Center Cristoph Tilly shoots a 3-pointer during Ohio State’s 118-102 win over IUPUI Monday at Value City Arena. Credit: Sandra Fu | Managing Photo Editor
The brand-new gray court inside the Schottenstein Center wasn’t the only thing that drew attention Monday night.
From the opening tip, the Ohio State men’s basketball team made it clear this wouldn’t be a typical season opener.
After a whirlwind 162-possession battle, the Ohio State Buckeyes set a program record for most points scored in a season opener in their 118-102 slugfest with IU Indy.
The expectation for the Buckeyes coming into the season was playing fast, and that held true in the opener.
“I anticipate us being a faster-paced team,” head coach Jake Diebler said. “Last year, we were faster than Ohio State’s been in a while, and I think we’ll be even faster this year.”
Last season, the Buckeyes ranked 167th in adjusted tempo, according to KenPom rankings, placing them in the middle of the Division I pack.
But with seven new players, including center Cristoph Tilly, the Buckeyes’ offense looks to have turned a corner.
Tilly flashed dominance in his first-ever game as a Buckeye, contributing a team-high 28 points along with four rebounds and three assists on 9-for-11 shooting.
“I’m just more happy about the team that we came out and scored [almost] 120 points,” Tilly said.
Along with Tilly, Bruce Thornton and Devin Royal were beneficiaries of the team’s selfless ball movement, scoring 26 and 22 points. Royal led the team with 19 of the Buckeyes’ 66 first-half points.
Ohio State controlled the first half, using a 67% shooting percentage to go into the break with a 16-point lead.
“We are so versatile offensively that any given night someone could have 20 easily,” Thornton said.
While the Buckeyes found success on offense, their defensive performance also raised eyebrows.
IU Indy’s offensive play style from first-year head coach Ben Howlett, referred to as “The System,” strategically pushes the ball down the court quickly, followed by a full-court press on defense.
It was a system that guided Howlett’s Division II West Liberty team to eight consecutive conference championships, and it was the reason why the Jaguars were able to score 102 points on 82 possessions.
“That’s the fun part of playing in a system like that,” Diebler said. “You get so much opportunity to stay aggressive, and all of a sudden you can get it going really quick.”
Given the lack of defensive reinforcements down the court due to a ferocious full-court press, the Buckeyes were forced to play fast, whether they wanted to or not.
“We know we’re going to be in situations where we gotta break presses and beat defenses down the floor and then make a poised decision,” Diebler said.
While the Ohio State lead never dropped below 10 points in the second half, it never expanded as much as the Buckeyes would have liked to see.
“Defensively, we still have to work on some stuff, obviously,” Tilly said. “We will keep working on that.”
