Offensive Rebounding Propels Ohio State Buckeyes Past Miami (OH) RedHawks 84-64

Chris Holtmann’s squad is on a roll.

The Ohio State Buckeyes (8-1, 1-0 Big Ten) defeated the Miami (OH) RedHawks 84-64 behind a big game on the glass from senior forward Zed Key and sophomore forward Evan Mahaffey.

The teams were locked in early on, trading quick buckets. Miami (OH) graduate guard Darweshi Hunter led the scoring front with seven first-half points.

The RedHawks dominated the interior, as 14 of their 26 first-half points came from in the paint. Whether it was freshman guard Evan Ipsaro or Hunter, the backcourt kept attacking the Buckeyes and scoring through contact non-calls.

However, the Buckeye backcourt outshone the Redhawks’ — sophomore guards Bruce Thornton and Roddy Gayle Jr. each put up 10-plus points in the first half.

On top of that, Key, Okpara and Mahaffey combined for eight offensive rebounds, headed by Key’s six. In addition, the interior trio combined for three big blocks and two steals. Ohio State led by 13 at halftime.

Freshman Reece Potter did a great job hedging and recovering to his man-to-man defense, but as soon as the RedHawks switched to a 2-3 zone defense, they began to trail significantly. Ohio State is generally good at getting in the paint but they just kept shooting openly from the free throw line or driving in and finding an open runner in the short corner.

Although it was a slow start for the Buckeyes in the second, Ohio State quietly picked up scoring from all over the floor, including 11 points in the first 12 minutes of the half for graduate forward Jamison Battle, who only played 13 total minutes in the first half.

The Buckeyes had six scorers in double figures.

The RedHawks also had good scoring from all over, including double digits from Hunter, sophomore guard Ryan Mabrey with three 3-pointers and sophomore center Jaquel Morris.

Key continued to raise the roof in the second half, cleaning up the glass for second-chance points and recording his second double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds off the bench.

Key and the Buckeyes return to action Saturday at Bryce Jordan Center in State College, Pennsylvania, against the Penn State Nittany Lions. The conference matchup tips off at 6 p.m. on Big Ten Network.