Men’s Basketball Wins Exhibition Opener 73-59 – Ohio State Buckeyes
11/12/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 12, 2002
Box Score | Quotes | Box Score
COLUMBUS, Ohio-Senior guard Brent Darby led the Buckeyes with 21 points in the exhibition opener against Team Nike. Ohio State outscored Nike 35-27 in the first half and cruised to a 73-59 win Tuesday at Value City Arena.
Darby, the leading returning scorer with a 12.8 points per game scoring average from 2001-02, primarily played the shooting guard position while sophomore Brandon Fuss-Cheatham ran the offense from the point guard spot.
Senior Sean Connolly contributed 10 points in head coach Jim O’Brien’s three-guard offense.
Fuss-Cheatham led Ohio State with eight assists in 29 minutes. He also added eight points and three rebounds.
Sophomore Terence Dials had eight points and six rebounds in 20 minutes of action for the Buckeyes.
Newcomer Shun Jenkins, a junior college transfer, came off the bench to score eight points.
Team Nike was led by former Fairleigh Dickenson star James Felton’s 17 points and seven rebounds.
The Buckeye defense limited Team Nike to 37.9 percent from the field but Team Nike stayed close, connecting on 13-of-14 shots from the free-throw line for 93.8 percent.
Ohio State outrebounded Team Nike 40-32. Junior Zach Williams led the Buckeyes with seven rebounds.
The Buckeyes return to action at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 22 against the Harlem Globetrotters in the final exhibition game of the season. Ohio State opens regular season play against Coppin State College at 8 p.m. Nov. 25.
