Oregon Falls To Ohio State 72-62

Oregon fell to Ohio State 72-62 at home on Thursday night. Ohio State used a big second-half run to win the game in Oregon; most of the salient action happened while people on the East Coast were asleep. It was a good sign for the Buckeyes; Devin Royal was their leading scorer in a fairly balanced account.

With the win over Oregon, Ohio State improved to 11-4 overall and 3-2 in the Big Ten Conference. It is their first 3-0 start in Big Ten road games since the 2017–18 season. Oregon is now 8-8 overall and 1-4 in the Big Ten play. Do you think scoring depth will help Ohio State?

Oregon Falls to Ohio State 72-62 Summary

Oregon fell to Ohio State 72-62 on Thursday night. Ohio State used a big second-half scoring run to get the win. All five Ohio State starters finished in double figures in scoring. The leading scorer was Royal, who had 14 points and 10 rebounds. It was his third double-double of the season. Senior Center Christoph Tilly also had 14 points. He added 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 blocks. 

In fact, Ohio State had a very balanced scoring against Oregon. All five of the Ohio State starters scored more than 10 points. As mentioned, both Tilly and Royal each had 14 points. John Mobley Jr. had 13 points, Bruce Thornton had 12 (and reached a major milestone), and Amare Bynum scored 10 points. This kind of balanced scoring, if it continues, makes the Buckeyes a dangerous team.

First Half

Both teams got off to a slow offensive start in this game, but Oregon was the worst. The Ducks started going just 2-of-17 from the field. The Buckeyes led by at least two possessions for the rest of the first half. Bench player Gabe Cupps hit a three-pointer. That provided some much-needed bench production, which pushed the Ohio State first-half advantage to 18-9.

Tilly scored on a fast break, and Cupps made two free throws. That pushed the Ohio State lead to 27-17. Then, Thornton hit a three-pointer to expand the lead back to 10 points. Oregon started to get going with a familiar face. Former Buckeye Sean Stewart hit a layup, then Guard Wei Lin made a three-pointer. Stewart scored with eight seconds remaining in the first half and closed a 5-of-6. The Ducks cut their deficit to 34-29.

Second Half

Oregon scored seven points to start the second half, but then Ohio State got going. Ohio State went on a 21-0 second-half run to essentially win the game. The Ducks had a 14-2 run to try and fight back into the contest, but the Buckeyes played enough ball control and had built a big enough lead to stay away.

The Ohio State lead shrank to as few as 10 points, but that came with less than 10 seconds remaining in the game. Ohio State dribbled out a win from there, and it earned a double-digit victory over a power-conference opponent this season.

News and Notes

• Senior Guard Bruce Thornton finished with just 12 points. However, his second-half jump shot moved him past Jim Jackson for seventh on Ohio State’s all-time scoring list. He now has 1,787 career points.
• Ohio State also held Oregon to 32.8% shooting and just 7-of-30 from three-point range.
• The Ducks were led by Nate Bittle in scoring; he had 14 points, all in the second half. Takai Simpkins had 12 points.
• Cupps scored 9 points for Ohio State off the bench.
• Oregon shot just 26.5% from the field in the first half.

Parting Thoughts

This was an important win over Oregon. Ohio State needed to pull away in the second half. The Buckeyes need to win these games against inferior opponents, and the Ducks are one in basketball. The Buckeyes stay out west to take on the Washington Huskies on Sunday at 6 p.m.