Ohio State freshman guard John Mobley Jr. (0) dribbles the ball down the court during the game against Penn State. Mobley scored 19 points to help the Buckeyes defeat the Nittany Lions 83-64. Credit: Ohio State Athletics
The Buckeyes have won back-to-back road games for the first time in over two years.
Ohio State (13-8, 5-5 Big Ten) spoiled Penn State’s (13-9, 3-8 Big Ten) return to Rec Hall and dominated the Nittany Lions 83-64 to extend their winning streak to three.
Forward Devin Royal got the scoring starting for the Buckeyes, converting inside off a dime from guard John Mobley Jr., who scored the following five points for the Buckeyes in a quick start.
Penn State’s forward Yanic Konan Niederhauser made his presence felt, scoring four early points.
However, Ohio State forward Aaron Bradshaw came off the bench and delivered an emphatic block, then ran the length off the floor to punch in a dunk on the other end, making the score 11-6 with 13:54 left.
With Mobley doing most of the ball handling, guard Bruce Thornton was forced to play off the ball early. With 11:36 left, Thronton connected on a 3-pointer to extend the Buckeyes’ lead to 16-11.
Despite being contained offensively, Thornton was tasked with following All-Big Ten guard Ace Baldwin Jr. on the defensive end, who was held quiet before he splashed a three with 10:35 left to cut their deficit to four.
Guard Micah Parrish, the Buckeyes’ go-to guy as of late, scored off an offensive rebound to notch his first points. Moments later, the freshman Mobley hit a transition three from well beyond the three-point line to give Ohio State a 23-14 advantage with 8:24 left.
Following a layup from forward Zach Hicks, Ohio State ripped off a 10-2 run, holding the Nittany Lions to zero field goals for nearly four minutes and Ohio State took a commanding 15-point lead.
However, Penn State showed some fight before the half’s end, scoring the last five points of the period, including a momentum-shifting poster slam from Niederhauser.
Despite the late run, led by Mobley’s 13 points and a dominating effort on the glass, the Buckeyes went into the break with a 43-33 lead.
The second half opened with an abundance of fouls. While Ohio State managed to maintain a comfortable lead for the first nine minutes, it came at a price.
Heading into the second TV timeout, the Buckeyes accounted for 10 team fouls, with Bradshaw and forward Sean Stewart having four apiece, followed by three from Parrish.
Ohio State center Ivan Njegovan was forced to play big minutes with the Buckeyes being slim at the center position due to foul trouble. But the freshman rose to the challenge, immediately putting down a thunderous put-back dunk to make the score 58-47 with 11:40 to play.
Offensive rebounding played a significant role in the Buckeyes’ success, as they out-rebounded the Nittany Lions by 11 on the offensive glass.
Thornton then heated up late as he connected on threes on back-to-back possessions to extend the Buckeye lead to 15 after ten minutes of play.
It was all Ohio State from there, as the Buckeyes held the Nittany Lions to one field goal in nearly seven minutes of play, capitalized by a dagger three from Thornton with 6:35 left, his fifth of the game.
On the defensive end, Thornton made a big impact as well. He held Penn State’s Baldwin to only 10 points on 2-8 from the field.
With a dominating performance on the glass and the guard trio of Parrish, Thornton and Mobley with 48 combined points, the Buckeyes cruised to their first win in Happy Valley since December 2021.
Ohio State will travel to Champagne, Illinois Sunday to face the No. 18 Fighting Illini. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on CBS.
