Men’s Hoops Downs Davidson, 69-64 – Ohio State Buckeyes
3/14/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 14, 2002%^$
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By BEN WALKER
AP Sports Writer%^$
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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – One win later, Brian Brown and Ohio State are thrilled to be playing at The Pit.%^$
%^$Brown scored a career-high 33 points, and the Buckeyes barely avoided another quick exit in the NCAA tournament, holding off Davidson 69-64 Thursday in the first round of the West Regional.%^$
%^$”Albuquerque is somewhere I’ve never been before,” Brown said. “We are very happy to be moving on.”%^$
%^$The Buckeyes had been miffed that winning the Big Ten tournament did not give them a better seeding or location.%^$
%^$After this victory, in which they trailed with 4{ minutes left, they had no complaints.%^$
%^$”I was a little surprised at how that worked out,” coach Jim O’Brien said. “Let me make this perfectly clear: If you would have told us in December we were going to be a fourth seed anywhere, we would’ve jumped up and down like you can’t believe.”%^$
%^$”We did not play with a chip on our shoulders,” he said. “We are not up on a soap opera about seeding. I mean, ‘soap box.”‘%^$
%^$The 13th-seeded Wildcats, trying for their first NCAA win since Lefty Driesell coached them in 1969, rallied for a 59-58 lead.%^$
%^$But with the crowd standing and cheering for a stunner, Brown took over. The senior scored seven straight points for the Buckeyes, putting them ahead 65-61 with 2{ minutes left.%^$
%^$Peter Anderer’s 3 pulled the Wildcats within a point with 36 seconds left, before Ohio State hit four foul shots to stay ahead.%^$
%^$Even in the midst of an intense ending, Brown kidded Anderer.%^$
%^$”I said, `Nice shot.’ I was laughing at him because I got a little finger on the ball. If I hadn’t, it probably would have been long,” Brown said.%^$
%^$The Buckeyes (24-7) advanced to play Missouri, which beat Miami 93-80.%^$
%^$Last season, Ohio State fell to lightly regarded Utah State in the first round. Making their fourth straight trip to the NCAAs, they’re sticking around this time.%^$
%^$”Last year left a sour taste,” Brown said.%^$
%^$He shot 13-for-19 and eclipsed his career high of 27 points, set last week in the Big Ten tourney against Illinois.%^$
%^$Martin Ides scored a career-high 20 points for Davidson (21-10). At times, the 7-foot-2 senior was the only one scoring for the Southern Conference tournament champions.%^$
%^$”We came in here expecting to win, and it did hurt,” he said.%^$
%^$Davidson outshot and outrebounded the Buckeyes, blocked more shots and had more steals.%^$
%^$”I was delighted with our defense,” coach Bob McKillop said. “They chased screens, went through screens relentlessly and passionately, gave everything they had.”%^$
%^$The Wildcats hurt themselves by shooting only 4-for-15 on 3-pointers – their usual forte – and committing 16 turnovers.%^$
%^$Terence Dials added 18 points for Ohio State. Emeka Erege had 13 for Davidson.%^$
%^$The Buckeyes made the first basket of the game, but did not regain the lead until Brown’s 3-pointer right before the halftime buzzer gave them a 33-32 edge.%^$
%^$Ohio State kept pounding the ball inside in the first half without much success against Davidson’s equal-to-the-challenge defenders.%^$
%^$”Get him off us when we’re driving!” O’Brien shouted at the officiating team, which included former big league catcher Bruce Benedict.%^$
%^$O’Brien and McKillop played against each other in high school in New York during the 1960s.
