Thursday, March 29, 2007

Florida Revisited

No blogging the last few days as Buckeye Nation was focused on the team's first official trip to the Final Four since 1968. Ohio State faced a Georgetown team that eliminated them in the second round the year before. The Hoyas also had a lot of momentum coming off a comeback win against North Carolina.

The game was billed as a battle of the big men, with 7 footers Roy Hibbert and Greg Oden set for titanic clash in the middle. But the expected matchup never really materialized, as Oden was again saddled with two early fouls and sat the entire first half. Hibbert likewise struggled to stay on the court, leaving for long stretches in both halves. That opened the door for freshman Mike Conley to take over the game, putting up 15 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds. Big East player of the year Jeff Green was well defended and finished with just 9 points. OSU coach Thad Matta, who was criticized for some strategic decisions earlier in the tournament, used a combination of defenses to frustrate the Hoyas.

Now it's time the Buckeyes to take on defending champ Florida, who routed UCLA in the other semifinal. The Gators slammed the Buckeyes in December, 86-80. A loss would put the Buckeyes on the wrong side of a historic repeat; Florida would claim the firt back-to-back titles since Duke did it in the early 90's. Worse yet, Florida would end up defeatin Ohio State in both major college championships in less than four months.

1. Oden must stay out of foul trouble to defend Noah in Horford. If he can stay on the court he needs to hit those scary looking jump hooks;
2. Butler, Harris and Lewis must hit a good percentage of their threes - anything less that 40% is curtains;
3. On the other hand, if Lee Humphery is red-hot, OSU could be in trouble;
4. Conley has stepped up in the tournament and brought the Bucks to this point...he needs to play the game his life. No turnovers, hit the running floaters, and run the offense with precision.
5. If someone is shooting poorly, and that means Cook and Harris, don't wasted possessions taking low percentage shots;
6. OSU finally needs great defensive play from its interior reserves - Hunter and Terwilliger must give quality minutes to spell Oden against a deep Florida frontcourt;

Ohio State is not favored. They lack the depth and experience that Florida does. Referees or Humphery could doom them. But this game will be much closer than the December route in Gainesville. This entire tournament, Conley has shown he doesn't know how to lose. Oden has been productive in limited minutes. Lewis has become a clutch performer. And David Lighty has emerged as a versatile contributor. Logic would dictate a Gator pick, but this Florida team isn't perfect. They had bad stretches against Purdue and Butler. They lost to Vanderbilt, Florida State and badly to a Tennessee team that OSU beat twice. This game can be won.

It's been a long time since Ohio State entered a big game as a clear underdog. So let's strap in and hit this punk Florida team in the mouth a few times. An 'A' effort from Ohio State, with Oden on the court for 30+ mintues, WILL win this game. So let's finish the game.

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