Filed under: Ohio State, Wisconsin, Big Ten
Every team in Division I basketball has now lost at least one game, as No. 1 Ohio State (24-1, 11-1 Big Ten) was taken down by Jordan Taylor and the feisty No. 13 Wisconsin Badgers in Madison Saturday, 71-67. Interestingly, Ohio State was undefeated and No. 1 during college football season until visiting the Badgers.
Saturday, the Badgers (19-5, 9-3) opened up an early 24-19 lead before the Buckeyes started to click on all cylinders. The Buckeyes stormed into the half with a 9-2 run, taking their first lead of the game with a few seconds left on a brilliant up and under drive from David Lighty. This extended into the second half, as the Buckeyes eventually led 47-32.
That extended 28-8 run was coincidentally reversed by the home Badgers. Wisconsin outscored Ohio State 28-8 over the next few minutes, taking a 60-55 lead into a timeout. From there, the teams relatively traded buckets, with the margin lingering close to five points the rest of the way, and staying between three and seven.
Taylor led Wisconsin with 27 points and seven assists. He hit 5-of-8 3-pointers, including several big ones during the Badgers second-half run. Jon Leuer and Mike Bruesewitz added 12 each. Freshman Josh Gasser had 11 points on a dazzling shooting day. He made four of his five shot attempts, including all three 3-pointers. One of them was huge, tying the game at 47 and capping a 15-0 Badger run.
William Buford led Ohio State with 21 points. Freshman sensation Jared Sullinger contributed 19 points and 12 rebounds.
How it was won: Behind the arc. The Badgers made 12-of-25 from three while Ohio State only hit 3-of-9.
How it was lost: Ohio State simply didn't keep its foot on the gas. With a 47-32 lead against a team that runs its offense at a snail's pace, the game should have been over. But the Buckeyes' offense grew stagnant and they simply couldn't stop the bleeding once Wisconsin got momentum and the crowd on its side.
Inching closer: Jon Diebler is within an arm's reach of the Big Ten 3-point record, but he only hit one Saturday. He needs two to tie the mark, held by former Penn State player Pete Lisicky.
Let the debate begin: There's likely to be a new No. 1 in college basketball. The only question is who it will be. Duke? Kansas? Texas? Pittsburgh? Or maybe Ohio State should still retain the spot? After all, Wisconsin is now 150-11 at home under Bo Ryan and beat last year's eventual national champion, Duke, at home. Personally, I'd leave Ohio State at the top. If you look at the body of work, the only other one-loss team in contention is Kansas, which lost a game at home. The road loss is better than the home loss.
"Overrated?" Granted, it's not the entire fan base, but the Badgers student section was chanting "overrated" late in the game. Talk about devaluing your team's hard-fought victory. If Ohio State was overrated, the Badgers shouldn't have had much trouble beating it at home.
Where to from here: Ohio State will get the chance to get back to its winning ways Tuesday at home against the woefully underachieving Michigan State Spartans before another tough road trip next weekend (Sunday at Purdue). Wisconsin makes that trip to West Lafayette to face the Boilermakers Wednesday.
Rachel McAdams Kristin Cavallari Brittany Murphy Britney Spears Amanda Swisten
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