Big X began The Basketball Tournament with fewer former Ohio State players than it originally planned, but it was a Buckeye that got them the win in the first round.
One point away from the hitting the 78-point total designating a win in the Elam ending format, C.J. Jackson got his own miss and tossed in a mid-range floater that sealed the deal for Big X 79-74 against D2 Saturday in Columbus, Ohio.
"The guys told me, 'Just be a little bit more aggressive, especially going down the stretch,'" Jackson said.
It turned out to be sound advice. Jackson finished with seven points on 3-of-8 shooting, but Big X’s prospects of a first-round win didn’t look great early on.
Ninth-seeded Big X entered the favorite against D2, a backup team replacing the Jackson Underdawgs due to a positive COVID-19 test. But it was D2 that jumped out early nonetheless.
Big X fell behind 15 points in the first half after a shaky start shooting, but it weathered the D2 storm to make it a game in the second half.
Jackson whipped a pass to Columbus, Ohio, Native and former Michigan State big man Nick Ward in transition for an easy dunk that gave Big X a 46-45 lead with four minutes left in the third quarter. It was their first lead since the game was 1-0.
Former Wisconsin standout Khalil Iverson put Big X ahead once again with a run-out dunk in the open floor early in the fourth quarter, but both teams traded blows as the lead changed several times in the final period.
For D2, former Florida Southern guard Kevin Capers poured in a game-high 25 points, but Ward scored 15 of his 18 points in the second half to help give Big X the ultimate edge.
"We're really playing Big Ten basketball if you really think about it. Physical basketball," Ward said.
D2 took an eight-point lead five minutes into the game, courtesy of hot three-point shooting from several players. The team connected on three of its first four attempts from deep, as former Queens U guard Mike Davis, UNC Charlotte’s Demario Mayfield and former Ferris State guard Deshaun Thrower all hit from beyond the arc.
The first points from a former Buckeye didn’t come until the 1:28 mark of the first quarter, as Andrew Dakich hit a three from the corner to make it 19-9, but Capers fired back with a four-point play on the other end, fouled on a three-pointer to maintain a commanding lead.
Juggling coaching duties along with playing, Dakich didn't see much time on the court in the second half.
"I just let these guys hoop. It's not about myself getting out there and playing, it's really about us," Dakich said. "We're after one main goal."
D2 was up 23-11 after the first quarter, as only three Big X players got in the scoring box. Former Gahanna Lincoln standout and Michigan State alum Javon Bess led the way for Big X with five first-quarter points.
In the second quarter, a two-minute scoring drought allowed Big X to cut the lead to single digits, as an 8-0 run saw former Fairmont State guard Jamel Morris score five-straight points. Former Ohio State Jackson found Morris cutting to the hoop with a bounce-pass dime for a reverse layup to make it 28-20 halfway through the quarter.
Morris led both teams with six points in the second quarter, which helped Big X climb back to take just a six-point deficit into halftime at 36-30.
Former Butler guard Kellen Dunham aided the comeback effort, as he drained a deep contested three from the top of the key to cut the D2 lead to five with four minutes left in the half.
But D2 scored the next seven points to stay well ahead of Big X.
Ward got his first field goal with a minute left in the first half, grabbing his own rebound to score inside on an and-one, but missed his fourth free throw of the game. Ward started 1-for-5 from the field and the charity stripe.
Both teams shot under 40 percent from the field in the first half.
With the win, Big X advances to face Red Scare in the next round Wednesday, where they hope to get Jae’Sean Tate back on the court after a negative COVID-19 test in June.
