Three Buckeyes make All-Big Ten
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COLUMBUS, Ohio -- One day after their regular season came to an end with a 68-55 win over Illinois, three members of the Ohio State basketball team were honored when the All-Big Ten teams and awards were announced on Monday.
Deshaun Thomas led the way for the Buckeyes, being named a member to the conference's all-first team by both the Big Ten coaches and media. The junior forward led the league in scoring on the season with 19.8 points per game, while also leading OSU in rebounding with 6.1 boards per night.
Thomas led the Buckeyes in scoring in their regular season finale against the Illini on Sunday, scoring 19 points on 7-of-13 shooting. Despite a second half shooting slump, the Fort Wayne, Ind. never failed to reach double-digit figures in scoring in any of OSU's 30 games this season.
Despite a strong regular season, Thomas remains focused on a potential postseason run, rather than a potential NBA career.
"Right now, there's a lot more basketball left. I'm just going to enjoy my time and try to get to the Final Four," Thomas said. "That's all I'm worried about now."
Joining Thomas on the Big Ten media's first team is OSU point guard and classmate Aaron Craft. Last season's Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, Craft averaged 9.7 points per game, 4.5 assists, and 2 steals in his junior season for the Buckeyes. The Findlay, Ohio native was also selected to the league coaches' second-team, as well as the conference's All-Defensive team.
Also making the Big Ten's All-Defensive team from the Buckeyes was Shannon Scott. The sophomore point guard averaged 1.8 steals per game while playing 20.6 minutes per night, and also added 5 points and 3.8 assists per game while coming off the bench for Ohio State. Scott's defensive efforts played a key role in the Buckeyes ending the regular season on a five-game winning streak, which included a four-steal performance from the Georgia native in OSU's 67-58 win over Indiana on March 5.
"Without question the Big Ten was the top conference in the country this year," Ohio State coach Thad Matta said in a statement. "For Deshaun and Aaron to both earn First Team recognition is quite an accomplishment. It's well known that our league is predicated on defense. Both Aaron and Shannon are deserving members of the All-Defensive team."
Finishing the conference's regular season with a 13-5 record in league play, the Buckeyes will enter this weekend's Big Ten Tournament in Chicago as its No. 2 seed. After receiving a bye in the first round, Ohio State will return to action at 6:30 p.m. (ET) to face the winner of Thursday's matchup between Purdue and Nebraska.
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