The Buckeyes’ victory over Kentucky was perhaps their greatest team effort of the season, supported not just by Thornton’s career-best performance but also by an outstanding defensive effort and a sharing of the offensive load.
John Mobley Jr., a freshman, finished with 15 points and three assists in his second collegiate start after Thornton, who scored a career-high 30 points in the Madison Square Garden game.
Aaron Bradshaw was another outstanding player for the Buckeyes. He came off the bench against his old club and hit his first five shots, finishing with 11 points and two steals.
An 8-0 run by Ohio State put the Buckeyes ahead, and they carried a 39-30 lead into halftime after holding the Wildcats to their lowest-scoring half of the season thus far. However, Kentucky, the nation’s top-scoring offense going into the game against OSU, led the Buckeyes by a slim margin early on (8-7 at the first media timeout, 21-20 shortly thereafter).
In the second half, Ohio State maintained their distance from Kentucky, starting with a 6-0 run and never letting up. The Wildcats’ season-low shooting percentage was 29.8%.
Thornton leads the Buckeyes in scoring this season with an average of 16.1 points and 5.1 assists per contest. Devin Royal is also scoring in double figures, with 14.9 points per game, while Mobley is getting 12.9 points per game. With 7.8, Royal leads the club in rebounds as well.
Meechie Johnson Jr., a crucial member of the Buckeyes who averages about 29 minutes per game, has been out of the previous two games and has not yet said when he would return from his extended leave of absence due to a personal issue.
The Buckeyes appeared to be in a groove against the Wildcats that we hadn’t yet seen from them this season, even without Johnson, and the timing couldn’t have been more ideal.
Conversely, the Sycamores appear to be settling into a groove at the ideal time of year. They just defeated the University of Health Sciences & Pharmacy 101-53 at home in Terre Haute, Indiana, extending their winning run to five games.
Indiana State made a season-high 42 field goals and shot 58.3% in the game, which was their second-best performance of the year (their best was 60.7% against Tarleton State). With a season-high 22 points, including 6 of 9 three-pointers, sophomore Jahni Summers led the Sycamores.
Indiana State not only improved offensively but also controlled turnovers, committing just nine in the contest—the fewest in a single game this season.
With guard Samage Teel leading the way with 17.5 points, 4.9 rebounds, and a team-high 4.3 assists per game, three Sycamores are scoring double figures on average per game. He leads the squad in steals as well. Markus Harding and Jaden Daughtry, both forwards, are scoring 10.3 and 10.4 points per game on average. Daughtry is contributing 4.6 rebounds per game, while Harding leads the club with 5.1 rebounds per game.
Indiana State’s average of 11 3-pointers per game is the 12th-best in the country, while the squad is sixth in the nation in terms of effective field goal %.
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