COLUMBUS — Ohio State (10-3, 2-0) handed out an incredible 27 assists on 37 field goals made on their way to an easy 94-65 win against The Citadel (5-7) in Value City Arena Tuesday night.
The unselfish nature of the Buckeye ball movement put four OSU scorers in double figures, led by a game-high 17 points from guard Kam Williams and forward Keita Bates-Diop. Point guard C.J. Jackson added 13 points and seven assists, with just two turnovers, and point guard Andrew Dakich added a season-high 10 points with five assists and zero turnovers.
The Citadel attempted 43 three-point shots, making just 13 of them. For the game, the Bulldogs shot just 23-of-71 (.324) from the field.
Following a three-pointer by The Citadel’s Kaiden Rice to cut Ohio State’s lead to six points at 18-12 halfway through the first half, the Buckeyes then went on a 26-11 run to close out the half. Dakich scored seven of his 10 points in that run.
Ohio State built their lead in the first half and simply went through the motions of keeping it in the second half. The Buckeyes outscored the Bulldogs 50-42 in the game’s final 20 minutes. The Citadel’s three-point shooting began to find its mark, however, as they went 8-for-18 from the field.
It didn’t matter though, the damage had been done, and was continuing to be done on nearly every possession. The Buckeyes made 9-of-22 three-point attempts in the second half, which allowed them to stay right with The Citadel and keep them at a really long arm’s length.
In fact, it was a three-pointer from Kam Williams which gave Ohio State a 39-point lead — their largest — with 5:31 remaining in the game. Bates-Diop hit three of his five three-point attempts in the second half as well.
Sophomore center Micah Potter played 19 minutes, which was his most extensive action in weeks following an ankle sprain that he has been slow to recover from.
Up next for the Buckeyes is a 1:30 pm tip in New Orleans against No. 5/No. 4 North Carolina (CBS).
The Star
Kam Williams scored a season-high 17 points in 20 minutes off the bench. Williams was 7-of-13 from the field and 3-of-7 from three-point territory. The Buckeyes have been looking for a spark from Williams, who has been missing his shooting touch. With North Carolina and the Big Ten on the horizon, this was a good sight for the Buckeyes.
The Unexpected
Ohio State finished with 27 assists on 37 made field goals, which is just a remarkable exchange rate. And they did it while only turning the ball over 12 times against a Bulldogs team that likes to push the pace. The Buckeyes have been sloppy on offense at times this season, but OSU’s three main ball handlers — C.J. Jackson, Andrew Dakich, and Jae’Sean Tate — combined for 15 assists and just three turnovers in 56 minutes of court time.
The Quote
“I think we just have a veteran team. Kam (Williams) has been around for five years now, Tate and Bates-Diop have both been around too. We always preach that you can become either better or worse on this day. We’ve seen teams come in here who are major and come and beat us. Underdogs can come in here and this is like their championship, so we’ve got to match their intensity and come out swinging every night.” — Andrew Dakich on the Buckeyes’ 5-game win streak.
The Box Score
The Notes
- The game marked the first meeting between Ohio State and the Citadel.
- The Buckeyes are 18-1 all-time against members of the Southern conference.
- The Citadel attempted 43 3-pointers in the contest. This was the third-most 3-pointers Ohio State has allowed since 1996, and the most allowed since Nov. 25, 2007 when VMI attempted 49.
- Ohio State recorded a season-high 27 assists on the night.
- The Buckeyes attempted a season-high 74 shots on the night.
- This marks the first time the Buckeyes have recorded 25+ assists since Dec. 22, 2014 against Miami (OH).
- Ohio State shot 50% from the field. It is 6-0 on the season when shooting 50% or better on the season.
- Ohio State held the Citadel to 32.4% from the field. This is a season-low for opponent field goal percentage for the season.
- The Buckeyes are 9-1 when holding opponent to less than 50% shooting on the season.
- The Buckeyes are 10-0 this season when scoring 70+ points.
- The Buckeyes tied a season low committing only 12 fouls.
- The game marked the third time a Chris Holtmann team has squared off against the Citadel.
- Holtmann holds a 3-0 record against the Citadel for his career and 1-0 at the helm of the Buckeyes.
- Keita Bates-Diop tied for the team lead with 17 points while grabbing four boards and dishing out two assists.
- Bates-Diop has led the Buckeyes in scoring in seven games this season.
- The Buckeyes are 6-1 in games in which Bates-Diop leads the team in scoring this season.
- Andrew Dakich scored a career-high 10 points and tying a career high in assists with five.
- Dakich’s set career highs in field goals attempted (four), 3-point field goals attempted (three) while tying career highs in field goals (three) and made 3-pointers (two).
- Kam Williams scored a season-high 17 points to tie for the team lead.
- Williams has now scored in double-figures in three straight contests.
- Kyle Young scored four points while grabbing a career-high eight boards.
[Keita Bates-Diop photo courtesy OhioStateBuckeyes.com]