Ohio State men’s basketball performs down the stretch to top Northwestern 71-63

Please follow and like us: OSU freshman guard JaQuan Lyle (13) during a game against Northwestern on Feb. 9 at the Schottenstein Center. Credit: Mariesha Gibson | Lantern Photographer A frustrating first half for the Ohio State men’s basketball team appeared to be a telltale sign of the start of another disappointing home loss. But thanks to the leadership of junior forward Marc Loving and tenacious play from freshman point guard JaQuan Lyle, OSU was able to pick up win No. 13 on the season, as it overpowered the Northwestern Wildcats 71-63. Lyle scored 13 of his game-high 16 points in the second half to pair with Loving’s 15 points and five assists. OSU coach Thad Matta said he had hoped the team would avoid another slow start, but he was proud of how his team fought back. “We found a way to win the basketball game,” Matta said. “It wasn’t pretty at times, but we are trying to find some constants with this team, and hopefully we can find that channel and stop channel surfing on a nightly basis.” The first half could be described in one word — ugly — with Loving being the lone bright spot. He scored 10 of OSU’s 26 points as the Buckeyes shot a lackluster 35.7 percent (10-of-28) from the floor. For most of the opening 20 minutes, the home team looked puzzled on how to attack Northwestern’s (16-9, 4-8) zone defense. With Matta working like a mad scientist to find the right combination of players, OSU’s players appeared to start to get frustrated with the outcome as they headed to the locker room trailing 33-26. Lyle, who has played inconsistently for the Buckeyes (15-10, 7-5) for much of the season, showed his frustration on the court by yelling at redshirt sophomore center Trevor Thompson after he dropped a razor-sharp pass from Lyle, which subsequently lead to a turnover and ensuing foul on Lyle. Matta, noticing the frustration on Lyle’s shoulders, pulled his point guard aside the break and gave him an earful…

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