Tobacco Road Report

November 10, 2006. Ohio State let VMI hang around for the first half, but turned up the intensity in the second half and pulled away from a scrappy VMI squad 107-69 for a victory in the Black Coaches Association Classic.

VMI employs a run-n-gun style, launching 23 three point attempts and 50 field goal attempts in the first half alone. OSU, playing without the services of super frosh Greg Oden, seemed content to let VMI dictate the pace. The Buckeyes launched 18 three point attempts of their own in the first half and generally played into the hands of VMI.

The Buckeye defense was sloppy early on, with defenders routinely flying past three point shooters on ball fakes and refusing to close out properly. VMI continued to get very good looks at the basket and the pace of the game meant that VMI had reasonable second chance opportunities since box outs are difficult when the tempo is so high. With 6:40 left in the first half, VMI only trailed by six, 33-27.

Teams like VMI are very difficult to play. Opponents need to be disciplined on defense and guard the three point line. OSU was least successful when they tried to match VMI three pointer for three pointer. OSU was most successful when they shut down the three point shot and forced VMI to put the ball on the floor. This took VMI out of their comfort zone and forced them to take shots over much longer defenders. Make a jump shooter move and I’ll show you an unhappy jump shooter. Let him set his feet and it’s all over.

In the second half OSU tightened the defense and controlled the glass. Holding VMI to one shot each trip down the floor and limiting second chance points is what opened up the game for the Buckeyes. The Buckeyes came out of the locker room patient on offense, often passing up the first three point opportunity and electing to take the extra pass. Patience and ball reversal resulted in two open looks at the three and pushed the score to 61-49 with 15:37 to play.

Finally, with the Lumberjacks knocked back on their heels, OSU began to pressure the ball and shoot the passing lanes. Before VMI could counter, the Buckeyes finished a 17-7 run on their way to a 38 point victory.

The Buckeye Offense
The Buckeye offense is keyed by Mike Conley, a 6’1” freshman out of Indianapolis. He is controlled with the dribble and sees the floor well. He’s a traditional pass-first point guard, a novelty these days, but his quick first step gives him the ability to penetrate and score if necessary.

When Conley initiates the offense, the Buckeyes remain well spaced and efficient. When Conley gives up the ball, then the decision making is more suspect, largely due to the youth and inexperience of the remaining Buckeyes. Athletic opponents should try to exploit this by trapping and forcing the ball out of Conley’s hands.

VMI wasn’t athletic enough to accomplish this and simply couldn’t contain Conley. When they did attempt to use a half to three-quarter court press, Conley used his speed with the dribble to split the traps and fed teammates for easy buckets. Conley won’t be able to break the press with the dribble in conference, but if he finds a small gap his first step is very fast.

The other Buckeye that played will was Daequan Cook. He runs the floor well and is an excellent finisher on the break. He showed the ability to score going right and left and is a good leaper. As if that isn’t enough, Cook also has three point range.

The Buckeye defense
The Buckeyes will primarily use man-to-man and zone-up occasionally on out of bound situations. They are long and athletic and play the passing lanes aggressively. However, the Buckeyes are young and their aggressiveness can be used against them with ball fakes and shot fakes.

Until they learn to close-out on jump shooters with more proficiency, teams should be able to get good looks if they are patient. When Oden returns, he may be able to cover some of these defensive weaknesses with his shot blocking presence, but teams with good mid-range shooters (are there any left these days?) may still find success.

It’s difficult to draw significant conclusions at this stage of the season, given the state of the competition, the youth of the Buckeyes, and the lack of Oden. TRR counsels the Buckeye faithful to have some patience with this squad. The talent is there, but experience is not and the Big Ten is seldom hospitable to freshman point guards.

A full understanding of the Buckeyes offensively and defensively will not be known until January. That said, TRR did see enough to conclude the following:

• The strength of the Buckeyes offensively is their athleticism and versatility. Conley is an excellent point guard and the offense runs smoothly when he’s initiating, driving, and dishing. When the ball is out of his hands or he’s out of the game, opponents can take advantage of the weaker decision making skills in the rest of the backcourt.


• The Buckeyes are young and lack depth. With only eight scholarship players on the roster and the injury of Oden, the Buckeyes can’t survive additional injuries or foul trouble. Yes the Buckeyes are ranked pre-season number 3, but analysts may be judging their future potential and not present.


• OSU needs to develop an identity. With this much athleticism and ability, the Buckeyes need to simply impose their will on the game and opponents, rather than allowing lesser quality opponents to hang around much too long. TRR will be watching to see how the Buckeyes develop in this regard.