-0 start in the Big Ten for just the third time in the last decade. The Buckeyes opened the 1991-92 season 3-0 before a loss to Indiana. The 1998-99 team opened 3-0 with wins over Penn State, Wisconsin and Indiana before losing to Iowa.
Buckeyes Vie for Win No. 100 vs. Wildcats
Ohio State owns the series lead over Northwestern 99-44 with a 40-30 advantage in Evanston. The Buckeyes are 59-14 in Columbus vs. the Wildcats. The Buckeyes have won the last five meetings with Northwestern, including the last meeting between the two teams in Evanston, a 69-57 Buckeye victory. Northwestern’s last win in the series was on its home court, a 70-62 triumph Feb. 21, 1998. Ohio State has won the last 22 games played in Columbus, including all three games played in Value City Arena. Northwestern last won in Columbus Feb. 24, 1977 (83-72).
Three in Double Figures for Wildcats
Northwestern is led by Jitim Young’s 15.5 points a game. He is followed by Winston Blake’s 13.5 ppg. and Tavaras Hardy’s 11.0 ppg. Hardy also leads the Wildcats with 7.1 rebounds a game. Northwestern has used the 3-point shot in building an 8-5 record. The Wildcats have made 108-of-289 treys on the season for a shooting percentage of .374. Ohio State is 69-of-178 (.388) from long range. Buckeye opponents are shooting just 27.7 percent from 3-point range on the season (65-235). Both teams have held opponents to 767 points on the season for an average of 59 points a game. The Buckeyes average 74.9 points (974 total) while Northwestern has scored 821 points for an average of 63.2 points.
The Buckeyes vs. Northwestern
No Ohio State player averages double figure scoring in games against the Northwestern. Junior Sean Connolly is averaging 9.5 points in two career games vs. the Wildcats. Brian Brown has a 9.0 ppg. average in five meetings followed by Brent Darby’s 8.5 points a game in four career meetings. Zach Williams is the leading rebounder vs. NU with 4.0 rebounds per game in two career meetings. Will Dudley has made 11-of-16 career shots (.689) vs. NU. Connolly (5-5), Darby (5-5) and Brown (12-12) are perfect from the foul line against the Wildcats.
Wildcats Start 7-0
Northwestern started the season on a 7-game win streak with victories over Virginia Commonwealth, East Carolina, San Jose State, Chicago State, Florida State, Kansas State, Florida A&M and Liberty. The Wildcats are 1-4 in their last five games with a win over Louisiana-Lafayette and losses to Fordham, Arizona State, Indiana and Iowa.
Carmody in Year Two at Northwestern
Northwestern head coach Bill Carmody is in his second year as the head coach in Evanston. He has a record of 19-24 at Northwestern and a career mark of 111-49, which includes a record of 92-25 (.786) as head coach of the Princeton Tigers. He spent 18 seasons in all at the Ivy League institution before making the move to the Big Ten.
Ohio State Mourns Loss of Legend
Fred Taylor, who walked the basketball sidelines at Ohio State for 18 seasons as head coach, died Sunday in Columbus. Taylor, 77, guided the Buckeyes to three-consecutive NCAA championship games from 1960-62, winning the title in 1960 with a 75-55 win over California. His teams produced seven Big Ten championships and played in four NCAA Final Fours. He served as head coach from 1958-76, compiling a record of 297-158. His .653 winning percentage is the highest in Ohio State history for coaches with more than two seasons. The Buckeyes went 78-6 from 1960-62 with a lineup that featured Jerry Lucas and John Havlicek. Bob Knight, head coach at Texas Tech, also played on that team in a reserve role.
Savovic Earns Big Ten Award
Boban Savovic averaged 16 points and six assists per game last week as the Buckeyes improved to 10-2 overall and 2-0 in Big Ten play. The senior guard shot 55 percent from the field (11-20) and hit 6-of-12 3-point attempts. Savovic began conference play with a team-best 18 points in a road victory at Purdue, hitting 7-11 from the field (.636) and 3-5 from long range. He then guided OSU to a convincing home win over No. 9 Iowa, 72-62, by nearly recording a double-double. Savovic scored 14 points, including three treys, and added a career-best nine assists in the win. For the year, he leads the team in assists (54) and steals (18) and ranks second in scoring at 12.6 points per contest. Savovic earns his first Big Ten player of the week laurel and the first for a Buckeye this season.
Brown Climbs Scoring Chart
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 1,051 points in 110 career games for an average of 9.6 points a contest. He scored 17 in the most recent outing against Massachusetts to climb to the No. 37 in career scoring all time at Ohio State. He passed Bill Andreas (1973-75) with his offensive outing against the Minutemen. He needs five points to pass Ken Johnson (1998-01) and Jamie Skelton (1991-94). Johnson and Skelton are tied for 35th with 1,055 career points.
OSU on 6-Game Big Ten Road Win Streak
Ohio State started the Big Ten season with a 4-5 record in 2000-01 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. Ohio State opened the 2002 conference season with a road win at Purdue, 79-71, to extend the conference road winning streak to six games.
O’Brien 21-4 in VCA vs. Conference Foes
In four seasons at Value City Arena, Jim O’Brien and the Buckeyes have a combined record of 21-4 (.840) in Big Ten play at home in VCA. Indiana, Iowa (2) and Penn State are the only Big Ten teams with victories at VCA. The Buckeyes are 31-3 (.912) against non-conference opponents at VCA. 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 9-1 at home this year. Home losses at VCA 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.
Savovic, Brown Climbing 3-point Chart
Boban Savovic is eighth on the Top 10 list for career 3-pointers made with 96. He has connected on 31-of-61 3-point shots this season for a shooting percentage of 50.8 percent. Savovic passed Damon Stringer (1996-97), who finished his career with 89 treys, with a 3-of-5 effort at Purdue (1/2/02). Brian Brown, who started the season 10th all-time, is just outside the Top 10 with 81 3-pointers. He has made 8-of-32 on the season (.250). Brent Darby could crack the Top 10 this season as well. He has made 71-of-191 (.372) for his OSU career. Sean Connolly has made 121-of-307 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 57-of-142 treys (.401).
Ohio State in RPI Top 20
With five-consecutive victories and an overall record of 11-2, Ohio State has moved into the Top 20 in the Rating Percentage Index, a formula used to help select teams to the NCAA tournament. The Buckeyes are No. 11 in the most recent RPI (1/10/02) with a strength of schedule rated at No. 28. Ohio State is the second among Big Ten teams in the RPI behind No. 9 Illinois, which has a No. 10 strength of schedule.
Buckeyes Move Up in Rankings
Ohio State has played or will face seven teams that are ranked or receiving votes in the most recent Associated Press Top 25 Poll. Ohio State, with a 10-2 record and a recent win over then-No. 9 Iowa, received 51 votes for Top 25 consideration and is currently rated as the No. 31 team nationally. Currently rated teams on the OSU schedule include No. 9 Illinois, No. 13 Iowa, No. 23 Pittsburgh, No. 25 Michigan State, No. 27 N.C. State, No. 37 Louisville and No. 50 Indiana.
Buckeyes Limit Foes’ Long Range Shooting
Nine of the 13 teams Ohio State has played this season have been held below 30 percent shooting from 3-point range. 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 Pittsburgh 26.3 5-19 Eastern Illinois 20.0 3-15 UNC-Greensboro 26.7 4-15 Massachusetts 29.4 5-17
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 311. Carter Scott (1978-81) is ninth with 326.
Noting the Win over UMass
With his 17-point performance Brian Brown has 1,051 points inhis Ohio State career. He moves into the No. 36 spot for careerscoring leaders. Freshman forward Terence Dials connected on allthree of his shots from the field. He is not shooting 77 percentfrom the field on the season (30-39). Boban Savovic kept the3-point streak alive with his field goal at the 15:13 mark in thefirst half. Ohio State has made at least one 3-point basket in294-consecutive games. Ohio State led 28-18 at the half. TheBuckeyes are 10-1 in games in which they lead after the first 20minutes. Ohio State also is 10-0 when scoring 70 or more points,11-1 when leading with 5 minutes to play, 9-1 when outreboundingtheir opponent, 10-2 when posting a high shooting percentage thanthe opponent, and 9-2 when holding an opponent under 70 points.Ohio State is 2-0 in the all-time series with Massachusetts and18-7 against teams representing the Atlantic 10 Conference.
Brown Holds Team Lead in Scoring
Senior Brian Brown owns the team lead in scoring following a 17-point effort against UMass. He tops four Buckeyes in double digits in a well-balanced offensive attack. Brown is averaging 14.4 points per game followed by Boban Savovic with 13.1. Brent Darby (11.2 ppg.) is just ahead of sophomore Zach Williams (10.7).
Ohio State Tops Big Ten in Several Areas
Ohio State is among the top two in several Big Ten categories. The Buckeyes lead in scoring margin (15.9 ppg.), field goal percentage (.508), rebounding defense (29.2), scoring defense (59.0) and 3-point field goal percentage defense (.277). Ohio State is second in assists (16.62) and assist/turnover ratio (1.14).
Value City Arena Serves Buckeyes Well
Ohio State has played 59 home games at Value City Arena since the facility opened for the 1998-99 season. Fans have been instrumental in the Buckeyes’ 52-7 (.881) 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 50-40 (.556) in conference openers, 61-29 (.678) in league home openers and 34-56 (.378) in the first road game of the season in Big Ten play.
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 81 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.
