Ohio State Basketball: Will Balanced Scoring Help or Hurt Buckeyes in March?

If you think you had a bad week, try being an Ohio State basketball player. The Buckeyes dropped consecutive decisions to Michigan State and Iowa in games that showcased an offense as prone to sputtering as a 1970 AMC Gremlin.

A team that averaged 10.3 turnovers per game before heading to East Lansing, Mich., found itself struggling to 38 in the pair of losses. Despite all those empty possessions, OSU was still able to make an epic rally to force overtime against the Spartans and held a lead in the final five minutes against the Hawkeyes.

Even after two of its worst performances of the season, it’s hard to doubt Ohio State’s defensive mojo. The Buckeyes will get back to making opponents look silly, perhaps as soon as Thursday against a dangerous Minnesota team.

The offense, however, is lagging behind as it seeks someone to assume the mantle left behind by All-American Deshaun Thomas.

The best thing we can say about the OSU offense is that it’s balanced. No opponent ever knows who’s going to take over the game that night. Of the nine players in the Buckeyes’ rotation, backup center Trey McDonald and freshman forward Marc Loving are the only men not to lead the team in scoring this season.

On the other hand, the worst thing we can say about the Ohio State offense is that it’s balanced. Like the opponents, Thad Matta and his players never know who’s coming to do some work from night to night.

Ross at a Loss

Junior forward LaQuinton Ross leads Ohio State in…

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