No. 4 Ohio State vs. Indiana: First Half Notebook

Here are some first half thoughts as the Buckeyes lead Indiana at the break.

Author:
Brendan Gulick
Publish date:
Feb 13, 2021 12:51 PM EST

Halftime Score: Ohio State 38, Indiana 28

I’m really impressed with the Buckeyes defense in the beginning of the first half. They’re hedging screens really well (especially Kyle Young) and recovering from those hedges even better. But the Hoosiers, who were once down 21-6, have significantly cut into the Buckeye lead.

Ohio State's largest lead was 31-15 with 5:21 to play, but a 13-3 run for Indiana over the final stretch of the first half made this game much tighter.

The Hoosiers weren't locked in on the boards early on, but Indiana narrowed that deficit as the half progressed. Ohio State rebounded six of its first nine misses.

“They looked like choir boys but they played like a motorcycle gang.” ... That’s how ESPN’s Jay Bilas described Chris Holtmann’s teams at Butler and said this Buckeyes exhibits the same toughness.

I loved that and for a huge chunk of the first half, the Buckeyes really embraced the defensive end of the floor. Ohio State forced Indiana into eight turnovers and they've taken a few really tough shots. That said, the Hoosiers also have a couple of pretty ugly misses on wide open 3-balls.

The big run of the first half came from the Buckeyes fairly early. After giving up a couple early 3-pointers, Ohio State ripped off a 19-0 run over 6:57 and held the Hoosiers to 1-of-10 shooting with six turnovers in that stretch. It gave the Buckeyes a 21-6 lead with just over 10 minutes left in the first half.

E.J. Liddell and Duane Washington Jr. got off to a marvelous start. They scored 15 of the Buckeyes first 17 points by hitting five of their first seven shots collectively, including three 3’s. They combined for 24 in the first half.

The Buckeyes continue to play extremely efficient on the offensive end, scoring 1.267 points per possession so far ... that's an ELITE number. They're hitting outside, but they're getting to the basket easily.

Indiana scores 33 points in the paint per game on average ... in the first half, they have 10.

If you're interested, here's an extended video preview of Saturday's game:

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