Ohio State looked like a team that can compete with anyone Tuesday night, using a 12-0 run to pass No. 1 Duke at home.
Here's what the Buckeyes can take from this huge upset win.
Zed Key can be an answer in the post
Zed Key had himself a mismatch to deal with.
The Ohio State sophomore forward, standing at 6-foot-8, lined up for the opening tip off against Duke center Mark Williams: a 7-foot-1 sophomore.
Duke won the toss. Clearly, just like the mismatch was clear from the start.
But the thing is, Key found his touch in the paint.
The sophomore forward brought in four of his first five attempts from the floor for a team-leading eight points. He was physical, pushing up against Williams and forward Theo John in the post. He looked like he belonged, even if the rebounding numbers were few and far between early on, going to the likes of E.J. Liddell and Justin Ahrens.
And Ohio State needed that touch from inside early on against Duke, making only two of its first seven 3-point attempts, heating up later for eight makes on 20 attempts from deep.
When Ohio State needed a bucket most late, it was fed to Key, scoring 11 of a career-high 20 points in the second half, battling down low no matter who it was against.
This is the aggressiveness head coach Chris Holtmann has been wanting from his sophomore forward, carrying a load in the paint that he really didn’t have the opportunity to do when the Buckeyes were in Florida.
On the glass, Ohio State was a bit better, holding a plus-four advantage on Duke in terms of rebounding, recording seven offensive rebounds and 12 second-
Although he’s not the perfect big man, he’s not the perfect match for the Hunter Dickinson’s, the Zach Edey’s, the Williams’ of the world, Key worked enough Tuesday night, though.
“All those people clamoring for us to have a center,” head coach Chris Holtmann said Tuesday night, “he’s a center.
“He can be a load down there.”
How did E.J. Liddell step up on the stage No. 1 Duke gave him?
Holtmann had a message for junior forward E.J. Liddell at halftime.
“I told him at halftime, ‘Man, listen: there’s nobody out there who’s better than you,’” Holtmann recalled. “‘Be that guy in the second half.’”
There were times where he was that guy, hitting the fadeaway dagger to send the Schottenstein Center into an absolute frenzy, securing the win against the No. 1 Blue Devils. You also saw glimpses of his continued humanity: the four misses from the free-throw line, the two fouls, the four turnovers.
All in all, Liddell finished with 14 points on five-of-10 shooting, hitting one 3 on three attempts, with a team-high 14 rebounds along with six assists and three blocks.
Liddell did a bit of everything. He played big when he needed to play big. He was a distributor when he needed to distribute. He scored when he needed to score.
Especially if guys like Key, forward Justin Ahrens, guard Cedric Russell or freshman Malaki Branham are working as the main offensive guys, Liddell’s use as being a jack-of-all-trades guy could be huge for his development as a player, especially without Justice Sueing, and for the team as a whole.
Liddell can do it all. Moving forward, it’s about if Ohio State can let him be that player that does it all.
Quick takes
Welcome to the show, Malaki Branham.
The freshman guard showed much more comfort from the field, hitting three of his first four shots from the field in the first half.
Also, Ohio State nearly lost its game to Duke by themselves.
The Buckeyes turned the ball over 12 times, including nine in the first half and five by guard Jamari Wheeler, and missed 11 attempts at the free-throw line.
What this means
Ohio State has shown that it can play with anyone it faces. It also has shown it can play down to opponents, looking at the first two games of the season against Akron and Niagara.
This is a young team, one that will live through its share of ebbs and flows as the 2021-22 campaign continues. It will feed off the energy of its youth, but will also live to see the consequences of a team that has not played together much heading into the 2021-22 campaign.
What did Ohio State learn from its win against No. 1 Duke? That truly anything can happen to the Buckeyes any given night. It learned that it can look like one of the teams to beat in the Big Ten, while also looking like a team that can’t compete with anyone.
But with players like Liddell, Key, Branham, Meechie Johnson Jr., Wheeler, Russell, Kyle Young: it’s extremely hard to look away.
What’s next
Ohio State opens up Big Ten play with a December matchup against Penn State 7:30 p.m. Sunday in State College.
Here's what the Buckeyes can take from this huge upset win.
Zed Key can be an answer in the post
Zed Key had himself a mismatch to deal with.
The Ohio State sophomore forward, standing at 6-foot-8, lined up for the opening tip off against Duke center Mark Williams: a 7-foot-1 sophomore.
Duke won the toss. Clearly, just like the mismatch was clear from the start.
But the thing is, Key found his touch in the paint.
The sophomore forward brought in four of his first five attempts from the floor for a team-leading eight points. He was physical, pushing up against Williams and forward Theo John in the post. He looked like he belonged, even if the rebounding numbers were few and far between early on, going to the likes of E.J. Liddell and Justin Ahrens.
And Ohio State needed that touch from inside early on against Duke, making only two of its first seven 3-point attempts, heating up later for eight makes on 20 attempts from deep.
When Ohio State needed a bucket most late, it was fed to Key, scoring 11 of a career-high 20 points in the second half, battling down low no matter who it was against.
This is the aggressiveness head coach Chris Holtmann has been wanting from his sophomore forward, carrying a load in the paint that he really didn’t have the opportunity to do when the Buckeyes were in Florida.
On the glass, Ohio State was a bit better, holding a plus-four advantage on Duke in terms of rebounding, recording seven offensive rebounds and 12 second-
Although he’s not the perfect big man, he’s not the perfect match for the Hunter Dickinson’s, the Zach Edey’s, the Williams’ of the world, Key worked enough Tuesday night, though.
“All those people clamoring for us to have a center,” head coach Chris Holtmann said Tuesday night, “he’s a center.
“He can be a load down there.”
How did E.J. Liddell step up on the stage No. 1 Duke gave him?
Holtmann had a message for junior forward E.J. Liddell at halftime.
“I told him at halftime, ‘Man, listen: there’s nobody out there who’s better than you,’” Holtmann recalled. “‘Be that guy in the second half.’”
There were times where he was that guy, hitting the fadeaway dagger to send the Schottenstein Center into an absolute frenzy, securing the win against the No. 1 Blue Devils. You also saw glimpses of his continued humanity: the four misses from the free-throw line, the two fouls, the four turnovers.
All in all, Liddell finished with 14 points on five-of-10 shooting, hitting one 3 on three attempts, with a team-high 14 rebounds along with six assists and three blocks.
Liddell did a bit of everything. He played big when he needed to play big. He was a distributor when he needed to distribute. He scored when he needed to score.
Especially if guys like Key, forward Justin Ahrens, guard Cedric Russell or freshman Malaki Branham are working as the main offensive guys, Liddell’s use as being a jack-of-all-trades guy could be huge for his development as a player, especially without Justice Sueing, and for the team as a whole.
Liddell can do it all. Moving forward, it’s about if Ohio State can let him be that player that does it all.
Quick takes
Welcome to the show, Malaki Branham.
The freshman guard showed much more comfort from the field, hitting three of his first four shots from the field in the first half.
Also, Ohio State nearly lost its game to Duke by themselves.
The Buckeyes turned the ball over 12 times, including nine in the first half and five by guard Jamari Wheeler, and missed 11 attempts at the free-throw line.
What this means
Ohio State has shown that it can play with anyone it faces. It also has shown it can play down to opponents, looking at the first two games of the season against Akron and Niagara.
This is a young team, one that will live through its share of ebbs and flows as the 2021-22 campaign continues. It will feed off the energy of its youth, but will also live to see the consequences of a team that has not played together much heading into the 2021-22 campaign.
What did Ohio State learn from its win against No. 1 Duke? That truly anything can happen to the Buckeyes any given night. It learned that it can look like one of the teams to beat in the Big Ten, while also looking like a team that can’t compete with anyone.
But with players like Liddell, Key, Branham, Meechie Johnson Jr., Wheeler, Russell, Kyle Young: it’s extremely hard to look away.
What’s next
Ohio State opens up Big Ten play with a December matchup against Penn State 7:30 p.m. Sunday in State College.
