ATLANTA – Substitute pigskin for leather, shoulder pads for headbands and Troy Smith for Greg Oden and you have an old-fashioned championship re-match. With the Ohio State Buckeyes’ 67-60 victory against the Georgetown Hoyas Saturday night, and the Florida Gators 76-66 thrashing of the UCLA Bruins, the two teams that met on the gridiron for the football national championship will meet on the hard-court for the basketball championship Monday night.
Prologue:In a prelude to the football championship game, the No. 5 ranked Buckeyes traveled to Gainesville, Fla. to take on the No. 3 ranked Gators and from the opening tip OSU looked outmatched in nearly every facet of play. Junior guard Taurean Green led Florida with 24 points on 9-for-12 shooting while junior forward Al Horford added 11 points and 11 rebounds in 28 minutes despite nearly missing the contest due to an ankle injury.
A 33-9 run led Florida to an 86-60 win and their 11th victory of the season. Greg Oden played 28 minutes in the game and contributing minimally with just seven points and six rebounds. He spent the bulk of the game in foul trouble. Freshman guard Mike Conley Jr. led OSU with 13 points, on 6-for-14 shooting, and seven assists.
Each team has played 26 games since Florida won by 26 and both teams have progressed in a big way since then. But more so than Florida, OSU has played much better basketball and the Buckeyes have come together as a team. Junior guard Jamar Butler may have put it best when he said, “That Florida game is in the past. We have a totally different team now, new faces on this team. We play a different style of ball.”
Big Men:Contrary to what the major sports networks say, the third-team All-American Horford and not junior forward Joakim Noah, who was named a second-team All-American, as the focal point of the Florida basketball team. The big man averages 13.1 points and 9.4 rebounds per game and was dominant against OSU in the game earlier this year.
Horford is 6-foot-10 and is an excellent rebounder and passer. He will detract attention away from the other Florida players and allow them to receive open looks from the floor.
Noah is a force on his own as well. He averages 12.1 points and 8.6 rebounds and can take over a game with his sheer effort and enthusiasm.
Coming on strong of late has been 6-foot-9 senior Chris Richard. He was a perfect 7-for-7 from the floor against UCLA and is often the player that is lost amongst the talent of Noah and Horford.
The Florida big men attack the offensive boards, shoot a high percentage and can defend the paint exceptionally well.
Lately, if Oden breathes on an opponent he will pick up a personal foul. He will need to play as many minutes as possible before picking up his second foul to play enough minutes to have a positive impact on the game. Junior forwards Matt Terwilliger and Othello Hunter will see elevated minutes and impact in this game to aid Oden in defending Florida inside the paint. Both Terwilliger and Hunter have elevated their games in the tournament, but they have yet to face a one-two punch like Horford and Noah in the postseason.
It may take a Herculean-like effort from the Buckeye big men to overcome the vast depth and skill advantage that Florida has. If Oden finds himself in early foul trouble and the Buckeyes are forced to go to their bench, it could get ugly fast for OSU.Advantage: Florida
Guards and Wingmen:The attention that the Florida big men demand open things up for their guards and swingmen. Green is Florida’s leading scorer with 13.2 points per game and he picked apart the Buckeye defense in the meeting earlier this year. He is quick with the ball, has great vision and can get hot shooting the three. He is susceptible to turning the ball over, so the OSU perimeter defenders will need to have active hands to slap the ball away.
At 6-foot-9, it was hard to categorize junior Corey Brewer, the team’s second leading scorer at 13.2 points per game, but his style of play away from the basket makes him more of a swingman. His size and speed create mismatches that help him dominate his opponents. It could be up to OSU freshman David Lighty to contain Brewer and make him as much as a non-factor as possible.
Senior guard Lee Humphrey is the ultimate sharpshooter. Not a threat to penetrate and attack the basket, Humphrey will go around screens and shoot three-pointers. He hit more than 45 percent of his attempts from distance during the season but as Oregon found out, Humphrey can take over a game with his shooting. He went 7-for-13 in the regional finals and scored 23 points. The Bucks will need to put a hand in his face all game to cool his shooting off.
The guards for Florida commit more than 14 turnovers per game. It will be up to guys such as Conley, the team leader in steals, to come up big on defense. Conley has been playing tremendous basketball and has become a true leader on the team. His ability to get to the basket and find his teammates has made him one of the best players in this tournament. He will need to get to the free-throw line and find guys like Butler and senior Ron Lewis for open looks from three-point land.
Butler is a great outside defender and his skills on the ball will be important in preventing another game like the one Green had against OSU earlier this year. Butler has been shooting the three at better than 40 percent in the tournament and his outside shot opens things up for the offense. He has also been an asset in the transition game, a very strong aspect of the Buckeye offense.
Although Lewis struggled in the game against Georgetown, his contributions in the games against Xavier and Tennessee cannot be overlooked. Lewis steps his game up in big games and if his shots are not falling, he is not afraid to go the the hoop, absorb some contact and get to the free-throw line. He has been amazing from the free-throw line missing just one attempt in his 25 chances.
The X-factor in this game may be the play of senior Ivan Harris and freshman Daequan Cook. Both are not great on-the-ball defenders, but they are streaky shooters from the floor, and especially from three-point land. If either Harris or Cook can get hot, it could cause problems for Florida.
Lighty will not be called upon much to score, and although he has made major contributions in that respect in this tournament, he will be called upon for his stellar defensive ability. He has a knack for shutting opponents down with his size, athleticism and work-ethic on defense.
Overall, the Buckeye guards, while less experienced, have more depth, skill and are more versatile than the guards from Florida. OSU takes much better care of the basketball and are better on defense than Florida. If this game comes down to guard play, OSU has the slight advantage.Advantage: OSU
Summary:Florida is the defending champion for a reason. Their big men dominate and take over games and it opens things up for their guards to contribute.
Their weaknesses are Humphrey’s defense, their free-throw shooting and turnovers.
If the Buckeyes can take advantage of Florida’s weaknesses and play a strong 40 minutes, then they have a chance to pull the upset.
So, in Monday night’s championship re-match you can substitute heartbreak for joy, pain for pleasure and 41-14 for 72-67.
Josh Ellis can be reached at [email protected].
