Despite an 18-point halftime advantage, it took the Buckeyes an extra five minutes in overtime to close out the Boilermakers and advance to the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament.
No. 9 Ohio State (20-8, 14-8) used a stellar first-half performance from its high-powered offense and a gritty overtime to down No. 20 Purdue (18-9, 13-7) 87-78. The win marked Ohio State’s first over the Boilermakers in three tries this season.
Despite the second-half comeback from the Boilermakers, Ohio State head coach Chris Holtmann said his team never wavered under the pressure down the stretch of regulation and in overtime.
“It’s college basketball, this happens,” Holtmann said. “There was no shell shock, they were onto the next play. They’ve done this, they’ve been around this, this group is an experienced group.”
Graduate forward Seth Towns led the Buckeyes in the extra five minutes — accounting for five of the team’s 15 overtime points.
It was the play of Purdue junior forward Trevion Williams that forced the game into an extra five minutes, as he delivered on six points in the final two minutes of regulation — including a layup with less than 10 seconds to tie the game.
In the previous two meetings with Ohio State, Williams averaged 16 points, eight rebounds and 4.5 assists per game.
In the Buckeyes’ third crack at slowing down Williams, the Chicago native took some time to get going but finished with 26 points on 12-of-23 shooting from the field. Williams also tallied 14 rebounds and five assists.
“Trevion Williams is a First-Team All-Big Ten guy,” sophomore forward E.J. Liddell said. “He’s a great player, great player. I give him nothing but props.”
Although the Buckeyes started the game firing on all cylinders, the well ran dry for them in the second half. Ohio State shot just 23.1 percent over the last 20 minutes of regulation, down from 55 percent in the first half, and went over eight minutes without a bucket in the middle stages of the closing half.
The Boilermakers took advantage of Ohio State’s scoring woes, outscoring the Buckeyes 41-23 in the second half and at one point tied the game with less than a minute to go.
In the early goings of the game, Ohio State received a scoring boost from an unexpected player in a shocking way. Senior forward Kyle Young, who entered the game with 13 threes in 107 career games, knocked down a career-high three triples in the opening six minutes of the game.
The Ohio native spearheaded the Buckeyes offense through the first half, scoring 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting.
Young finished the game with 18 points — tying his career high — on 4-of-5 shooting from deep to go along with four rebounds.
Young left the game in the second half and was evaluated for an unknown injury behind Ohio State’s bench. He eventually headed back to the locker room with more than 11 minutes to play.
In the final 15:38 of regulation and Young sidelined, Purdue closed regulation on a 29-16 run.
As the Buckeyes had to close the game without the hot hand of Young, Liddell said that his absence was a turning point in Friday’s contest.
“You just saw the effect Kyle had on the game and his impact, but we picked him up and we got the W for him,” Liddell said.
Rising to meet Young’s performance was Purdue freshman guard Jaden Ivey — who hit a game-winner against the Buckeyes earlier in the season.
Ivey scored 12 of his 19 points in the second half.
Although Young found his groove, the rest of the Ohio State starters took some time to put their fingerprints on the game.
Junior guard Duane Washington Jr. did his damage in the last three minutes of the first half when he delivered on three shots from deep to balloon his tally to 13 points.
Washington finished the game with 20 points — including a dagger 3-pointer with just over a minute remaining in overtime to put the Buckeyes up seven, a lead they would not relinquish.
Washington’s joyous exit from the court Friday juxtaposed his distraught nature following the Buckeyes’ loss to Illinois on senior day.
“There’s nothing better than having your players enjoy the moment,” Holtmann said. “To see him respond and enjoy, his decision making, which was really the difference in overtime, versus what happened a couple games ago, it’s a credit to him.”
Young and Washington’s scoring outbursts were complemented by the Buckeyes bench, which poured in 11 of its 26 points in the opening half. Redshirt senior CJ Walker led the reserves with 6 points to go along with five dimes in the opening 20 minutes.
Walker finished the game with 10 points on 5-of-8 shooting to go along with seven assists.
Although Ohio State’s offensive efficiency showed up in its 45.5-percent shooting from the field, it also was a product of taking care of the ball — something the Buckeyes did not do Thursday.
Ohio State tallied 19 assists to 15 turnovers against the Golden Gophers, but Holtmann’s bunch coughed the ball up 10 times Friday while recording 19 dimes.
Helping to lead the way for Ohio State’s playmaking prowess was an unexpected face in Liddell, who tallied a career-high five assists with all coming in the first half.
The Belleville, Illinois, native got his scoring going in the second half, dropping 12 of his 17 points in the final 20 minutes of regulation before fouling out with 2:25 remaining in overtime.
The Buckeyes paired improved play offensively with better execution on the defensive end.
Ohio State also corrected their rebounding struggles against the Boilermakers, as Purdue outrebounded the Buckeyes in their first two meetings. In their final matchup, Ohio State outpaced the Boilermakers 41-35 on the glass.
In 85 minutes of action in the Big Ten Tournament, Ohio State has trailed for only 45 seconds.
Ohio State’s win Friday sets up a postseason matchup with their bitter rival No. 4 Michigan — who beat the Buckeyes 92-87 in their lone battle this season.
“They’re a very good team. I told you guys in another interview that we’re going to see them again and here it is, so we’re super excited,” Washington said.
The Buckeyes and Wolverines are set to clash Saturday at 1 p.m. on CBS.
Photos by Mackenzie Shanklin
This story was updated Friday at 5:40 p.m. with quotes from Chris Holtmann, E.J. Liddell and Duane Washington Jr.
