Buckeyes Continue Road Trip, Travel to Purdue – Ohio State Buckeyes
1/10/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 10, 2006
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Date Jan. 11, 2006
Opponent Purdue (6-7, 0-2)
Site Mackey Arena (14,123)
Game Time 8 p.m. EST
Television ESPN Plus
Local TV WBNS 10 TV
TV Talent Jim Barbar (P-by-P), Bill Hosket (Expert Analysis)
Radio OSU Radio Network (59 stations)
Local Radio WBNS FM-97.1 AM-1460
Radio Talent Paul Keels (P-by-P), Ron Stokes (Expert Analysis)
DIALS’ PRODUCTION UP IN LAST FIVE
Senior Terence Dials is connecting on 62 percent of his field goals (37-60) and 76 percent of his foul shots (22-29) over the last five games for the Buckeyes for an average of 19.2 points a game. He has reached 20 or more points in three of the last four contests. He played just 13 minutes in a 104-69 win vs. Penn State Jan. 5 in the Big Ten opener, scoring five points. He tallied 19 vs. Tennessee State Dec. 23. Dials is a career .558 shooter from the field (477-855) and is scoring at the same percentage this season as well (67-120/.558). His 1,255 career points rates No. 23 all-time at Ohio State and his 705 career rebounds rate 12th.
FOSTER ON PACE TO SET OSU 3-POINT SHOOTING RECORDS
Je’Kel Foster is on pace to become one of just three Buckeyes all-time to knock down 50 or more 3-pointers in a single season twice during their Ohio State careers. Foster made 62 as a junior and has made 33 to date this season. Scoonie Penn (1999-2000) made 88 in 1999 and 65 in 2000. Tony Stockman (2004-05) knocked down 73 as a junior and 66 a year ago. Foster is one of just 11 players in history to make 50 or more in a season. The feat has been accomplished 13 times since 1986-87 when the 3-point shot was introduced in NCAA Division I. Foster also is on pace to become the single season and career leader in 3-point shooting percentage. He is making 54.1 percent of his treys this season and will qualify for the all-time lead officially with a minimum of 50 makes this year. Foster needs five more made 3-pointers to reach 100 for his career. He will then qualify for the career lead in 3-point field goal percentage. He has made .461 (95-206) for his career.
SULLINGER’S SHOOTING EFFORT VS. PSU ONE OF OSU’S BEST ALL-TIME
J.J. Sullinger connected on all eight of his field goal attempts in the win vs. Penn State on his way to 18 points. He connected on both of his 3-point tries and eclipsed the 1,000-point plateau as well. In addition, Sullinger is now one of just four Ohio State players all-time to make eight or more shots in a game without a miss. Sullinger joins Brian Brown (9-9 vs. Florida State Nov. 23, 2000), John Havlicek (9-9 at Michigan Feb. 4, 1961) and Jerry Lucas (8-8 vs. Wisconsin Feb. 27, 1960).
BUCKEYES AMONG TOP 20 IN BOTH AP AND COACHES POLLS
Ohio State cracked the Associated Press Top 25 for the first time (Dec. 19) since March of 2002 when the Buckeyes finished the season rated No. 14. The Buckeyes are currently No. 19 in the AP poll and No. 16 in the USA Today/Coaches Poll. The Buckeyes are 313-101 (.756) when playing as a ranked team in the AP poll. Ohio State has cracked the poll at least once in 28 seasons since its first appearance in 1948-49. The Buckeyes are 31-4 overall and 11-1 vs. non-conference foes at Value City Arena when ranked by AP. The only non-conference loss was a 59-54 setback to Notre Dame in the opening round of the 1999 preseason National Invitation Tournament. OSU was No. 4 in that Nov. 16 game vs. the Fighting Irish.
OHIO STATE VS. THE BOILERMAKERS
Ohio State has won nine of the last 10 meetings vs. Purdue and four of the last five games in West Lafayette, Ind. The Buckeyes trail in the all-time series 78-73. The Boilermakers are 51-24 on their home court vs. OSU with the Buckeyes owning the advantage in Columbus (49-27). When the Buckeyes are ranked in the AP Top 25, Ohio State is 19-4 vs. the Boilermakers. Ohio State has won its last five games when ranked vs. Purdue and eight of the last nine.
FOUR BUCKEYES AVERAGE DOUBLE DIGITS VS. PURDUE
Four Ohio State players have averaged 10 or more points vs. the Boilermakers during their careers. Terence Dials (12.5 ppg vs. PU) has the most experience with a total of four games played vs. the Boilermakers. Matt Sylvester is next with three games and a 12.0 ppg. average. J.J. Sullinger has faced PU twice (11.5 ppg.) and Je’Kel Foster scored 15 points in his only opportunity vs. the Boilermakers a year ago. Dials leads OSU vs. Purdue with 6.3 rebounds a game. Dials has knocked down 72 percent of his field goal attempts (18-25) in games against Purdue while Sylvester shoots at a 56 percent clip (14-25).
MATTA OUT TO TOP 3 START AT OHIO STATE
Thad Matta will coach his 50th game of his OSU career Jan. 30 against Florida A&M with a chance to be one of the top three coaches all-time at OSU in winning percentage after the first 50 games at Ohio State. Matta has 43 games under his belt with a 31-13 record to date (.705). The Buckeyes will need to win the next six games for Matta to take over the top spot from Fred Taylor (1959-76) and Randy Ayers (1990-97), who both won 36 of their first 50 contests at Ohio State for a winning percentage of .720. Five victories in the next six games would tie Matta with Taylor and Ayers. Matta is out to an 11-1 start in this his second season with the Buckeyes. Ayers started 17-0 in year two (1990-91). Taylor guided the Buckeyes to a national title in his second season with a 25-3 record (1959-60).
| 1st 50 Gms at OSU | |||
| Coach (Yrs. at OSU) | W | L | Pct. |
| Fred R. Taylor (1959-76) | 36 | 14 | .720 |
| Randy Ayers (1990-97) | 36 | 14 | .720 |
| Thad Matta (2005- present) | 31 | 13 | .705 |
| Harold G. Olsen (1923-46) | 32 | 18 | .640 |
| Lynn W. St. John (1912-19) | 31 | 19 | .620 |
| Gary Williams (1987-89) | 30 | 20 | .600 |
| Floyd S. Stahl (1951-58) | 17 | 33 | .515 |
| George M. Trautman (1920-22) | 24 | 26 | .480 |
| William H.H. Dye (1947-50) | 24 | 26 | .480 |
| Jim O’Brien (1998-2004) | 23 | 27 | .460 |
| Eldon Miller (1977-86) | 21 | 29 | .420 |
BUCKEYES LOOK FOR 9TH NON-CONFERENCE HOME WIN
Since Value City Arena opened for the 1998-99 season, Ohio State has won at least seven home games vs. non-conference teams in seven of eight seasons, which includes the Buckeyes’ 8-0 record vs. non-Big Ten foes at VCA this year with one game remaining on the non-conference schedule. Florida A&M travels to Columbus Jan. 30, 2006. The Buckeyes have been undefeated in home non-conference games at VCA twice. OSU was 7-0 in 1998-99 and 8-0 a year ago. The Buckeyes were 8-1 for three-consecutive seasons starting with 1999-2000 through 2001-02. Ohio State is 59-6 overall vs. non-conference foes at VCA. Thad Matta is 16-0 as a Buckeye head coach against non-league foes at VCA.
BUCKEYES WIN 100th GAME AT VALUE CITY ARENA
Ohio State is playing in its eighth season at Value City Arena in 2005-06. Since the facility opened for the 1998-99 campaign, the squad has won 100 of 122 games (.820). Ohio State has won its last 10 games at VCA, including all nine to date this season.
FOSTER LEADS ALL GUARDS NATIONALLY IN SHOOTING PERCENTAGE
Senior Je’Kel Foster is connecting on 62.2 percent of his shots from the field to rate No. 8 nationally in field goal shooting percentage. He is the only guard listed among the Top 41 players in the country in field goal shooting percentage as of the Jan. 2 NCAA statistics report. Foster rates No. 1 (tie) nationally in 3-point shooting percentage, knocking down 54.1 (33-61) percent from long range. Foster is fourth in the Big Ten in both shooting categories and also is the league leader in steals (2.33) and 3-pointers made per game (2.8). Foster rates No. 20 nationally in steals per game. As a team, the Buckeyes are No. 5 in 3-point shooting percentage (.430/107-249).
FOSTER EARNS NATIONAL, LEAGUE HONOR AFTER 3-0 WEEK FOR OSU
Senior Je’Kel Foster averaged 18 points over three wins over Norfolk State (12/12), Belmont (12/14) and Iowa State (12/17) to earn Sporting News national player of the week honors (Dec. 11-17). Foster also was the Big Ten player of the week after knocking down 63 percent of his field goals (17-27) and 58 percent (11-19) of his 3-point FG tries for the week. His 28 points, on 9 of 12 shooting from the field and 6 of 8 from 3-point range, set a career high vs. Iowa State in a neutral-site contest vs. the Cyclones in Des Moines, Iowa. Foster leads Ohio State with 15.8 points a game. Foster leads the Buckeyes with 28 steals and has made a team-best 83 percent of his foul shots (30-36).
BUCKEYES SET 3-POINT SHOOTING RECORD IN WIN VS. IOWA STATE
Ohio State connected on 10 of 22 3-point attempts vs. Iowa State Dec. 17 to give the team 10 or more made 3-pointers in four-consecutive games, a first for the Buckeyes. Ohio State made 10 of 19 vs. Belmont (Dec. 14), 11 of 19 treys at St. Joe’s (Dec. 10) to start the streak and then knocked down 14 of 32 against Norfolk State Dec. 12. Ohio State has made 10 or more from beyond the arc in back-to-back games just six times dating back to the 1986-87 season, the first campaign for the 3-point shot. Opponents have connected on 10+ treys in three-consecutive games or more twice, with both streaks coming during the 1997-98 season. USC (13 of 33), Chattanooga (11 of 25), Kansas (10 of 25) and New Mexico State (16 of 39) set the record with four-consecutive games with 10+ 3-pointers vs. the Buckeyes between Dec. 20 and Dec. 29, 1997. Michigan (10 of 21), Iowa (10 of 24) and Penn State (10 of 22) turned in a streak of three games later that season between Feb. 11 and Feb. 16, 1998. Ohio State and opponents have hit 10 or more 3s in the same game on four occasions. Belmont connected on 10 of 18 in the loss to the Buckeyes Dec. 14. Ohio State is 3-1 in those games. In all, the Buckeyes are 27-5 in the 32 games when scoring on 10 or more 3s while opponents are 30-28 in 58 games with double digits treys made.
OSU 3-pt. Shooting Streak OSU 3-pt. Shooting Streak
| Opp. | 3 FG-A | Pct. | W/L, Score | Date |
| St. Joe’s | 11-19 | .539 | W, 81-74 | 12/10 |
| Norfolk St. | 14-32 | .438 | W, 92-59 | 12/12 |
| Belmont | 10-19 | .526 | W, 85-75 | 12/14 |
| Iowa St. | 10-22 | .455 | W, 70-67 | 12/17 |
| Totals | 45-92 | .489 |
LEWIS GIVES BUCKEYES OFFENSIVE SPARK OFF BENCH
In the first 12 games, Ohio State has had 45 double figure games for an average of 3.8 players per game with 10 or more points. Ron Lewis and Je’Kel Foster have scored in double digits in 11 of 12 games this season to lead the Buckeyes in double-digit outings. Lewis has scored 10 or more off the bench nine times this season.
MATTA’S BUCKEYES ALREADY TAKING OVER 3-POINT SHOOTING RECORDS In less than two full seasons as head coach of the Buckeyes, Thad Matta has put his mark in the OSU record book. Six of the Top 10 team 3-point shooting performances have been established in the last two years, including the Top 4 performances. Ohio State knocked down 18 treys in a double overtime loss at LSU last year to set the record for 3s made in a game at Ohio State. The Buckeyes made 17 vs. Chattanooga last November and then knocked down 15 at Clemson in early December a year ago. The No. 4 effort was put in the books Dec. 12 vs. Norfolk St. when the Buckeyes connected on 14 of 32 3-point attempts. Matta’s teams have made 10 or more 3s in a game 15 times and have a 12-3 record in those games. Matta’s opponents at Ohio State have made 10 or more four times and are 2-2 in those games.
BUCKEYE OFFENSE CLICKS EARLY, FOUR AVERAGE DOUBLE DIGITS
Ohio State is averaging 81.6 points in the first 12 games of the season. Opponents average 66.8 ppg. The Buckeyes have made 50 percent of their field goals (334-663), while allowing opponents to make just 43 percent (304-706). From the foul line, Ohio State has taken 280 shots, making 204 (.729), while foes have gone to the line 169 times, making 116 (.686). The Buckeyes own the rebound advantage (34.4-31.3). Balance has been the norm with five players averaging nine or more points a game. Je’Kel Foster leads the team with 15.6 points a game. Ron Lewis (13.6 ppg.), Terence Dials (14.8 ppg.) and J.J. Sullinger (10.2 ppg.) all follow. Jamar Butler tallies 9.1 ppg. Sullinger and Dials average 7.2 rebounds a game to pace the squad.
MATTA IMPROVES TO 21-3 IN NON-CONFERENCE GAMES AT OSU
Ohio State won 11 of 14 non-Big Ten Conference games in 2004-05, the first season at OSU for head coach Thad Matta. With the 10-0 start to date in non-conference action in 2005-06, Matta improved to 21-3 against non-league foes. The Buckeyes are 17-0 in Columbus and 16-0 in Value City Arena under Matta’s direction. Ohio State defeated Chattanooga 84-67 in St. John Arena, the former home of the Buckeyes on the OSU campus, a year ago. Ohio State is 8-1 in the month of November with Matta at the helm and 13-1 in December.
DIALS CLIMBING SCORING CHART
Senior Terence Dials has 1,255 career points, good for the No. 23 spot all-time in scoring at Ohio State. He scored 509 points a season ago and with a similar season in 2005-06, Dials has a chance to crack the Top 10 all-time in career scoring. Robin Freeman (1954-56) scored 1,597 career points during his Ohio State career and is 10th all-time in OSU scoring annals. Dials needs 342 or more points to reach the Top 10. The most recent Buckeye to crack the Top 10 was Michael Redd, who currently plays for the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks. He finished his OSU career in 2000 with 1,879 career points.
DIALS JOINS 700 CLUB
Senior Terence Dials reached 700 career rebounds with eight at Indiana. He has 705 boards to become one of 12 Buckeyes to reach the 700 mark all-time. If he reaches the 253 total rebounds he grabbed as a junior, he will tie for the No. 5 spot all time with Clark Kellogg (1980-82) with 872. There are four players with 900 or more rebounds in Ohio State history led by Jerry Lucas (1960-62) with 1,411, a total reached in just three seasons. Herb Williams (1978-81) is No. 2 with 1,111. Perry Carter (989, 1988-91) and Bill Hosket (910, 1966-68) are the only other two players to record 900 or more career rebounds. Hosket’s total also was recorded in three years.
1,000 X 3
Ohio State’s roster contains three players who have scored 1,000 or more points in their collegiate careers. Terence Dials, Ron Lewis and J.J. Sullinger all have reached the 1,000-point plateau. Dials’ total stands at 1,255 points scored to date, good for 23rd on the all-time list at OSU. Lewis, who transferred to Ohio State with 877 points to his credit after two seasons at Bowling Green, has a career total of 1,040, which includes 163 scored as a Buckeye. Senior J.J. Sullinger has scored 1,008 career points. He played one season at Arkansas, scoring 273 points in 2001-02, and now is in his third year at Ohio State.
BOILERMAKERS DROP CLOSE CONTEST AT MICHIGAN
Daniel Horton scored 24 points, including go-ahead free throws with 2:39 left, and Michigan held on to beat Purdue 68-65 Saturday. Ron Coleman made one of two free throws with 6.7 seconds left for the Wolverines after Matt Kiefer missed a 3-pointer and before Korey Spates was short on a long shot that would have tied the game just before the final buzzer. Kiefer scored 21 and Spates had 17 points off the bench for Purdue. The Boilermakers led 38-33 at halftime and had the lead for much of the second half before falling just short of their first victory on the road this season. Purdue has lost two players – Carl Laundry and David Teague – to season-ending injuries, Tarrance Crump to suspension and Nate Minnoy had a knee injury in the Big Ten opener against Northwestern.
KIEFER TOPS BOILERS IN SCORING
Matt Kiefer is the top scorer for Purdue with 11.7 points a game. He is one of four players averaging between 10.8 points and 11.7 for the Boilermakers. Carl Landry was the team’s top scorer at 15.2 points a contest after five games but his season was ended by injury. Another starter, Nate Minnoy (11.0 ppg.) also was lost for the season to injury after playing in 12 games. Kiefer also is the top rebounder with 6.2 a contest.
ON THIS DATE
Ohio State is 13-10 with losses in three of the last four games on this date.
| Date | W/L | Opponent | Score |
| 1/11/07 | W | Wittenberg | 59-11 |
| 1/11/13 | W | Wittenberg | 53-24 |
| 1/11/19 | W | Ohio Wesleyan | 16-13 |
| 1/11/30 | L | Wisconsin | 25-32 |
| 1/11/36 | L | @Iowa | 23-25 |
| 1/11/37 | W | Wisconsin | 28-22 |
| 1/11/41 | W | Northwestern | 46-40 |
| 1/11/43 | L | @Indiana | 31-61 |
| 1/11/47 | L | @Iowa | 35-61 |
| 1/11/54 | L | @Illinois | 76-90(15) |
| 1/11/58 | L | @Wisconsin | 64-67 |
| 1/11/60 | W | Delaware | 109(7)-38 |
| 1/11/64 | W | Minnesota | 85-73 |
| 1/11/69 | W | Wisconsin | 84(16)-69 |
| 1/11/75 | W | Minnesota | 76-67(17) |
| 1/11/79 | W | @Iowa | 72-67 |
| 1/11/86 | W | @Northwestern (ot) | 79-77 |
| 1/11/90 | L | @Michigan State | 68-78 |
| 1/11/92 | W | @Northwestern | 60(4)-52 |
| 1/11/95 | L | Wisconsin | 59-81 |
| 1/11/97 | L | @Michigan State | 66-69 |
| 1/11/03 | W | Indiana | 81-69(15) |
| 1/11/05 | L | @Wisconsin | 72-66 |
OHIO STATE VS. THE BIG TEN CONFERENCE
Ohio State is 676-648 vs. the current members of the Big Ten Conference.
OSU vs. The Big Ten
| Illinois | 60-100 |
| Indiana | 70-99 |
| Iowa | 66-72 |
| Michigan | 83-70 |
| Michigan State | 46-58 |
| Minnesota | 74-53 |
| Northwestern | 105-44 |
| Penn State | 19-13 |
| Purdue | 73-78 |
| Wisconsin | 80-61 |
| Totals | 676-648 |
DIALS SCORES 25 IN TOUGH LOSS AT INDIANA
Marshall Strickland made two free throws with 5.7 seconds left, then stole the ball on Ohio State’s final possession to give No. 16 Indiana an 81-79 victory over the 18th-ranked Buckeyes on Saturday. Indiana rallied from a 17-point first half deficit, its largest of the season, to win its sixth straight. Marco Killingsworth led the Hoosiers with 26 points. Strickland had 15. Terence Dials led Ohio State with 25 points. Je’Kel Foster and Ron Lewis each scored 13 as the Buckeyes lost for the first time this season. It was another bruising Big Ten game. The Buckeyes’ strong defense in the first half never allowed Indiana to get into a rhythm, and foul trouble plagued Dials for most of the second half. The teams combined for 43 fouls and 50 free throws. But with the Buckeyes clinging to a 79-78 lead, Lewis Monroe drew a foul and hit 1-of-2 free throws with 1:31 left to tie the score at 79. After Dials missed a 5-footer with 25.3 seconds left, Strickland forced a jump ball on the rebound to give Indiana possession. Strickland then drew a foul on Dials, his fifth, with 5.7 seconds left, and the Big Ten’s top free-throw shooter made both to give Indiana the lead. Strickland then stripped Matt Terwilliger of the ball to preserve the win.
NOTING THE INDIANA GAME
* Ohio State is 676-648 against members of the Big Ten Conference all-time and 70-99 vs. Indiana. The Buckeyes are 22-60 all-time vs. IU in Bloomington.
* The Buckeyes are playing in their 94th Big Ten Conference season. Ohio State is 35-59 in Big Ten regular-season road openers.
* With the loss, the Buckeyes fell to 314-101 as a ranked team in the AP Poll all-time. Ranked Buckeye squads are 16-12 vs. Indiana. Ohio State is 20-30 vs. ranked IU squads and when both teams are ranked in games vs. one another, Ohio State is 8-8.
* Junior Ron Lewis scored 13 points to give him double figures in 11 of 12 games this season, nine of his double figure games have come when he comes off the bench.
* With 25 points, Terence Dials moved to the No. 23 spot all time in career scoring with 1,255 career points. He passed Ron Stokes (1982-85), who completed his tenure with 1,240 career points. Next on the list is Clark Kellogg (1980-82) with 1,285 career points in the No. 22 spot.
* With eight rebounds, Dials reached the 700 club in career rebounds at Ohio State. He is currently No. 12 all-time in career rebounds (705). No. 11 Gary Bradds (1962-64) is up next with 706.
* Ohio State next travels to Purdue (6-7, 0-2) Jan. 11 for an 8 p.m. tip vs. the Boilermakers. Ohio State returns to Value City Arena vs. No. 7 Michigan State at 4:30 p.m. Jan. 15. That game will be nationally televised by CBS Sports.
SEVEN ESPN PLUS OHIO STATE GAMES TO APPEAR ON ESPNU
ESPNU, an ESPN cable property which televises a variety of college sporting events, will carry seven Ohio State men’s basketball games this season, the Big Ten announced Nov. 22. The games will be produced by ESPN Regional Television and will be carried locally in Columbus on WBNS 10 TV as an originally scheduled ESPN Plus telecast. ESPN Plus games are typically carried by WOIO (CBS) or WAOH (independent) in Cleveland, Ohio; WHIO (CBS) or UPN 17 in Dayton, Ohio; and WYTV in Youngstown, Ohio, in addition to WBNS (CBS) in Columbus. The Buckeyes’ games added to ESPNU are Norfolk State (W 92-59, Dec. 12), Belmont (W 85-75, Dec. 14), Tennessee State (W, 74-65, Dec. 23), Louisiana State (W, 78-76), at Penn State (Jan. 21), Florida A&M (Jan. 30) and Purdue (March 5).
A PAIR OF FIRST TEAMERS
Sylvester Mayes was a National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) First Team All-American for Redlands Community College as a sophomore. He shot 51 percent from the field (201-397), 42 percent from 3-point range (68-164) and 77 percent from the foul line (139-181) in leading Redlands to a 27-4 record in 2004-05. He is one of two first team NJCAA All-Americans on the Ohio State roster. Je’Kel Foster earned the same recognition before joining the Buckeyes a year ago. Foster played at Chipola (Fla.) Junior College. Last year, Foster averaged 7.7 points a game for Ohio State while knocking down 43 percent of his 3-point attempts (62-145). He added 78 assists and 43 steals as well. He also grabbed 104 rebounds. His all-around effort earned him a starting spot the final 12 games of the season, helping Ohio State to a 20-12 overall record.
MATTA GOES FOR 6TH 20
Thad Matta doesn’t know what it’s like to end a season with fewer than 20 wins during his head coaching career. The second year Ohio State coach came to the Buckeyes with a streak of four 20+ win seasons at Butler (24 wins in 2001) and Xavier (26 in all three years from 2002-04). With 20 victories a year ago at Ohio State, Matta is one of two coaches nationally to record 20 or more wins in the first five seasons of his coaching career. Mark Few of Gonzaga is the other with 20+ in all six years with the Bulldogs.
CLOSING ON 2 MILLION
For the seventh-consecutive season, all of which played at Value City Arena, Ohio State finished among the Top 18 teams nationally in average attendance in 2004-05. The Buckeyes averaged 13,850 fans in 16 home games at VCA. Overall, in 122 games at VCA, a total of 1,974,940 fans, 16,188 per game, have helped the Buckeyes to a record of 100-22 at the facility. Ohio State will exceed the 2 million mark in home attendance at VCA during the 2005-06 season when fan No. 146,962 enters the building. The Buckeyes have won 14 or more home games in five of the seven years at VCA and 11 or more in six of seven.
OHIO NATIVES DOMINATE BUCKEYE ROSTER
Eight of the 11 players on the roster this year chose to stay in state, play for the Buckeyes and pursue their education in Columbus. Seniors Terence Dials (Youngstown), Matt Sylvester (Cincinnati), J.J. Sullinger (Columbus); juniors Ron Lewis (Columbus) and Ivan Harris (Springfield); sophomores Jamar Butler (Lima) and Matt Terwilliger (Troy) and freshman Samuel Payne (Columbus) all played high school basketball for their hometown teams in Ohio.
2007 NCAA TOURNAMENT RETURNS TO COLUMBUS
The NCAA tournament will return to Columbus for the opening rounds of the 2007 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, the organization announced in July 2004. Ohio State played host to the first and second rounds in March 2004, as it will in 2007. Games were played at Nationwide Arena in downtown Columbus, which will again be the site of the event in 2007.
BUCKEYES LOOK TO ELDERS
Terence Dials, J.J. Sullinger and Matt Sylvester are the Top 3 returning scorers for Ohio State. The three have been in Columbus a combined total of 14 years entering the 2005-06 season. All were fifth-year seniors when school started in September. Both Dials and Sylvester have spent all five years at Ohio State with each missing a season with injury. Dials sat out most of the 2002-03 season with a back ailment while Sylvester missed the majority of 2001-02 with leg and back injuries. Sullinger played one year at Arkansas before leaving for Ohio State. He sat out the 2002-03 season to satisfy NCAA transfer rules. In addition to these three, Je’Kel Foster again will be a significant contributor in 2005-06. He too is a senior with three years playing experience, two at the junior college level and one season in Columbus.
