Categories: sports

At the buzzer: Indiana 77, Ohio State 76 – Inside the concourse

Quick thoughts on a 77-76 overtime win at Ohio State:

How it happened

Indiana’s shooting struggles continued at Value City Arena Friday night. The Hoosiers were just 10 of 30 from the field in the first 20 minutes and a dismal 1 of 9 from the field. Early foul trouble sidelined Myles Rice for most of the first half. Fortunately for the Hoosiers, Ohio State wasn’t much better. The Buckeyes turned the tide six times in the first half, shot 46.2 percent from the field and, as a result, were unable to extend their lead beyond seven points. Oumar Ballo led the Hoosiers at intermission with 10 points and five rebounds and Luke Goode added seven points. Indiana trailed 35-29 at the break after scoring just 0.89 points per possession.

The Hoosiers were much sharper offensively early in the second half and trailed only 41-40 at the under-16 media timeout. Goode had five of IU’s first 11 points after the break. Goode’s hot shooting continued as his third 3-pointer of the second half gave Indiana a four-point lead at 50-46. After the Buckeyes regained the lead at 55-54 on a 3-pointer from John Mobley Jr., the Hoosiers responded with a bucket from Ballo and a 3-point play from Kanaan Carlyle to go up 59-55 with 8 :14 to play. After another 3-pointer from Mobley Jr., Indiana scored the next nine points to increase the lead to 68-58. At the final media timeout, IU’s lead was seven at 70-63 with 3:06 remaining. Out of the timeout, Micah Parrish made a free throw to cut the lead to six, then got a steal to bring the Buckeyes within four. A Bruce Thornton jumper pulled the Buckeyes within three at 71-68 with 1:59 left. Neither team scored for more than a minute and Ohio State took its final timeout, trailing by three with 46.2 seconds left. Out of the timeout, Mobley Jr. tied the game with a 3-pointer. On IU’s final possession, the Hoosiers missed three close-range looks and on OSU’s subsequent possession, the Buckeyes failed to make a shot, sending the game into overtime.

In overtime, Luke Goode’s 3-pointer with 1:07 left gave the Hoosiers the lead for good. Indiana ended its two-game skid and improved to 14-5 overall and 5-3 in Big Ten play.

Remarkable artists

Goode’s career-high 23 points led the Hoosiers and Ballo added a double-double with 21 points and 15 rebounds. Carlyle played his best game of the season, finishing with 13 points in 36 minutes coming off the bench.

Statistics that stand out

The Hoosiers came alive offensively in the second half, scoring 42 points and 1.4 points per possession. IU shot 55.6 percent from the field in the second half and was 4-for-8 from 3.