December 29, 2014 | 2:39 pm Here’s a breakdown of Tuesday’s Iowa-Ohio State (noon, ESPN2) match-up: 1. Backcourt. No Big Ten basketball team has changed its character and its offensive style of play more in one year than Ohio State. The No. 18 Buckeyes (11-2) ranked ninth last year in Big Ten scoring at 69 points a game. Now, as Ohio State enters Big Ten play, it sits at second with 85.3 points a game. Ohio State still maintains its traditional tough defense under Coach Thad Matta, holding opponents to 58.5 points a game and 37.4 percent shooting from the floor. Freshman guard D’Angelo Russell, a five-star recruit, has transformed the Buckeyes’ offensive attack. He averages 17.7 points a game and leads the team in 3-pointers with 35. He’s second on the Buckeyes in assists and steals. At 6-foot-5, Russell is an aggressive rebounder and is tied for the team high with 47 defensive rebounds. “What they do is they let Russell play his game, which is a smart thing to do because he’s capable of being a scorer but he’s capable of having the ball and they let him do both,” Iowa Coach Fran McCaffery said. “He’s a really good passer, he’s a really good shooter, he can get in the lane. …
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