Men’s Basketball Heads to Minnesota for a Big Ten Road Contest – Ohio State Buckeyes
1/25/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 25, 2002
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Date Jan. 26, 2002
Opponent Minnesota
Site Williams Arena (14,625)
Game Time 4:37 p.m. (EST)
TV ESPN Plus
Local TV WBNS 10 TV
TV Talent Jim Barbar (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)
No. 20 Ohio State Buckeyes
Probable Starters (15-2, 6-0)
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.
Minnesota Golden Gophers
Probable Starters (10-7, 3-3)
G 41 -Michael Bauer, 6-8, So.
G 12 -Kevin Burleson, 6-3, Jr.
C 1 – Rick Rickert, 6-10, Fr.
F 21 -Travarus Bennett, 6-7, Sr.
F 45 -Dusty Rychart, 6-7, Sr.
Buckeyes Keep Run Alive
Ohio State has won its last nine games and its last 13 in regular season Big Ten play. The Buckeyes have won all seven games this year in the month of January. Ohio State has not won seven January games since 1991 when OSU claimed victory in 7-of-8 games. The last time Ohio State won eight games in the month of January was 1979 when the Buckeyes went undefeated with an 8-0 record. The Buckeyes tied for first in the Big Ten in 1991 with a 15-3 league record. OSU was fourth in 1979 with a 12-6 Big Ten record.
Brown Heats Up in League Play
Senior captain Brian Brown has led or tied for the team lead in scoring in 5-of-6 Big Ten games this year. Brown is averaging a team high 17.7 points in Big Ten play, including a career-high 26 points in the recent win over Indiana. He is connecting on 54 percent (39-72) of his shots in Big Ten play.
Ohio State Cracks Both Polls
Ohio State earned Top 25 recognition in both the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today polls this week. The Buckeyes are rated No. 20 in the AP and No. 23 in the ESPN/USA Today polls, marking the first ranking since playing Iowa as the No. 24 team in early March of 2001. Ohio State has a record of 301-95 (.760) while playing as a ranked team in the Associated Press Poll.
Buckeyes Looking for 10th-Consecutive Win
The Buckeyes are on a nine-game win streak, the longest since the 1991-92 season when OSU won nine games from Feb. 26 to March 27 before falling to Michigan in the NCAA Midwest Regionals March 29, 1992. The last time the Buckeyes won 10-consecutive games was at the start of the 1991-92 campaign when Ohio State won 17 games to start the season.
Brown Selected Big Ten Player of the Week
Senior Brian Brown averaged 20.5 points and 5.5 rebounds while conntecting on 57 percent of his shots (15-26) in wins over Penn State and Indiana last week. He scored a career high 26 points vs. the Hoosiers.
Dials on Pace to Set OSU Freshman Record
Ohio State freshman Terence Dials is shooting nearly 73 percent (43-59) from the field in 17 games as a Buckeye. He leads the Big Ten in field goal percentage in league games, connecting on 73 percent (21-29) of his shots in league play. Dials is well on his way to setting an Ohio State freshman record for field goal percentage. Jermaine Tate is the current record holder with a .569 (115-202) shooting percentage as a freshman in 1996.
Dials, Williams Lead Big Ten From Field
Freshman Terence Dials and sophomore Zach Williams are a combined 48-of-76 (.632) from the field in league games. Dials leads the conference, hitting 21-of-29 (.724) while Williams is No. 5 (27-47, .574).
Ohio State 10-2 at VCA vs. Ranked Teams
Ohio State has faced 12 ranked opponents at Value City Arena since the facility opened for the start of the 1998-99 season. Ohio State is 4-1 against Top 10 teams, which includes a 72-62 victory over No. 9 Iowa Jan. 5. The Buckeyes are 123-192 all-time vs. teams ranked in the Associated Press Poll.
Buckeyes Enjoy 5 of 6 Games at Home
Ohio State is in a stretch of 5-of-6 home games after starting the conference season 3-0 with two games on the road. The current 6-0 start is just the second since the 1991 Buckeyes started the league season 7-0 on their way to a 15-3 league record and a first-place tie for the conference crown. That also was the last time OSU started 6-0 in the league. Ohio State also is on a 13-game regular season win streak in the Big Ten. The Buckeyes won the final seven games during the regular season last year and the first six this season. It is the longest Big Ten win streak since a 14-game league win streak from the end of the 1971 season (10 games) and the start of the 1972 (four games) league seasons.
Buckeyes Show Up in NCAA Statistics
Ohio State (as of Jan. 21) is rated No. 2 nationally in field goal percentage (50.5), No. 7 in scoring defense (58.7) and winning percentage (87.5), 13th in scoring margin (14.9 ppg.) and 27th in rebound margin (6.6).
Chasing the Spartans
Ohio State is on the longest Big Ten win streak (13 games) since Michigan State won 18-consecutive league games over the 1999 and 2000 league seasons. Ohio State has won seven of its last 13 Big Ten games on the road, one short of the eight-consecutive road wins in the league posted by MSU during its 18-game Big Ten win streak. Indiana is the last Big Ten team to defeat the Buckeyes. The Hoosiers beat Ohio State 70-67 Jan. 31, 2001.
Ohio State Downs Michigan
Ohio State enters its home matchup with Minnesota following a home win (69-47) over Michigan Thursday. The Buckeyes enter the game with Minnesoa with an overall record of 15-2 and a 6-0 Big Ten mark. Minnesota has an overall mark of 10-7 with a 3-3 record in the league.
Ranked Buckeyes Own 20-2 Record vs. Minnesota
Ohio State has played Minnesota 22 times when ranked in the Associated Press Top 25. The No. 20 Buckeyes are 20-2 when ranked in games vs. Minnesota. Ohio State owns the overall series lead 71-50. Ohio State is 44-17 in Columbus and 27-33 in Minneapolis. The Buckeyes have won the last five games in the series, including the last two in Minneapolis.
Rychart Tops Golden Gophers
Minnesota senior Dusty Rychart leads the Golden Gophers with 13.5 points a game and 7.4 rebounds. Freshman Rick Rickert averages 12.4 points with sophomore Michael Bauer adding 11.3 points a contest.
The Buckeyes vs. Minnesota
Junior Sean Connolly has averaged 11.0 points in a pair of games vs. the Golden Gophers. Senior Brian Brown has scored 39 career points in five games against Minnesota for a scoring average of 7.8 points a game.
Minnesota Drops Last Game vs. Michigan
Minnesota lost its Big Ten opener to Illinois on the road before rattling off three-consecutive wins over Michigan State, Michigan and Purdue. Minnesota has lost its last two games on the road to Wisconsin and Michigan. The Golden Gophers finished their non-conference schedule 7-4.
Monson in 3rd season at UM
Dan Monson has a career record of 92-54 in five seaons as a head coach, which included a two-year stint at Gonzaga. Monson is 40-37 in his three seasons at Minnesota.
Ohio State Mourns Loss of Legend
Fred Taylor, who walked the basketball sidelines at Ohio State for 18 seasons as head coach, died Jan. 6 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.
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 1,124 points in 114 career games for an average of 9.9 points a contest. He scored 17 points in the most recent outing against Michigan to climb to the No. 29 spot in career scoring all time at Ohio State. He trails No. 28 Richard Schnittker (1,129) by just five points.
OSU on 7-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 has opened the 2002 conference season with road wins at Purdue (79-71) and Northwestern (55-48) to extend the conference road winning streak to seven games.
O’Brien 24-4 in VCA vs. Conference Foes
In four seasons at Value City Arena, Jim O’Brien and the Buckeyes have a combined record of 24-4 (.857) 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 11-1 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 100. He has connected on 35-of-80 3-point shots this season for a shooting percentage of 43.8 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 is 10th with 86 3-pointers. He has made 13-of-43 on the season (.302). Brent Darby could crack the Top 10 this season as well. He has made 78-of-208 (.375) for his OSU career. Sean Connolly has made 122-of-315 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 58-of-150 treys (.387).
Ohio State in RPI Top 20
With nine-consecutive victories and an overall record of 15-2, 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. 13 in the most recent RPI (1/24/02). Ohio State is second among Big Ten teams in the RPI behind No. 11 Illinois.
Buckeyes Move Up in Rankings
Ohio State has played or will face five teams currently ranked or receiving votes in the most recent Associated Press Top 25 Poll. Ohio State, with a 14-2 record and a recent win over then-Nos. 9 Iowa and No. 25 Indiana, received 453 votes for Top 25 consideration and is currently rated as the No. 20 team nationally in the AP Poll. Currently rated teams on the OSU schedule include No. 9 Illinois, Iowa (28), Pittsburgh (29), Indiana (30) and N.C. State (32).
Buckeyes Limit Foes’ Long Range Shooting
Eleven of the 17 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 Northwestern 25.0 5-20 Michigan 20.0 4-20
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 318. Carter Scott (1978-81) is ninth with 326.
Noting the Win over Michigan
Ohio State is now 80-67 in the series with Michigan, includinga 47-25 record in Columbus. When ranked the Buckeyes are 25-4 vs.the Wolverines. The Buckeyes are 55-7 in Value City Arena since itopened for the 1998-99 season. OSU is 31-3 against non-conferenceopponents and 24-4 in Big Ten games. With his 3-point field goal atthe 4:39 mark of the second half, Brian Brown moved into the No. 29spot of OSU career scoring leaders. He has 1,124 career points. Hepassed Curtis Wilson (1984-88) with 1,120 points and Brad Sellers(1985-86) with 1,122. Brown has scored in double figures in thelast 12 games and 15 of the 17 games this season. Boban Savovic hashad five or more assists in 10 games this season, including theseven against Michigan. He is sixth in the Big Ten in assists with73 for an average of 4.29 per game. The Buckeyes opened the first10 minutes of the second half on a 19-6 run. The run was helped bythree 3-pointers and 11 points from Brent Darby. Darby tied acareer high for 3-point field goals made with four. The last timehe made four 3-pointers in a game was against Indiana (2/19/00).The Ohio State defense held Michigan to 47 points. The Buckeyeshave held opponents under 70 points 15 times this season. TheBuckeyes are 13-2 in those games. The 47 points for Michigan ties aseason low for points. They scored 47 points in a 55-47 loss to SanFrancisco Dec. 29. Eleven of 17 teams Ohio State has played thisseason have been held below 30 percent shooting from 3-point range.The Wolverines were 4-of-20 from behind the arc for a .200 shootingpercentage. Ohio State turned the ball over a season-low seventimes against the Wolverines. The Buckeyes are 10-1 when they turnthe ball over fewer than 15 times. The Buckeyes have beaten theWolverines five-consecutive times. The last time the Buckeyes beatMichigan five straight was from 1990-92. The run was ended byMichigan’s 75-71 overtime victory in the Elite Eight (3/29/92)round of the NCAA tournament. Ohio State extended its Big Ten winstreak to 13 games. The run is the longest since Michigan State won18-consecutive league games over the 1999 and 2000 league seasons.OSU has not lost a Big Ten game since Jan. 31, 2001, a 70-67 lossto Indiana. Ohio State has started 6-0 in Big Ten for the firsttime since the 1991 Buckeyes opened conference play with a 7-0record en route to a 15-3 league mark and a tie for the conferencecrown. The Buckeyes have opened Big Ten play 6-0 eight times in the103-year history of the program. Ohio State now has won ninestraight games, dating back to its Dec. 19 loss at home toPittsburgh. The win is OSU’s 12th victory this season at home. TheBuckeyes have won at least 10 games in each of their four seasonsin Value City Arena. This season the Buckeyes are 14-1 when theylead at the half. They are 15-1 when they lead with 5:00 minutesremaining.
Brown Holds Team Lead in Scoring
Senior Brian Brown owns the team lead in scoring following a 17-point effort against Michigan. He tops four Buckeyes in double digits in a well-balanced offensive attack. Brown is averaging 15.3 points per game followed by Boban Savovic with 12.2. Brent Darby (11.4 ppg.) is just ahead of sophomore Zach Williams (10.4).
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 (15.4 ppg.), field goal percentage (.499), rebounding defense (28.4), scoring defense (58.0), 3-point field goal percentage defense (.286) and turnover margin (+2.0). Ohio State is second in three other categories.
Value City Arena Serves Buckeyes Well
Ohio State has played 62 home games at Value City Arena since the facility opened for the 1998-99 season. Fans have been instrumental in the Buckeyes’ 55-7 (.887) home record at Value City Arena.
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 85 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.
