Ohio State vs. Penn State: First Half Notebook

Halftime Score: Ohio State 47, Penn State 43

I love the nod to one of the all-time great college basketball coaches, John Thompson. Both Chris Holtmann and Jim Ferry are sporting towels on their shoulders that have Coach Thompson on them.

Towel for Coach Thompson. 🖤@OhioStateHoops // @ChrisHoltmann pic.twitter.com/OG1qSMSnOb
— Ohio State on BTN (@OhioStateOnBTN) February 19, 2021

Duane Washington Jr. hit a 3-pointer early in the game to give Ohio State it's first points of the night, but it was a perfect example of how teams are struggling to guard the Buckeyes whenever Justin Ahrens is on the floor. Ahrens has become such a lethal threat and drawn such great attention that Washington found himself wide open for a rhythm 3-ball. The Nittany Lions really need to prioritize guarding the 3-point line.

The Buckeyes hit 6-of-9 for the first half, Ahrens hitting three of them.

The first 13 minutes of the game were a ridiculous offensive performance on both sides. The Buckeyes hit 12-of-17 to start the game, including 5-of-6 from behind the 3-point line. At one point, they connected on nine consecutive shots. But Penn State buried 9-of-15 over that same stretch and kept within arms' reach. Ohio State led 31-22 with 7:53 to play in the first half.

For as bad as Penn State shot the ball the last couple of games in losing to Michigan State and Nebraska, the Nittany Lions are hitting shots from almost unlimited range. They banged home three straight 3-pointers to tie the game at 31-31.

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Musa Jallow got some pretty meaningful minutes in the first half. He's had a few good plays, but a couple frustrating ones as well. His baseline dunk on a great feed from E.J. Liddell stood out as a first half highlight, but he had a pretty frustrating turnover too.

E.J. Liddell had a terrific first half. He scored 17 points on 6-of-8 from the field so far. His 17 points are already more than he's scored in 12 of his 19 games this year.

Penn State continues to make the most of second chances. They really hurt the Buckeyes in the first game with offensive rebounds and second chance points. In the first half, they had five offensive boards and cashed in 11 points on them.

Jamari Wheeler is in double figures already with 11 points. It's the first time he's scored 10+ points in a game since his season-opener. But he left late in the first half with an apparent knee injury.

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