Buckeyes Looked Up to Bryant as Basketball Royalty
Shocking events inflict without subtlety a stark lesson in perspective on those touched by the tragedy in some way, and given Kobe Bryant's reach in basketball it's hard to find a corner of that world where his influence and impact didn't extend.
The breadth and depth of the shadow Bryant cast covers even the Ohio State locker room and left the Buckeyes with conflicting feelings Sunday as news of the Los Angeles Laker great's death in a helicopter crash passed from nightmarish incredulity to harsh reality.
None of the Buckeyes are too old to remember Bryant as an elite NBA player, given he was still an All-Star when most of OSU's players were young teenagers and Bryant was winning the last of his five NBA titles when they were probably sinking their teeth into the sport as 9- and 10-year-olds in their first travel leagues.
Ohio State coach Chris Holtmann knew his team would battle a spectrum of emotions when his staff informed the roster about Bryant's death in an afternoon film session on Sunday in Evanston, Ill., where OSU defeated Northwestern later that night.
Holtmann sensed his players needed some quiet time to think, and so he bypassed the normal pre-game shoot-around and simply took them on a walk around Lake Michigan on the Northwestern campus to let them clear their heads.
That was the second unusual occurrence of the day, following a premature wake-up call just after 4 a.m. because of a hotel fire alarm that rousted the Buckeyes from their slumber and forced them outside into the frigid temperatures.
Nevertheless, they persevered to pull out a 71-59 victory thanks to 39 points off the bench, including a career-high 17 from D.J. Carton and 12 from Justin Ahrens.
Duane Washington added 8 off the bench, while wearing Bryant's name and number on his shoes.
Washington's relationship with Bryant was more than hero worship. As the nephew of former Lakers point guard Derek Fisher, Washington frequently saw and spoke with Bryant while living with his uncle during high school in California.
"I didn’t believe it was real at first,” Washington told The Columbus Dispatch. “I remember going to my uncle’s games and (Bryant) always coming up to me and calling me ‘neph’ (nephew) and giving me a hug and telling me I’m getting bigger every time I saw him.
“It’s Kobe Bryant, man. I looked up to him as a role model. It’s just heartbreaking to have an unfortunate accident like that.”
OSU senior Andre Wesson didn't know Bryant personally, but like many players of this generation, aspired to be Kobe-like.
That's why Wesson switched his number from high school to college so he could wear Bryant's No. 24.
Wesson also announced his decision to attend Ohio State on the day Bryant retired after 20 NBA seasons.
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