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The Bucks Stop Here
OH-NO.
In conference play, particularly in a conference as difficult top to bottom as the Big Ten, a streak of 3-games is either impressive or alarming.
Unfortunately for The Ohio State Buckeyes, the latter has proven true.
What’s wrong with Thad’s group?
After a stinging defeat in East Lansing to Michigan State in a top-5 battle (after an outstanding late second-half comeback) 72-68 in OT, a stunning home loss to Iowa 84-74 and last night’s collapse in The Barn at Minnesota 63-53, the Buckeyes need a new plan. Whatever is currently in place is not good enough and is not working. They can’t score, turnovers are happening in devastating bunches at critical points in games and there’s a lack of awareness and spontaneous creativity from a team with very talented athletes and players.
This is not Ohio State basketball.
Perhaps the most frustrating complaint from Buckeye Nation is that fans know the team is better than what they’ve seen the past three games on the hardwood.
What to do?
Here are a few suggestions for a mid-season comeback and identity resurrection for the 2013/2014 Ohio State Men’s Basketball Team:
- Design plays for C Amir Williams to score a solid 7-10 points a game (baskets and free throws) by establishing a post-presence with him for occasional spurts during the game
- Design and force more isolation plays for Q, Sam Thompson, Aaron Craft and Marc Loving. The athleticism, wingspans and/or quickness of all of them (a difficult 1 v. 1 match-up for most any player in America) could directly result in 2s and 3s or a pass inside for a 2 or a pass outside for a 3-point basket.
- To mask the fact they don’t have a solid 20-25 point scorer and a 10-15 point accomplice every game, the Buckeyes need to make more 3-pointers. Bottom line. Pure and simple. Making lots of 3s is a cornerstone of every successful Thad Matta team. As simplistic as this reads, it would go a long way to restoring overall confidence in the Buckeyes.
- Finally, they need to make steals and turnovers matter. Defense is an obvious strength of Ohio State and they need to maximize this supremacy in every outing with every turnover. They need to punish their opponents with points and momentum shifting dunks (Sam Thompson, anyone?) off of turnovers. Again, it’s become a necessity because of the team’s lack of reliable, quality offense.
Defense wins championships, but you need offense to win games.
The above suggestions would help Ohio State rebound for the second-half of the season. It will not solve all of their problems in the micro, but it’s a start.
Because as everyone’s seen in the last three games, it’s clear the Buckeyes need to go back to the beginning at square one.
A Leap of Craziness
There is an annual tradition at The Ohio State University for students to jump into the famed Mirror Lake during Michigan “That Team Up North Week.” This leap is usually quite cold because it takes place in mid-late November. However, Mother Nature decided to test the sheer will and bravery of the Buckeye faithful this Winter season with extra frigid winds and plenty of fresh snow to play with in ways that can only be concocted in college.
All of us can now say in unison, “I miss college!”
How many fans would make the bone-chilling leap, despite new campus restrictions requiring participants to wear a wristband…?
Was there ever a doubt? This is The Mirror Lake Leap during “That Team Up North Week.” Just as the Buckeyes will take the field on a blisteringly cold Saturday afternoon in Ann Arbor, the fans have once again clearly shown their dedication and solidarity with the men in scarlet and gray.
Borderline freezing weather? What borderline freezing weather?
The question of the week: What heats up a frozen Buckeye?
Kicking That Team Up North’s ___ (clearing my throat) football team.
Go Bucks!
Two Quarterbacks Walk onto the Field…
The Ohio State Buckeyes travel to Berkeley, California this Saturday to battle the aerial arsenal that is the Cal Bears for an early season match-up between the Big Ten and the Pac-12 conferences.
It’s the Midwest vs. the West Coast.
Before the 2013 season, nearly all the hype for the Buckeyes was dedicated to their star quarterback, Braxton Miller. However, after a nasty hit in last week’s game against San Diego State that left Miller’s helmet on the field after just nine plays, head coach Urban Meyer has yet to definitively clear him to start this weekend. Miller is considered to be a game time decision.
And yet, this is, potentially, not even the biggest headline going into the game.
The most intriguing question is how much playing time will backup sensation Kenny Guiton receive? Guiton has proven to play with a style very close to that of Miller, which could open up the offensive playbook for some very fun, unusual play calls where two quarterbacks are lined up in a spread formation.
Sound familiar Buckeye fans?
The storylines for the game in Berkeley consist of many aspects, like:
- Cal’s passing offense vs. Ohio State’s active (or reactive) nature in the secondary
- Ohio State’s diverse rushing attack
- Will Braxton Miller start? If so, how much will he play? How effective will he be?
- Does Kenny Guiton start? If not, how much time might he see?
- Will Cal’s capable rusher deflect the young “Silver Bullets?”
- Will defense, ultimately, be a factor? Or will the Bears and Buckeyes engage in an old fashioned western shootout?
- How influential is Cal’s home field advantage?
Still, beyond the suspected pregame analysis, what would the Buckeyes look like with two athletic quarterbacks lined up in a spread formation? Imagine the possibilities…
Everyone is talking about Plan A (with Miller) or Plan B (with Guiton).
I’m thinking of a more dynamic formula. How about A + B?
Playing with the starting quarterback and backup quarterback in formations would be a very liberal approach to the offense and I can think of no better place to experiment with such an endeavor than Berkeley, California.
Jimmy's Daily Planet 