Article published March 27, 2008
NIT
Ohio State downs Dayton in NIT quarterfinals
Roberts scores 20 for Flyers
Dayton's Brian Roberts defends against Ohio State's Jon Diebler. Roberts, from St. John's Jesuit, scored 20 points in his final game. Diebler, from Upper Sandusky, had 10 points.
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
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By MATT MARKEY
BLADE SPORTS WRITER
COLUMBUS - Ohio State is back in the final four, only this time, it's the lower case version.
The Buckeyes shook off Dayton 74-63 in the quarterfinal round of the National Invitation Tournament last night, and now move on to the NIT semifinals in New York City's Madison Square Garden to face Mississippi on April 1.
Last year Ohio State made the Final Four in the NCAA tournament, then lost to Florida in the championship game of that event. The bulk of that team is gone, and the rebuilt Buckeyes are still playing for a championship.
"When we tip off next week, there's going to be eight teams left playing college basketball," Ohio State coach Thad Matta said. "When you look at us, a team with just four players returning this year, I'm proud of their effort."
In front of a sold-out Value City Arena crowd of 19,049 with a substantial Dayton presence, the Buckeyes trailed by one at the half, then ran away from the Flyers in the final 20 minutes. A 19-4 run got the Buckeyes rolling, and they led by as many as 18 points in the game's closing minutes.
"The game was lost in that stretch," Dayton coach Brian Gregory said.
| NIT |
Quarterfinals
Last night
• Mississippi 81, Virginia Tech 72
• Ohio State 74, Dayton 63
Second Round
Semifinals
Tuesday, April 1
At Madison Square Garden, New York
• Massachusetts (24-10) vs. Florida (24-11), 7
• Mississippi (24-10) vs. Ohio State (22-13), 9:30
Championship
Thursday, April 3
TBD, 7 |
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Dayton (23-11), in its first meeting with Ohio State since 1988, was led by senior guard Brian Roberts from St. John's Jesuit. Roberts, a three-time MVP at Dayton who was the Flyers' leading scorer this season with 18.4 points per game, had 20 last night against Ohio State.
Ohio State (22-13) was led by freshman Kosta Koufos with 21 points, senior Jamar Butler with 12, and freshmen Evan Turner with 11 and Jon Diebler with 10.
Roberts, the Division I co-player of the year in Ohio in 2004 who led St. John's to the state championship game, buried a 3-pointer from the top of the key four minutes into the game to tie it, and when Chris Wright scored driving down the baseline about four minutes later, the Flyers led 14-11.
The teams kept within a possession of each other throughout the first 15 minutes of the game. Roberts got Dayton started on a short run that would eventually give the Flyers their biggest lead of the night when he went end-to-end through traffic and rolled in a shot from the left side for a 19-18 lead.
After Roberts hit a 3-pointer from the corner and Wright exploded down the lane and dunked over Ohio State's Othello Hunter, Dayton was up 24-19. Ohio State tied it with a five-point sequence from sophomore David Lighty that had him hit a 3-pointer from the wing in transition, get fouled as he stole the inbounds pass, then hit two free throws to even the game.
Roberts hit another shot outside the arc to get Dayton back in front, and then drew an offensive foul from Hunter at the other end, Hunter's third. The Buckeyes got free throws from Matt Terwilliger and P.J. Hill in the final minute to get within 31-30 at the half.
Ohio State cranked up the defensive pressure to open the second half, pushing Dayton further from the basket, and surged to a 43-35 lead with about seven minutes gone. Butler capped the sequence by recovering his own tipped pass in transition and cutting to the basket for a layup.
The Buckeyes stretched the advantage to 49-37 with less than 12 minutes to play in the game after back-to-back 3-pointers from Diebler and Butler.
Dayton got back within nine with just under eight minutes left in the game on a 3-pointer from the corner by Roberts, who was a first-team All-Atlantic 10 Conference pick this season.
Koufos scored three baskets in a short spurt to get the Buckeyes in front 67-49 with less than five minutes to play. Roberts ended his Dayton career when he exited the floor with 46 seconds left.
"Obviously, in the second half they made some shots and we were struggling," Roberts said. "They got the momentum, and we just couldn't overcome it."
Wright, a 6-8 freshman from Trotwood who missed 18 games this season due to injury, and did not return to the Dayton lineup until Monday's NIT game at Illinois State, added 12 points.
Ohio State will be trying to win the second NIT crown in school history. The only previous NIT title came in 1986 with a 73-63 victory over Wyoming at Madison Square Garden. Bowsher grad Dennis Hopson, Ohio State's all-time leading scorer, led the Buckeyes with 26 points in that game.
Contact Matt Markey at: mmarkey@theblade.com or 419-724-6510.
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