PITTSBURGH — Perhaps better than anyone, Chris Holtmann knows what is said about his Ohio State men’s basketball program.
Last season, the Buckeyes became just the ninth No. 2 seed in NCAA tournament history to lose to a No. 15 seed, dashing their dreams of a Final Four or a national championship in particularly cruel fashion. One year later, they entered the tournament relatively wounded, having lost four of their previous five games after an 18-7 start.
Questions shifted from whether Ohio State could win a national championship under Holtmann to whether he was the right person to lead it.
Back in the tournament for the first time since its gutting loss to Oral Roberts one year ago, the Buckeyes shed at least some of the doubt that had started to engulf them and their coach.
The No. 7 seed in the south region, Ohio State played with the kind of toughness and tenacity that made it a preseason top-20 team, shutting down a potent Loyola Chicago team in a 54-41 victory Friday at PPG Paints Arena in the tournament’s first round.
“Listen, it's not pleasant when people say negative things about you and I never got into coaching for any type of notoriety, positive press, or negative press,” Holtmann said. “It's always an adjustment for you when you have the criticism, but it comes with the territory and I understand that. Pressure is a privilege, and we certainly as a group felt pressure to perform at a more consistent level.”
With the victory, they’ll face off Sunday against Villanova, the region’s No. 2 seed.
Even against an experienced, defensive-minded opponent, the Buckeyes controlled the action for much of the afternoon, leading for 33 of a possible 40 minutes.
Defensively, they put forth their best effort of the season. Despite coming into the contest ranked 132nd of 358 Division I teams in defensive efficiency, according to KenPom.com, they routinely stifled a Loyola offense that was No. 44 nationally in offensive efficiency. The Ramblers shot just 26.8 percent from the field, including a 25 percent mark inside the 3-point arc and 22.2 percent on layups, and scored just 41 points on 64 possessions. They didn’t score their 30th point until 8:27 remained in the second half.
“We played with an edge tonight,” said Ohio State forward E.J. Liddell, who had a team-high 16 points, 10 rebounds, and three blocks. “We played like the underdogs. We’ve got to keep playing like that because people have been counting us out big time. We've got to have that same mindset next game.”
It wasn’t just the Buckeyes’ defense that made it seem as if there was a lid atop the basket. Loyola, the region’s No. 10 seed, missed several open jumpers and made only three of its 10 free throws. It came into the day shooting 71.8 percent from the free-throw line.
“We try to hang our hat on being the more physical team, setting the rules,” Ohio State forward Kyle Young said. “When you have a team coming in that's going to do the same thing, it's just that much more of a challenge. We love that type of challenge.”
Loyola guard Braden Norris was the lone player on his team to finish in double figures, scoring 14 points while making five of the Ramblers’ 15 shots and four of its eight 3s. Lucas Williamson, the team’s leading scorer, was held to four points on one-of-10 shooting.
For a Loyola team that won 25 games and made the tournament for the third time in its past four tries, it was a difficult ending, a reminder of the inherent brutality of a single-elimination event with such outsized importance. But one game, even on such a high-profile stage, only means so much when measured up against what the program has accomplished over the past five seasons.
“I don't want this game to define our season. I don't want this game to define a lot of these guys' careers that have been part of our program that are now going to be not playing college basketball anymore,” Loyola coach Drew Valentine said. “Because where this program has been, where this program has come from, and obviously it started with coach [Porter] Moser and his coaches, all the former players, but these guys have been the latest edition of the players that have helped elevate this program.”
Turning point
Leading by five at halftime, 23-18, Ohio State scored six unanswered points to open the second half. In a game in which points were at such a premium, it was a decisive spurt. Loyola wouldn’t get within eight for the rest of the afternoon.
Player of the game
Liddell was superb, scoring 16 points, pulling down 10 rebounds, and creating chaos for Loyola near the rim with three blocks. Twelve of the first-team all-Big Ten selection’s points came in the second half and it was his ninth double-double of the season, three of which have come in the past five games.
Numbers game
Loyola’s 41 points were its fewest in a game since scoring 39 in a February, 2020, loss to Indiana State. Entering the day, it had scored fewer than 53 points in a game just once this season.
Overheard
“We haven't had the team we thought we were gonna have all year, but when we've had the group that's helped us win games, we've been a really good team. We've had really good wins. And I'm not putting all of our losses on injuries, by no stretch. We played poorly at times at full strength. But they make a difference, and I think that elevates the confidence of our guys.” — Holtmann
The Block News Alliance consists of The Blade and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Craig Meyer is a reporter at the Post-Gazette.
First Published March 18, 2022, 6:48 p.m.