Bruce Thornton Named Big Ten Player of the Week
2/23/2026 3:30:00 PM | Men's Basketball
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio State senior guard Bruce Thornton had a big week and was recognized as the Big Ten’s Player of the Week on Monday.
Thornton averaged 29.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists and shot over 52 percent from the floor in games against No. 24 Wisconsin and No. 15 Michigan State.
Against the Badgers, he scored 27 points with nine rebounds and eight assists. The only other Buckeye in the last 45 years to have had those numbers in a game was Dennis Hopson in the 1980s. Then at Michigan State on Sunday, Thornton nearly willed the Buckeyes to a win without the team’s 2nd and 3rd leading scorers. He finished with a game-high 32 points while committing zero turnovers in the full 40 minutes. He also added five rebounds, two assists and two steals vs. the Spartans
Also this past week, Thornton surpassed Jerry Lucas, William Burford and Herb Williams to move into second place on the program’s all-time scoring list with 2,037 career points. He became the 36th Big Ten player with 2,000 points and just the sixth with 2,000 points and 500 career assists.
This is Thornton’s second Big Ten Player of the Week award this season and the third of his career.
