CHICAGO -- Needing a first-round Big Ten tournament victory against Indiana to bolster its NCAA tournament resume, the Buckeyes’ two starting seniors and returning star player stepped up to deliver victory.
Ohio State (19-13, 9-12 Big Ten) beat the Indiana Hoosiers (17-15, 8-13) 79-75. Sophomore forward Kaleb Wesson, redshirt senior guard Keyshawn Woods and redshirt senior guard C.J. Jackson combined for 52 points, 25 rebounds and 12 assists. Indiana's main response came from junior guard Devonte Green, who finished with 26.
Ohio State jumped out to a large lead to open the second half, then held off several late Indiana runs to triumph Thursday.
"I knew, based on how much respect we have for their team and for [Indiana coach] Archie [Miller], that they would come back and battle. That's just in their DNA," coach Chris Holtmann said. "Players win games and these two [Woods and Jackson] to my right here, along with having Kaleb back and his defensive presence was the difference."
Wesson grabbed eight points in his first half back for Ohio State, but shot three-for-nine. Indiana limited his efficiency by crashing down on the center.
In response, Jackson stepped up to open half two. Hitting two threes and a driving lay-in consecutively, he reopened the floor for Wesson and the big man responded with six additional points. The duo carried the Buckeyes to a 53-43 lead with 11:10 to play.
By the end of the next media timeout, the lead expanded to 63-46 thanks to a 10-0 run involving two threes by freshman guard Luther Muhammad.
Indiana tried to surge back, mounting an immediate 10-0 run of its own to pull back within seven, 4:20 to play. Jackson quelled it with another three.
"We knew they were going to come back," Jackson said. "We just had to continue to be who we are in those type of moments and continue to fight and stay together."
Indiana pulled within eight again, Woods caught an inbound pass from Jackson and knocked down a mid-range jumper while the shot clock expired.
"Things weren't going our way there for awhile, but you've still gotta keep next play mentality and flush it and move on," junior forward Andre Wesson said.
The Hoosiers still weren’t done.
Another run brought the team within three points with under a minute to play. Woods gave the ball to Wesson, the defense crashed, Woods got it back, drove and finished over a big man to make it a two-score game again.
Still trailing by five, Green sank a shot near mid-court with five seconds remaining. Two-point game.
Jackson stepped to the line and hit a pair of free throws to seal the contest.
"I didn't feel comfortable until the final buzzer rang," Andre Wesson said.
Ohio State’s missed double-digit numbers of shots to open games its last three contests. It appeared the trend may continue after a zero-for-four start against the Hoosiers, but Woods spun away from an Indiana defender and knocked in a fadeaway for the team’s first field goal. Andre Wesson added a baseline jumper to the Buckeyes ahead 8-3 at the first media timeout.
Kaleb Wesson hit a triple to put the team ahead 11-5.
"My teammates were making a big deal at the beginning of the game, 'We're happy to have you back, we're gonna get you the ball, we want you right back in your rhythm," Wesson said.
The Buckeyes proceeded to miss their next seven shots.
To Ohio State’s benefit, Indiana suffered similar struggles during the same 3:42 stretch, scoring four points itself.
Freshman guard Duane Washington broke through with a transition bucket to buck the trend. 13-8 Ohio State, 10:32 left first half.
Indiana fought back to even the score twice before half, but poor three-point shooting (4-for-15 in the first half) prevented it from taking a first-half lead.
"I thought offensively that was probably as poor as we've played here in a long time," Miller said. "Our turnovers in the first half really broke us down in terms of giving them 17 points off turnovers."
The Buckeyes, on the other hand, launched a 7-0 run with the help of an Andre Wesson three to go ahead 29-22 with 3:48 remaining in the half.
Woods turned around and faded away at the buzzer 3:48 later to close the half as he opened it, grabbing additional momentum for the Buckeyes heading into the locker room.
This victory was key for Ohio State and its NCAA tournament chances. Bracketologists such as ESPN's Joe Lunardi placed the Buckeyes as one of the last four teams into the "Big Dance" prior to Thursday's win.
"Everybody went out there and played their heart out, knowing it was a bubble game" Kaleb Wesson said. "Everybody wants to get to the big dance."
Ohio State will continue in the Big Ten tournament with a game against top-seeded Michigan State Friday.
