Buckeyes better be ready Saturday/MSU loses at home to Northwestern

Continuing the theme there are no cupcakes (outside of IU) in conference this season, MSU lost at home to Northwestern last night. That adds one more aspect to what the Spartans will bring into Columbus Saturday. The formula to become the conference champion, that teams usually have to try to meet or be better than, is that a Big 10 team must win all their games at home and split, 50/50, games on the road. So, the Spartans now have to make up a loss at home versus the Buckeyes. It’s going to be a very hard fought game, I believe, given that Ohio State was blown out at Illinois Tuesday and will not be in a very good mood themselves that day.

Also, the Iowa Hawkeyes defeated the Wisconsin Badgers last night in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Things are really starting to heat up in the Big Ten as it is becoming apparent conference teams are as evenly matched as any in recent memory. No one is invincible.

This year’s freshman crop doesn’t compare to recent classes/BJ Mullens focus

On a recent college gameday telecast, ESPN’s Hubert Davis and Digger Phelps participated in a segment comparing the 2008 freshmen class to recent classes including players like Greg Oden and Derrick Rose.

Phelps took the time to describe why it’s difficult for any freshman to play well, no matter how skilled/gifted, right away at the Division 1 level versus experienced players. Phelps used Ohio State’s BJ Mullens as a focal poinbt upon which to make his point.

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Phelps – “Look at BJ Mullens at Ohio State. It’s much different than in high school because you get experience coming at you in the paint. You got to learn new defensive moves. You got to learn how to stay out of foul trouble and obviously you got to learn how to get 2nd chance points from offensive rebounds. Plus, how do you score? And I think BJ Mullens hasn’t learned that yet at Ohio State.’

Those words were stated two weeks ago. Since then we’ve seen Mullens begin to show some life as far as putting some of those aspects together positively. But BJ has so far to go yet to really be a good player. I see BJ still riding a roller coaster as far as consistency goes for a large part of the rest of this season. And like Kosta Koufos last season, I think if the Buckeyes can get into the post season we may see his best games played there in a row.

I guess the only question is whether the Buckeyes and Mullens will be playing for an NIT title again or trying to win a game in the NCAA tournament in March?

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To end the segment, Hubert Davis mentioned Memphis’s Tyreke Evans and Greg Monroe being rated highly this season but it’s just not the same as compared to Greg Oden and Derrick Rose (who were dominant players right away at the collegiate level, with both competitors taking their teams to the NCAA championship game)

Buckeye basketball add ons

Some of this goes back a week or two but I think if you are a Buckeye fan you will appreciate the content nevertheless.

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1. Ohio State’s Tracey Hall, the Big Ten’s first 2-time Kodak All-American, will have her #44 jersey retired at halftime of the February 15th Northwestern game. Tracey played for Ohio State from 1985-1988. During the ceremony, she will have her jersey hung beside the only other Ohio State woman’s player to be so honored before her, Katie Smith.

I’ve heard nothing but great things about Tracey Hall for the quality of her basketball skills and the competitive nature she exhibited on court. It’s always great to hear the stories about players of her ilk when they are honored in this way. I can hardly wait for that day to arrive.

2. Jon Diebler and Evan Turner are together averaging 34 minutes apiece. Only two other Big Ten players average more.

This data was mined a few weeks back but it still seem like they are both on court for a million minutes each game. Here’s to hoping coach Matta finds a way to keep them fresh throughout the season.

3. In a pre-season poll among Big Ten players present at media day Emily Fox of Minnesota and Ohio State’s Jantel Lavender both garnered 4 votes (tied for the lead in that category) for being the player other conference competitors players were looking forward to competing against because they were respected and admired. Fox was voted pre-season MVP among the players with 5 and 2/3 votes and Lavender came in second with 5 and 1/12 votes.

It was interesting to watch Fox compete last week as the Gophers picked up their first win ever in Columbus against Ohio State. She’s a very good player and deserving of any awards or appreciation she recieves from her fellow competitors. But I also know just how good Jantel Lavender is. Buckeye fans are lucky to have her wearing the Scarlet and Grey for two more seasons past this one.

4. At one point Dallas Lauderdale had been credited with 28 blocked shots in 6 games but only blocked 6 in the next seven games.

Consequently, along with the loss of David Lighty, that change in the pace of blocked shot totals DL earned for Ohio State coincided with the difficulties the Buckeyes had in closing out games versus Minnesota and MSU.

5. Jon Gasaway, formerly known as the creator of the much read site Big Ten Wonk, who now works for the much respected Basketball and Baseball Prospectus site, rates former Buckeye commit, Nevada Wolfpack power forward, Luke Babbit as the 5th best freshman in the country.

I would have loved to have had Babbit play for Ohio State but I’m really happy with how William Buford and BJ Mullens have progressed this season for the Buckeyes. Neither of those two were rated by Gasaway but the list was a short one, I think ending at 15 total. By year’s end I feel certain one and probably both of Ohio State’s twosome will be ranked near the top of any list about the best 1st year players in the 08/09 class.

Greg Monroe of Georgetown was ranked number 1.