Men’s Basketball: Ohio State Opens Big Ten Season at Illinois – Ohio State Buckeyes
1/2/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Date: Jan. 3, 2008 (Happy New Year!)
Opp: Illinois (8-5, 0-0)
Site: Assembly Hall (16,618)
Game Time: 8 p.m. ET
Television: ESPN
TV Talent: Brent Musburger (P-by-P), Steve Lavin (Expert Analysis), Erin Andrews (Sideline)
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)
Sirius Radio: Ch. 127
BUCKEYES OPEN 96th SEASON IN BIG TEN CONFERENCE
This is the 96th season of Big Ten membership in men’s basketball for the Buckeyes. Ohio State is 52-41 (.559) in conference openers, 61-30 (.670) in league home openers and 34-57 (.374) in the first road game of the season in Big Ten play. Ohio State has opened Big Ten play on the road 40 times and has a 17-23 record in those games. The Buckeyes are 33-18 when Big Ten play begins in Columbus. Ohio State has nine games scheduled in January, eight vs. Big Ten foes.
OHIO STATE ON LEAGUE WIN STREAK
Thad Matta’s Buckeyes have won 16-consecutive games vs. Big Ten foes, including all three in the 2007 Big Ten Tournament a season ago. Ohio State has won 13-consecutive regular-season league games, including six in a row on the road. Ohio State’s last loss in conference play was at Wisconsin Jan. 9, 2007 in a battle of Top 5 teams. No. 3 Wisconsin claimed a 72-69 victory over then No. 5 Ohio State in Madison.
MATTA OWNS TOP WIN PERCENTAGE AMONG OHIO STATE COACHES
Thad Matta, now in his fourth season as head coach of the Buckeyes, has an overall win percentage of .781 (89-25) after 114 games at Ohio State. That winning mean is the highest among the 11 head coaches in the history of the Ohio State men’s basketball program with three or more seasons on the sidelines. Matta’s 35-13 record in Big Ten regular-season play (.729) also has produced the highest winning percentage in conference play among any previous Ohio State coach. Fred Taylor (1959-76) is second in both overall win percentage (.653/297-158) and Big Ten win percentage (.608/158-102) in 18 seasons.
BUTLER CLIMBS STATISTICAL CHARTS
Jamar Butler is the first Ohio State guard to reach 400 assists (428), 150 made 3s (175/school record) and 100 steals (108). He is nearing 1,000 career points (929) and is on pace to become Ohio State’s 43rd player in the 1,000-point club.
BUCKEYES FIND SHOOTING TOUCH IN RECENT VICTORIES
After a slow start offensively, Ohio State found its shooting touch in wins over Presbyterian College, Cleveland State and Florida. The Buckeyes set a Value City Arena record (35-49) from the field Dec. 15 knocking down 71 percent of their shots in an 87-43 victory over the Blue Hose. Ohio State then traveled to Cleveland State and connected on 53 percent (30-57) of its shots in an 80-63 road victory Dec. 18. The Buckeyes cooled a bit vs. Florida (23-54/.426) in a 62-49 victory Dec. 22. In those three games, Ohio State has shot 55 percent (88-160) from the field and 54 percent from 3-point range (29-54).
BALANCE ON OFFENSE
Five Buckeyes have averaged 10.5 or more points in the last four outings with freshman Kosta Koufos leading the way with 16.5 points a game. He shot 51 percent from the field (26-51) along the way while rejecting a career-high five shots at Cleveland State. Six players averaged more than 20 minutes in the last four games while four also connected on 55 percent or better of their field goal attempts. Othello Hunter (18-30/.600), David Lighty (17-29/.586), Jon Diebler (15-27/.556) and Evan Turner (10-17/.588) scored at a high percentage in the last four outings.
DIEBLER HEATS UP FROM 3-PT. RANGE
Freshman Jon Diebler, the all-time leading scorer in Ohio high school history, found the shooting range that helped him lead the nation in scoring as a high school senior (41 ppg.) at Upper Sandusky (Ohio) High School. Diebler made 2 of 4 3-pointers in the win over Presbyterian College Dec. 15 and then nailed five-consecutive treys, all in the second half, against Cleveland State. He then knocked down 2 of 4 treys against Florida and then 5 of 9 treys vs. UMBC to finish a four-game stretch 14 of 23 (.609) from beyond the arc. Diebler made six-consecutive 3-pointers (last five vs. Cleveland State and his first vs. Florida) before a miss vs. the Gators. For the season, Diebler is 21-68 from long range. (.309). He started the season 7-45 (.156) from beyond the arc.
BUTLER, TERWILLIGER ON PACE TO SET SENIOR CLASS WINS RECORD
Jamar Butler has played in all but one game in his Ohio State career, a total of 114. Senior classmate Matt Terwilliger has made 93 appearances during his career. The pair could go down as the winningest Buckeyes all-time and Butler is on pace to appear in more games than any other Buckeye in history. Seniors on the 1963 team finished with 98 career wins, three NCAA championship game appearances, the national title in 1960 and four Big Ten titles, which includes three outright titles from 1960-62. Seniors on the 1964 and 1992 teams each finished their careers with 89 victories. The 1964 seniors also had four league titles (two outright in 1961 and ’62) to go with two NCAA title game appearances those same years. The 1992 veterans had two Big Ten titles (one shared) and made three NCAA tournament appearances. To date, Butler and Terwilliger have back-to-back outright league championships and two NCAA tournament appearances, including an NCAA title game experience and school-record 35 wins a year ago.
| Total Wins |
4-year Career |
*Seniors |
| 98 | 1960-63# | Richard Reasbeck, Douglas McDonald |
| 90 | 2005-08 | Jamar Butler, Matt Terwilliger |
| 89 | 1961-64# | Donald Flatt, LeRoy Frazier, Donald DeVoe, Gary Bradds |
| 89 | 1989-92 | Jamaal Brown, Steve Hall, Chris Jent, Bill Robinson |
#Freshmen were not eligible during period
*4-year players in Ohio State program (Freshman and Varsity rosters)
1968 MEN’S BASKETBALL TEAM TO BE HONORED FEB. 10
Members of the 1968 Ohio State men’s basketball team, which starred Big Ten Network analyst Bill Hosket, will be recognized during ceremonies Feb. 10 against Indiana. Ohio State will recognize the 40th anniversary of that team, which tied for the Big Ten championship and advanced to the Final Four under the direction of legendary coach Fred Taylor. The Buckeyes finished 21-8 that season and third in the NCAA tournament after a semifinal loss to No. 4 North Carolina and a win over No. 1 Houston in the consolation game. It was the fourth Final Four appearance for Taylor during his illustrious career, which spanned 18 seasons, five NCAA tournament appearances, an NCAA title in 1960, two runners-up finishes in 1961 and ’62, 297 victories and seven Big Ten titles, including a league record five-consecutive conference crowns from 1960-1964.
UPPER SANDUSKY RETIRES NO. 23 TO HONOR JON DIEBLER
Upper Sandusky (Ohio) High School retired the No. 23 during ceremonies Dec. 8 to honor star guard Jon Diebler, a freshman on the Ohio State men’s basketball team. Diebler led the nation in scoring as a senior in 2006-07 with 41 points a game. He owns the career-scoring record in the state of Ohio with 3,208 career points.
BUCKEYES EARNED REST AFTER 5-GAME GRIND VS. NATION’S BEST
Ohio State completed a stretch of playing five games over a span of 11 days at Butler Dec. 1. It started with the semifinals of the Dick’s Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off against No. 21 Syracuse Nov. 21 and No. 16 Texas A&M Nov. 23. The Buckeyes hurried home for a Nov. 25 game against Virginia Military Institute before playing host to No. 1 North Carolina Nov. 28 in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. The Buckeyes traveled to Indianapolis for a Saturday game at No. 16 Butler before a break for final exams Dec. 3-7.
Playing four teams ranked in the AP Top 25 in a span of five games is the first in regular-season play for the Buckeyes since the 1993 Big Ten season when Ohio State took on No. 22 Iowa, No. 23 Michigan State, No. 2 Indiana and No. 5 Michigan from Jan. 9 to Jan. 26. Wisconsin was the unranked team played during that stretch. The Buckeyes played four-consecutive Top 25 teams during the 2007 NCAA Tournament. Ohio State defeated No. 22 Tennessee, No. 5 Memphis and No. 9 Georgetown before falling to No. 6 Florida in the national title game.
BUTLER SETS OHIO STATE RECORDS
Senior Jamar Butler has connected on 175 career 3-pointers and owns the Ohio State record for made 3s in a career. He passed Brent Darby (2000-03) and Scoonie Penn (1999-2000) with a 4 of 8 effort from long range against VMI Nov. 25. Butler ranks No. 1 all-time in 3-pointers attempted (462) and No. 7 in career 3-point shooting percentage (175-462/.379). He also is moving up the career assist charts. He is currently No. 3 with 428.
KOUFOS EARNS FIRST POW IN BIG TEN
Kosta Koufos, a freshman forward from Canton, Ohio, led Ohio State to a 2-1 record the week of Nov. 26, which included a win over No. 21 Syracuse at Madison Square Garden in New York. Koufos averaged 18.7 points, 9.3 rebounds and recorded six blocks for the Buckeyes to earn Big Ten Player of the Week honors. He set a career high with 24 points against the Orange and then recorded his first-career double-double with 22 points and 14 rebounds in a home victory over VMI at St. John Arena Nov. 26. Koufos connected on 50 percent of his shots from the field for the week and hit 69 percent (9-13) against the Keydets.
KOUFOS, BUTLER LEAD WAY IN NIT, NAMED TO ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Freshman Kosta Koufos averaged 17 points and 7.0 rebounds in the two NIT Season Tip-Off games in New York. The 7-0 forward also blocked four shots and made 3-of-5 3-pointers. Butler, a preseason All-Big Ten selection, averaged 15.5 points while knocking down 55 percent of his 3-point attempts (6-11). He scored 13-consecutive points for the Buckeyes in the first half vs. Texas A&M Nov. 23 and led the team at the event with seven assists and four steals. Both Koufos and Butler were named to the all-tournament team.
YOUNG BUCKEYES EXPERIENCE HISTORIC VENUES
In an 11-day stretch starting with the NIT Season Tip-Off games in New York, Ohio State’s roster of 13 players played in three of the most storied venues in college basketball history. The NIT games were played in Madison Square Garden, tabbed the world’s most famous arena and the host of countless college basketball games. The Buckeyes next played in St. John Arena, the home of Ohio State basketball from 1956-57 to 1997-98. St. John has hosted 579 Ohio State men’s basketball games in which the Buckeyes have won 428 (.739 winning pct.). After playing No. 1 North Carolina Nov. 28 in Ohio State’s current home, Value City Arena, the Buckeyes took on No. 16 Butler at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The facility was used to film the movie “Hoosiers” and has been the home court for the Bulldogs since 1928.
NOTING THE UMBC GAME
With the win, Ohio State is now 2-0 all-time against University of Maryland Baltimore Country and improves its record against the America East Conference to 3-1.
Senior Jamar Butler, senior Othello Hunter and freshman Kosta Koufos all recorded double-doubles Saturday. Butler tallied 22 points and 12 assists for his second double-double of the season. Hunter recorded his double-double with 13 points and 10 points. Koufos recorded his on 12 rebounds and 12 points. Koufos now has three double-doubles on the season and has recorded double-doubles in back-to-back games. This is just the 15th time in Ohio State history three players have recorded double-doubles in the same game. Ohio State is 14-1 in those games. The last time Ohio State had three players record a double-double in one game was 30 years ago to the day on Dec. 29, 1977, when Herb Williams (16 pts./13 rebs.), Jim Ellinghausen (11/12) and Ken Page (24/11) all notched double-doubles against LaSalle in an 86-83 win.
The 92 points for the Buckeyes is a season high, the most in a regular-season game since the season opener a year ago when the Scarlet and Gary defeated VMI, 107-69, Nov. 10.
Butler improved his career free throw percentage going 9-9 from the free throw line. Butler now has a career free throw percentage of 84.5 (174-206). Butler is No. 3 all-time in career free throw percentage and is behind Jody Finney (.862/165-197) for second.
The win is the 90th career victory of seniors Jamar Butler and Matt Terwilliger’s careers. The two seniors are only eight wins behind Richard Reasbeck and Douglas McDonald for the most career wins by a single class in Ohio State history.
Freshman Evan Turner has connected on 15 of his last 17 free throw attempts. Turner connected on 10-12 free throw attempts against UMBC en route to a career high in points with 17.
Ohio State connected on 10 3-point baskets for the fourth time this season. The Buckeyes are now 28-6 under Matta when hitting 10 or more 3-point baskets. The Scarlet and Gray have made at least 10 3-point field goals in three of its last four games.
During the last four games freshman Jon Diebler has been on a 3-point tear. Diebler has connected on 14-23 3-point shots. Diebler has recorded two double-figure games since coming off the bench.
Since becoming the Buckeye sixth man, Diebler has seen his scoring average improve from 6.6 ppg. as a starter to 10.6 ppg. as a reserve.
With the win, Ohio State is now 26-0 when senior forward Matt Terwilliger scores at least four points.
At the helm of the Buckeyes, Matta is 40-6 in regular-season non-conference games.
Butler continues to establish himself as one of the most prolific 3-point shooters in Ohio State history. Butler had another solid game on Saturday going 3-8 from behind the arc. Butler already is the all-time leader in made 3-point field goals and is seventh in career 3-point field goal percentage. Butler is behind Chris Jent (.382, 172-293, 1989-92) for sixth-place all-time.
Ohio State led 49-37 at halftime Saturday. The Buckeyes have won 39 of their last 42 games when leading at halftime and is 77-9 when leading at the halfway mark under Matta.
Butler dished out a career-high 12 assists in the contest for a career total of 428, good for No. 3 on the all-time career list. The senior surpassed Ohio State radio personality Ron Stokes (1982-85/419) for No. 5, Troy Taylor (1982-85/421) for No. 4 and Mark Baker (1990-92/424) for No. 3 on the career assist chart. Butler is now 47 assists behind Curtis Wilson (1984, 1986-87/475) for No. 2 all-time. During his tenure at Ohio State, the Buckeyes are 46-8 when Butler has four or more assists.
Butler has scored in double figures in 10 of 12 games this season and has been in double digits in all eight of the Buckeyes’ home game this season.
FIVE BUCKEYE GAMES SOLD OUT
Tickets to several Ohio State men’s basketball games are sold out for the 2007-08 season. Games vs. North Carolina (19,049), Florida (19,049), Indiana, Wisconsin and Michigan State have been sold out. Tickets are in short supply for Northwestern, Illinois, Minnesota, Michigan, Iowa and Purdue. To order tickets call 1-800-GO-BUCKS or go online at OhioStateBuckeyes.com.
BUCKEYES EARN 1ST PRESEASON NIT VICTORIES
Ohio State is 3-3 in preseason NIT appearances after the pair of victories in Columbus Nov. 12-13 and a split in New York (11/21, 23) to open the 2007 season. The Buckeyes first participated in 1989. DePaul downed Ohio State Nov. 15, 1989, 71-53. Ohio University defeated the Buckeyes 78-67 Nov. 16, 1994 in Ohio State’s last appearance.
MADSEN READY FOR GAME ACTION
Kyle Madsen, a sophomore from Dublin, Ohio, played in a game that counts for the first time in more than two years. The Dublin Coffman High School graduate played at Value City Arena in the 2005 Ohio High School Boys Basketball Tournament before going to Vanderbilt for the 2005-06 season. He redshirted in his first year in Nashville, Tenn., before transferring to Ohio State, where he had to sit out the 2006-07 season to satisfy NCAA transfer rules. He played in both games Nov. 12-13 in the opening rounds of the NIT Season Tip-Off and scored a career best six points vs. Texas A&M in the finals.
OPPONENTS RANKED HIGH
Ohio State opponents North Carolina (No. 1 in ESPN/USA Today and No. 1 in the AP polls), Texas A&M (10/12), Tennessee (9/8), Michigan State (6/6), Indiana (12/11), Butler (17/16) and Wisconsin (25/25) all are ranked among the Top 25 teams in both polls. Florida also is receiving votes for Top 25 consideration.
BUCKEYES SUCCEED IN RETURN TO ST. JOHN ARENA
Ohio State played one game this season in St. John Arena, the home court of the Buckeyes from 1956-57 through 1997-98. Because of a scheduled event over the Thanksgiving weekend at Value City Arena, Ohio State faced Virginia Military Institute (W, 90-57) at St. John in just the second men’s basketball game played at the venue since the opening of Value City Arena for the 1998-99 season. Overall, the Buckeyes own a 428-151 record at St. John for a winning percentage of .739. More than 6.6 million fans have witnessed Ohio State men’s basketball games in the historic venue.
BUTLER PICKED TO PRESEASON ALL-LEAGUE TEAM
Jamar Butler was selected to the 2007-08 Preseason First Team All-Big Ten squad by a panel of 22 media members who regularly cover Big Ten basketball. The honor was announced Oct. 27 at the annual league media day in Chicago. Ohio State was picked to finish third in the league race behind favorite Michigan State and Indiana. The Buckeyes are the two-time defending outright regular season champions and defending postseason league tournament winners.
VALUE CITY ARENA CELEBRATES 10 SEASONS AS HOME OF THE BUCKEYES
More than 2.5 million fans have passed through the doors at Value City Arena since the facility opened for business in 1998-99 for men’s basketball. Ohio State fans have ranked among the Top 10 nationally in attendance in five of the nine years the facility has played host to the men’s basketball program. Buckeye fans have been treated to 54 home wins in the last four years under Thad Matta, including a school-record 18-0 campaign a year ago.
SITUATION FAMILIAR FOR MATTA
Thad Matta is familiar with the situation he finds the Ohio State men’s basketball team facing in 2007-08, his fourth in Columbus as head coach of the Buckeyes.
One starter returns from a record-setting 2006-07 season that ended with Ohio State winning a school-record 35 games, advancing to the program’s ninth Final Four, appearing in the NCAA title game, winning its second-consecutive outright Big Ten regular-season title and the program’s first postseason league tournament championship.
Senior Jamar Butler, who guided the Buckeyes to an outright league title as a sophomore in 2005-06, is the lone holdover among the starters from a year ago. He was in a similar position as a junior and will be sufficiently equipped to lead the Buckeyes again this season.
Butler will have support from three other returning letterwinners. Seniors Matt Terwilliger, Othello Hunter and sophomore David Lighty all are back after significant contributions to Ohio State’s run toward the NCAA title a year ago.
THE NEWCOMERS
For the second-consecutive season, Matta has recruited one of the nation’s top incoming freshman classes. Five Buckeyes will be playing as rookies on a college campus. A sixth, sophomore Kyle Madsen, is eligible to compete after spending his freshman season as a redshirt at Vanderbilt and a transfer year at Ohio State a year ago. He will have three years of eligibility in Columbus. Another newcomer, junior college transfer P.J. Hill, also will have three seasons to play as a Buckeye.
Matta attracted a mix of size and skill in the 2007 class.
Jon Diebler, a 6-6 guard from Upper Sandusky (Ohio) High School, is the most prolific scorer in Ohio High School history. He led his team to the state title game as a senior after winning the championship as a sophomore. He scored 3,208 points as a prep standout. His average of just over 41 points a game as a senior not only led the state of Ohio but was the top scoring average nationally a year ago.
Kosta Koufos, a 7-0 post player from GlenOak High School in Canton, Ohio, gives the Buckeyes several options. He can perform well in the paint but is equally comfortable shooting 3-pointers, a rarity for a player of his exceptional size. His rebounding and ability to block or alter shots also will contribute significantly to Matta’s game planning strategy this year.
Dallas Lauderdale will play center at 6-feet-8-inches. His size, strength and general physical build is expected to add depth to the Buckeye frontcourt, which will be much deeper this season. Lauderdale, who competed against Koufos on several occasions while playing for Solon (Ohio) High School, has the size and strength to handle the rigorous Big Ten battles down low.
Evan Turner is a 6-6 guard from Chicago, where he starred for St. Joseph’s High School, one of the premier high school programs in the state of Illinois. With long arms and a wiry frame, he adds rebounding assistance as well as a scoring touch and an ability to get to the basket.
Eric Wallace was the last freshman recruit to commit to the Buckeyes for this season. He is likely to become a fan favorite with his exceptional leaping and acrobatic dunking ability. A native of Winston-Salem, N.C., Wallace also will be looked upon to rebound and contribute defensively. He played at Hargrave (Va.) Military Academy a season ago.
P.J. Hill, a junior college transfer from Minneapolis, joined the Buckeyes during the summer and will have three years of eligibility in Columbus. He played for one season at Midland (Texas) College, the 2007 National Junior College Athletics Association National Champions.
Hill (6-1, 160) was a point guard for the 29-8 Midland squad that won the NJCAA title for the first time since 1982 when Spud Webb played for the Chaparrals. Hill averaged 6.5 points and nearly three assist a game a season ago. He played his high school basketball at Minneapolis North.
LIGHTY THE INTERNATIONAL CAPTAIN
Sophomore David Lighty spent part of last summer playing for the United States Under-19 World Championship team that traveled to Serbia in July. Lighty was named team captain before the team began play in the event. The U.S. squad won the silver medal going 8-1 overall after a loss in the final (74-69) to tournament host Serbia.
Lighty started all nine games, averaged 23.7 minutes, second on the team, and shot 69 percent (31-45) from the field. He averaged 8.8 points and 3.9 rebounds in his first international competition. Lighty is the only sophomore returning from the 2006-07 squad that featured three Ohio State freshmen drafted in the first round of the 2007 NBA Draft (Greg Oden, No. 1/Portland, Mike Conley Jr., No. 4/Memphis and Daequan Cook, No. 21/Philadelphia).
BUTLER FOR 3…TITLES
Jamar Butler is the most experienced Buckeye on the 2007-08 roster after starting his first three seasons in Columbus in Thad Matta’s multiple point-guard offense. Butler led the Buckeyes to an outright Big Ten title as a sophomore and then teamed with Mike Conley Jr. to repeat the feat in 2007. Butler is among the top returning guards in the Big Ten and will again lead a squad primarily made up of newcomers. In 114 games as a Buckeye, Butler owns 428 career assists and is on pace to become a 1,000-point scorer (929 to date), the 43rd in Ohio State history and first since Terence Dials (1,566 pts. from 2002-06).
MATTA CLOSING ON 200 WINS, 100 AT OSU
Thad Matta has guided the Buckeyes to 90 victories in 115 games at Ohio State. In eight seasons as a head coach, Matta has never failed to reach the 20-wins plateau in one season at Butler (24 wins), three at Xavier (26 wins each year) and three at Ohio State (20, 26, 35). He has averaged 26 wins over his career for a total of 192. Another 20-win season would eclipse the 200 mark for his career and the 100-win mark at Ohio State, a total only four previous head coaches have reached at Ohio State of the 13 who have led the men’s basketball program (Fred Taylor/297, Harold Olsen/260, Eldon Miller/174 and Randy Ayers/124).
MATTA TEAMS PLAY FOR TITLES
Making the NCAA tournament is almost a sure thing when Thad Matta is on the bench. In six seasons as an assistant coach, Matta was part of five NCAA tournament appearances at Miami (Ohio), Western Carolina and Butler. The 1998-99 Butler squad played in the postseason NIT, advancing to the second round. As a head coach, Matta’s teams have played in the NCAA event in six of seven years and every year the teams he has coached were eligible for the annual postseason event. The 2004-05 Ohio State team, Matta’s first in Columbus, was held out of the event by the university but nonetheless finished with a 20-12 record and a win over No. 1 and previously unbeaten Illinois in the regular season finale.
When it comes to conference tournaments, Matta teams regularly play in the title game. As an assistant, Matta helped Western Carolina to the Southern Conference title in 1996 and Butler to the Mid-Western Collegiate Conference championship in 1998 and 2000. As a head coach, Butler won the MCC in 2001 with Matta at the helm. Xavier won the Atlantic 10 in 2002 and 2004 and in three chances at Ohio State, Matta has directed the Buckeyes to the title game twice, winning the 2007 event.
Matta has been associated with nine regular season conference champions, including five as a head coach.
TRAVEL INDIANA
Ohio State will make four trips to the state of Indiana in 2007-08. Traditional trips to West Lafayette and Bloomington to take on Big Ten foes Purdue and Indiana, respectively, will be supplemented by a pair of trips to Indianapolis against Butler (Dec. 1) and to participate in the Big Ten tournament in March (13-16). Indianapolis will be the host city of the annual league postseason tournament for the next five years.
THE SCHEDULE
Tennessee, North Carolina, Syracuse, Texas A&M and Florida are certain opponents for the Ohio State Buckeyes in 2007-08. Add a road game at Butler and one can imagine why Thad Matta, a former Butler Bulldog (class of 1990), had trouble sleeping last summer. Then there is an expanded Big Ten Conference schedule of 18 regular-season games, up from a 16-game schedule used from 1998-2007. All this after losing three student-athletes in the first 21 picks in the 2007 NBA Draft.
The Buckeyes have been here before. The team lost four starters after winning the 2006 Big Ten title and responded with another league crown in 2007 and a school record 35 victories. The constant from the situation in 2006-07 is point guard Jamar Butler, who helped lead the Buckeyes to back-to-back league crowns and an appearance in the NCAA title game last season. With four returning letterwinners and a slew of newcomers, the Buckeyes again hope to use the difficult schedule as a springboard to postseason play.
