Don’t look now, but the Big Ten race is wide open.
The Ohio State men’s basketball team beat Iowa, 68-58 on Sunday, and with a Michigan State loss on Saturday night, the Buckeyes and several other teams are jockeying for position.
“It’s wide open and that’s why you really have to take care of business on your home court,” junior guard Jon Diebler said. “It wasn’t the prettiest game, but we won.”
Junior guard Evan Turner led OSU with 32 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Turner was 12 of 22 shooting, and didn’t commit any turnovers. It was the most shot attempts Turner has taken in his career.
Several times, Turner displayed his stunning ability to beat defenders with his ball handling, quickness and body control. At times the Schottenstein Center crowd erupted and at others they were left in awe by the Player of the Year candidate.
“You probably saw about what he is,” Iowa coach Todd Lickliter said. “It’s not unique to us, what happened. He’s tough to contain. I’m going to state the obvious here, but when he was out they were a good team but when he came back it was elevated to one of the best in the nation.”
Turner got help from the usual cast of Buckeyes, including Diebler with 12 and Sophomore guard William Buford and junior forward David Lighty with nine apiece.
For the most part, most everything that was done by the Buckeyes went through Turner.
The Buckeyes and Hawkeyes battled much of the first half. Much like the top of the Big Ten race, the first half was highly contested with neither team asserting themselves.
Late in the first, however, the Bucks had a sequence that turned the momentum in their favor.
The Buckeyes led 28-25 when Iowa’s Cully Payne had a free lane to the hoop for an uncontested dunk before Lighty caught him from behind and timed a block perfectly to reject the ball out of bounds. After stealing the ball on the ensuing possession, Turner found Buford, who hammered the ball home as the crowded exploded.
Ahead by five going at halftime, the Buckeyes used a 9-2 run after the break to push their lead into double-digits. Turner scored 20 of his 32 points in the second half as OSU put the game away early.
OSU didn’t have its greatest game shooting, going only 2-13 from behind the arc, but the Buckeyes’ mistake-free basketball allowed them to control the game. OSU has played smart of late, averaging 6.5 turnovers in their last two victories.
With the Big Ten championship now truly up for grabs, the Buckeyes are playing their best basketball and have arguably the best player in the country. For a team that looked as if the season could get away from them early, OSU and Turner, who have won their last seven Big Ten games, are looking dialed in.
“It’s cool to see the ball go through the net,” Turner said about getting into a zone. “For a moment, you feel unstoppable. You feel like you can do almost anything. You’re attacking and not being attacked and that’s good in anything you do.”
Turner’s return to form has elevated the Buckeyes. If he can lead them through another rough stretch of four road games out of the next five, he and the Buckeyes could both be celebrating some prestigious accolades, including a Big Ten championship.
“If there’s one out there better than [Turner], then I look forward to seeing him,” Matta said. “He’s playing really well right now.”
Turner and the rest of the Buckeyes are playing well, and with less then a month left in the Big Ten, OSU is starting to do exactly what it needs to do at exactly the right time.
“I’ve got faith this team can do anything,” Turner said. “We control our own destiny. We decide what goes on. If we stay focused and play Ohio State basketball, we can do anything.”
