JBB #8 Ohio State at #1 Wisconsin

<div align="center"><font size=""7""><font color=""DimGray"">Ohio State Buckekyes</font> at <font color=""Red"">Wisconsin Badgers </font></font>

The Kohl Center - Madison, Wisconsin (ESPN)

9:00 pm Eastern - Tuesday, January 9, 2007

<font size=""5"">Starting Lineups</font>

<font size=""5""><font color=""DimGray""><font size=""3"">Ohio State</font></font></font>



PG Mike Conley - SG Jamar Butler - G/F Ron Lewis - PF Othello Hunter - C Greg Oden

6'1", 175 FR - 6'2", 205 JR - 6'4", 200 SR - 6'9", 225 JR - 7'0", 270 FR

Statistical Leaders

Daequan Cook: 15.5 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 50.8% 3FG
Greg Oden: 14.4 ppg, 9.5 rpg, 3.75 bpg
Ron Lewis: 13.1 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 36.4% 3FG
Jamar Butler: 7.7 ppg, 4.1 apg, 1.28 spg
Mike Conley: 9.1 ppg, 6.7 apg, 2.71 spg
Othello Hunter: 8.2 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 1.47 bpg


<font color=""Red""><font size=""3"">Wisconsin</font></font>



PG Kammron Taylor - SG Michael Flowers - SF Alando Tucker - F/C Brian Butch - F/C Jason Chappell

6'2", 175 SR - 6'2", 185 JR - 6'6", 210 SR - 6'11", 240 JR - 6'10", 245 SR

Statistical Leaders

Alando Tucker: 20.6 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 2.0 apg
Kammron Taylor: 12.6 ppg, 1.9 apg, 49.1% 3FG
Brian Butch: 10.6 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 32.0% 3FG
Michael Flowers: 7.7 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.00 spg
Joe Krabbenhoft: 5.5 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 1.8 apg
Jason Bohannon: 5.0 ppg, 1.7 rpg, 1.3 apg


<font size=""5"">Keys to the game</font>

<font color=""DimGray""><font size=""3"">Ohio State </font></font>

<font color=""DimGray"">Stay cool - The Buckeyes have as much talent as there is in the country, and they've only lost two games all season. Those losses came at North Carolina and at Florida; two good teams on the road in hostile environments. Now, they travel to the Kohl Center, and will get a chance to show us if they've learned from those experiences and if they've matured enough to win the close games against good, veteran teams. Ohio State have a chance to win it all this season, but that means winning grinding games against teams like Wisconsin on neutral courts in the NCAA Tournament. A win in Madison would be a megadose of confidence for an extremely young team that has looked like, well, an extremely young team, in their two losses this season. One factor working in the Buckeyes' favor: their guards simply don't know what a turnover is. Much like Wisconsin, this team won't beat itself.

Not Oden, Hunter - Othello Hunter is the key big man for Ohio State. Seriously. He can provide a secondary scoring option in the paint, taking a lot of pressure off Oden and his gimpy right wrist. He also is an energetic defender and shot-blocker who can really impact a game. He will be counted on to form a wall with Oden between Tucker and the hoop, and his ability to come from the weak side and alter shots could be Kryptonite for the Badgers' superman. He also has to provide enough scoring that Wisconsin's stable of big men can't just gang up on Oden. Look to see if the Badger double down on Oden early; that could be a key to how Ohio State runs their offense.

Use the three - There are people who don't think there shouldn't be a three-point line in college basketball, but Thad Matta sure isn't one of them. His team can shoot the lights out, even on the road (anyone who saw them at UNC knows that), and that's a key in the Kohl Center. A barrage of triples would take the crowd out of the game, a huge factor working against the young Buckeyes in this game. Jamar Butler, Ron Lewis and Daequan Cook could all score 20 points and/or hit a half dozen threes - it's safe to say that if Wisconsin has any hopes of winning this game, none of them can be allowed to go off from deep.</font>

<font color=""Red""><font size=""3"">Wisconsin</font> </font>

<font color=""Red"">Get Butch going early - Brian Butch can be an excellent player...when he wants to be. The former McDonalds' All American had 27 points and 10 boards against Pitt, but has had fewer than 10 points in 8 games this season. It's not always a lack of involvement in the offense that hurts Butch - he tends to drift outside and use his solid jumper too often. With Greg Oden manning the paint for Ohio State, it won't be easy for Butch to have an impact, but if he can't produce some buckets down low, the Buckeyes' interior defense will be able to collapse on Alando Tucker. It seems to be all about confidence with Butch; if he get rolling early, he's a terror. When he doesn't, he's indistinguishable from a walk-on. If Butch can't get at least a dozen points in this game, it will be a frustrating evening for Tucker and the rest of the Badgers.

Don't give up the threes - Ohio State shoots it from behind the three point arc as often as any team the Badgers will see all year, and they can fill it up in a hurry. The Badgers have struggled giving up too many threes on occasion this season; Winthrop almost upset Wisconsin in the Kohl Center by hitting 16 threes earlier this season. Michael Flowers is the best perimeter defender in the Big 10, but he can't stop all of the Buckeyes' dangerous shooters by himself. Kam Taylor must have an impact defensively. Ohio State has a tendancy to run a double screen on the wing out of a timeout to free up their three point shooters; that one play killed the Badgers in Columbus last season, and you can bet Bo has made a point of emphasis that he won't tolerate any more defensive breakdowns on that play.

Perimeter points - Alando Tucker is the best player in America right now, but he's still not a prolific scorer outside the paint. The Buckeyes have the ultimate defensive weapon on the blocks. That means Bucky's guards must show up offensively in this game. Kam Taylor continues to tease fans; he's capable of canning a half dozen threes and accounting for 25 points on any given night, but he's never been a big game player. He'll not only have his hands full trying to stop Ohio State's elite guards, but he must be an offensive catalyst. If he can hit a couple of threes early, it will make the Buckeyes respect his outside shot, stretching the defense and making life far easier for Tucker and Butch inside. If Taylor is Colonel Clank again, the Badgers won't be able to overcome it. Michael Flowers and Jason Bohannon aren't typically asked to score much, but if they get open shots, they must knock them down.</font>

<font size=""5"">Key Reserves</font>

<font color=""DimGray""><font size=""3"">Ohio State</font></font>

Daequan Cook - G/F - 6'5", 210 FR



Cook is a versatile player who has shown flashes of being the second best freshman in this elite class. With a smooth outside game and the ability to get to the rim, Cook can score in a variety of ways and doesn't need to dominate the ball in order to dominate a game. He will give the Buckeyes a big lift off the bench, and it should be interesting to see how he plays with Alando Tucker likely to defend him often. Cook could be the key player for Ohio State in this game, and the Buckeyes are counting on him to show maturity and poise in this game. Other key reserves for Ohio State include forward Ivan Harris, a former McDonald's All-American who has finally come out of his shell on offense. He's a dangerous shooter, and really can get hot from behind the arc in a hurry. He's not much of a Big 10 player in the paint, however. Wing David Lighty, the least heralded of this year's freshman class, is a useful player as well. He can score and rebounds better than expected, but is just about the only Buckeye who isn't a prolific three point shooter. Matt Terwilliger is a tenacious backup post player. He can step out and shoot, and while he doesn't have a whole lot of bulk, he gets the job done rebounding and defending in the paint.

Joe Krabbenhoft - G/F - 6'7", 220 SO



Though he was a five-star recruit prior to his arrival in Madison, Krabbenhoft hasn't put up eye-popping numbers in his year and a half with the Badgers. Rather, he seems content to do all the little things that a veteran team needs to do to succeed. Krabbenhoft is the quintissential role player; he rebounds well, can defend multiple positions, makes good decisions with the ball, and can score when he needs to. He may not be as big a factor as usual in this game due to Ohio State's tendancy to go with a three-guard lineup, but whenever Krabbenhoft is on the floor he'll be in the middle of the action and making coach Ryan happy. Jason Bohannon, so far the best of Wisconsin's own solid 2006 recruiting class, is the top backup guard. He's as good a triple threat as many of the Buckeyes, and has been better than advertised as a rebounder and defender. The backup big men include a pair of former top prospects; 7'1" Greg Steimsma and combo forward Marcus Landry. Steimsma is an excellent passer, but has also developed a bad reputation with Big 10 refs for being overly physical on occasion. Landry is athletic and would be starting for most teams. He's a good help defender and Hunter-esque weak side shot blocker. When discussing the Badgers, it should be noted that due to their depth, players like Tucker and Taylor average just a hair over 30 minutes played per game.

<font size=""5"">Prediction</font>

Wisconsin and Ohio State couldn't be more different. The Badgers are a veteran, defensive-minded team that features the nation's best small forward. They aren't a great deep-shooting team, and there's not a dominanat scorer at the 4 or 5. Ohio State is young, athletic and likes to run. They get the majority of their points from behind the three point arc or down low. Despite the teams' differences, this will be an excellent game. The Buckeyes match up well with Wisconsin, on paper. They've got athletic interior defenders to combat Tucker's scoring ability in the paint, and the Buckeye guards are capable of taking over a game with the three point shot. Wisconsin must get secondary scoring and use their depth and experience, as well as a raucus home crowd, to their advantage. I think that Ohio State is the better team on paper, but Wisconsin hasn't been known to lose at home. This will probably be the best win on either team's resume all season long, and it will be a treat to see two such different but great teams fight it out so early in conference play. The Badgers must control the tempo of this game at home; they don't want to got into a running and shooting game with the superior Buckeye backcourt. The Badgers must run their offense and physically wear out the young Ohio State players with their depth and home-court tenacity.

<font size=""5""><font color=""Red"">Wisconsin 70</font>, <font color=""DimGray"">Ohio State 64</font></font></div>

 

And I just wanted to say publicly that I DID NOT vote Wisconsin #1 in JBB's poll.

 

^ Interesting point you brought up, Shape - much like Redick last year, this game will show whether Tucker can score big against the athletic, big guys that the NBA is full of. I don't know about not having enough time to prep for the Buckeyes, though; we last played on Saturday, but we had a week off prior to that, and this game has been circled on our calender all year long. If we do lose, it had better not be because we weren't ready, because this is a team that should know how to prepare for an opponent like OSU. I'll be mad as hell if we pull a Buckeyes in last night's game.

 

<div class="quote_poster">shapecity Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Well I retract my previous comment, Wisconsin has had ample time to prepare for this game. Now it comes down to execution and anticipating the adjustments Ohio State might resort to.</div>

That's exactly my biggest concern. I wouldn't be surprised if Tucker had a terrible game - he, like most players in the nation, has never seen a team like OSU with those bigs inside.

Well, I'm off to the Kohl Center, wish Bucky luck!

 

Hey, I'd like to think that if we lost I wouldn't have blamed it all on SI

Well, that was a pretty interesting game. It's too bad that the Buckeyes only found their range in the final minute, and that Wisconsin decided not to make a free throw, because this was looking like a very convincing win for most of the 2nd half. I'm not 100% sure, but I don't think that OSU ever led after the first five minutes of the game.

Kam Taylor finally came to play, and it couldn't have come at a better time. He really played well on defense; when he's at his best, he's still not a great man defender, but he plays passing lanes well and has plenty of quickness to make plays. And those threes he hit in the 1st half really were a lift; when we can get those shots falling early, we're a much better offensive team. Brian Butch...wow. He plays like an All American against Pitt, and I'm not sure that he even scored in this game. He would get the ball in his hands, and just freeze up. Terrible game for him. Nice game for Chappell, however. He seemed like he wanted to teach a few things to Mr. Oden, and he went right at him on the blocks. And Steimsma disrupted Oden, too. I think he had an off-game, but Wisconsin's depth and toughness up front had to have disrupted him a bit. Ivan Harris can be so dangerous when he's left open on the wing, and it was frustrating seeing him beat us instead of one of their more potent scorers. I think we played about as well defensively in the paint as is possible against Oden and Hunter, who never really got going.

Wisconsin almost collapsed because they missed a half dozen free throws down the stretch. We won't get away with that in the Tourney. It's an achilles heel, as is our perimeter shooting. If we can get production from Taylor like tonight's a bit more often and hit 3 out of every 4 FTs we get, this can be a Final Four team. If we try to beat ourselves like that, we'll get bounced before the Sweet 16.

It was kind of nice to see us get a win in a game in which Tucker was relatively average (by his standards) and Butch did nothing. Flowers can be a very good player when he gets into an offensive flow early on. Butch just needs to figure out whether he's going to be a complete disappointment or a useful player. Good win, albeit a concerning one.

 

I'm starting to think that maybe this Ohio State team will need a lot more time to gel together than I initially thought. First off, I don't know how Greg Oden is getting only 6 shots in an important game like this. The bottom line is that OSU just shot poorly with the basketball, plain and simple.

BTW, Schaddy, no more red font for previews please