Ohio State Cruises Past Radford
Ohio State moved to 2-0 on the season Sunday, cruising to an 82-72 win over Radford in the Schottenstein Center. Keita Bates-Diop led all scorers with 22 points and completed his second straight double double, adding 10 rebounds. Jae’Sean Tate also added a double double, dropping 13 points and pulling down 10 rebounds of his own. C.J. Jackson had a big game for the Buckeyes, scoring a career high 19 points and adding 6 rebounds and 3 assists as the Chris Holtmann era begins with back-to-back wins. Ohio State led after the first 20 minutes 44-34 in a half that saw the Buckeyes and Highlanders combine for 19 turnovers. With Ohio State up just 11-10 and struggling to get anything going offensively, CJ Jackson led Ohio State on a 16-2 run, hitting a pair of triples during the stretch that allowed the Buckeyes to gain some separation and enter the break with the lead. The second half saw Ohio State ratchet up the defense, holding Radford without a field goal for the first 7 minutes, going on a 17-1 run to put the game on ice. The Buckeyes coasted to the finish and led by as many as 25 before Radford ended the game on a 13-2 run to complete the scoring. Kam Williams dropped in 11 for the game to put four Buckeyes in double figures on the afternoon.
The same issues arose again for Ohio State as they struggled for the second straight game to take care of the basketball. The lack of a true point guard could hamper this team all season. Radford exposed the Buckeyes at times with backcourt pressure, creating turnovers and easy buckets. Unfortunately, for Coach Holtmann and his staff, Mike Conley Jr. is not walking through the Value City Arena door, so they must continue to work with what they have and that is a combination of C.J. Jackson, Andrew Dakich and Jae’Sean Tate running the point. They also must do a better job on perimeter defense as Radford was able to knock down 11 triples. Overall, a nice win for the young Buckeye squad who despite having some pronounced deficiencies do not lack in effort and hustle.
Ohio State returns to the floor next Thursday when they host Texas Southern at 7 pm.
– Jason Harris