Ohio State’s first true road test of the season ended in heartbreak. The Buckeyes dug a big hole early, fought back to pull within one, but sloppy play in the opening 20 minutes left them down 10 at halftime. The second half looked promising: Ohio State stormed back to take the lead 12 minutes in and appeared poised to escape with a road win.
But in a cruel twist, Pitt, a team that had lost its previous two games to Quinnipiac and UCF, refused to go quietly. After what appeared to be an Amare Bynum game winner with just over 3 seconds to play, a late, logo, buzzer-beating three erased Ohio State’s lead and sealed a stunning 67-66 upset.
Adding to the misery, John Mobley Jr. was lost for the second half with an ankle injury, and after the final shot, Bruce Thornton was run over by a celebrating Pitt squad, helped off the floor with an apparent knee injury.
Despite the disappointment, there were bright spots. Devin Royal led the way with 22 points, hitting 4 of 8 threes. Thornton contributed 18 points and 13 rebounds, while Christoph Tilly added 10. Ohio State shot 43% for the game and limited Pittsburgh to 38%, but it wasn’t enough against a team they should have beaten.
For the Buckeyes, it was a gut-wrenching lesson in resilience, misfortune, and the thin margin between victory and defeat—one that leaves them at 6-1 and facing the urgent need to regroup before Big Ten play begins.
1st Half
Pitt came out swinging in the opening minutes, hitting 6 of their first 8 shots, scoring the first 7 points of the game to take a 13-4 lead into the first media timeout with the only Buckeye scores coming from Bruce Thornton. A steal and score turned into an old-fashioned three point play for the Panthers to balloon the lead to 12 before the Buckeyes turned up the defense and splashed three triples by John Mobley, Amare Bynum and Devin Royal respectively in addition to an Ivan Njegovan deuce to score the next 11 to cut the margin to 1 forcing Pitt to take a timeout with 10:31 to play in the opening half.
After stopping Ohio State’s run, Pitt regained control with a 5-0 spurt and capitalized on a Buckeye scoring drought of more than five minutes, pushing the lead to 21–15. Thornton’s three and a Njegovan layup briefly halted the slide, but Pitt continued to answer and carried a 10-point advantage into the final media timeout of the first half.
Mobley injured his ankle on a drive and in obvious pain, missed both free throws, left the game and Pitt quickly pushed its lead to 12 before Bynum’s emphatic follow dunk and Royal’s late score trimmed the deficit to 10 at halftime.
An overall extremely lethargic first half effort by Ohio State as they looked up at the large deficit after 20 minutes. Both teams shot just 38%, but Ohio State struggled from three (4–15), committed eight turnovers, and was beaten 24–18 on the glass, including 10 Panther offensive boards. Pitt controlled the pace for most of the half, led by DeMarco Minor’s 13 points, while Bruce Thornton paced the Buckeyes with 7.
2nd Half
Ohio State opened the second half with a quick surge as Tilly sank two free throws and Royal scored twice in the paint, trimming the deficit to 34–30 and prompting a Pitt timeout less than two minutes into the half. Two Ohio State turnovers turned into a Pitt three, but Thornton responded with a jumper. Pitt added two more baskets around a Royal three, maintaining a six-point lead just under four minutes into the second half.
Pitt reached the bonus just five minutes into the half, extending its lead at the line before Ohio State finally got a call and Thornton answered with two free throws—moving him into 10th on Ohio State’s all-time scoring list. Tilly scored inside and Royal drilled a three to tie the game, but Pitt briefly regained the lead with a reverse layup. Thornton responded at the rim, and the teams headed to the under-12 timeout knotted at 44.
Pitt regained the lead with an old-fashioned three-point play amid a lopsided foul situation, but Ohio State finally got a call as Gabe Cupps made two free throws to cut the deficit. Tilly then converted two more from the line after an offensive rebound, giving the Buckeyes their first lead of the second half at 48–47 at the under-8 media timeout.
Pitt briefly took the lead, but Thornton’s three-point play and Tilly’s free throws gave Ohio State a 4-point edge. Royal’s corner three after a Pitt bucket pushed the lead to five, forcing a Pitt timeout at 56–51. After a backdoor dunk by Pitt, Tilly made two more free throws, though Pitt scored through contact, leaving Ohio State ahead 58–55 at the under-4 media timeout.
The free throw dropped following the timeout to complete the three point play and Ohio State led by two, but turnovers and split free throws kept the game tight. Two Royal baskets maintained a narrow lead, but Pitt tied it with just over a minute remaining. Thornton’s floater reclaimed the lead, and after Pitt missed two free throws, Ohio State called a timeout with 30 seconds left, holding a slim advantage. The Buckeyes held for a late bucket and with a scramble at the rim, Bynum tipped in the go ahead bucket with 3.7 seconds to play and Ohio State called a timeout to set up their defense for the final play where Pitt hit a logo three at the horn for the upset win.
Game Wrap
An unacceptable loss in every sense of the word. Despite facing an overly physical officiating crew and having to battle back from a large deficit, the Buckeyes showed tremendous fight in the second half. Without Mobley and with Tilly still not at 100%, Royal and Thornton carried the team and Tilly began to increase his physicality in the paint which nearly allowed the Buckeyes to pull out a win on the road especially with them clearly not at full strength.
That said, this was not a team they should have lost to, and it could ultimately cost them a tournament bid—much like it did last year. Being outscored 17-5 and allowing Pitt a +7 advantage on the offensive boards is not a recipe for a win, even against a mediocre opponent.
Hopefully the Mobley and Thornton injuries are not long term, but the Buckeyes now have a week to get healthy and rebound before starting Big Ten play in what may be considered a must-win game at Northwestern next Saturday to get back on track.
Ohio State will next head to Evanston, IL next Saturday to open Big Ten play with Northwestern. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. on BTN.
-Jason Harris