Entries Tagged 'Basketball' ↓

By Adam Kiefaber

I was being to wonder when the Big Ten was going to figure out the schedule for the 2007-2008 season.

Finally it is here, however it isn’t complete and times are not official.

Three games stand out in the non-conference schedule. Those games are vs. North Carolina (Nov. 18th), vs. Florida (Dec. 22) and at Tennessee (Jan. 19).

Fans should remember when the Buckeyes played UNC at Chapel Hill last November. It was the first real opponent the Buckeyes had to play. OSU lost 98-89 in a very entertaining game.

OSU went on the road and got dismantled by Florida (86-60) two days before Christmas. Then OSU lost to the Gators again in the national championship. Both teams will look a lot different when Florida comes to Columbus on December 22nd.

One of the better games of last season had to be the Sweet 16 game between OSU and Tennessee. The Buckeyes won 85-84, despite trailing 49-32 at halftime. Also, Ohio State beat Tennessee 68-66 at home on January 13th.

As of right now this is what we know.

(Information from the Columbus Dispatch)
Date — Day — Opponent — Time, TV
11/12 — Mon — Wisconsin-Green Bay (NIT) — TBA, TBA
11/13 — Tue — Columbia or Delaware St (NIT) — TBA, TBA
11/28 — Wed — North Carolina — 9 p.m., ESPN
12/ 1 — Sat — at Butler — TBA,TBA
12/18 — Tue — at Cleveland State — TBA, TBA
12/22 — Sat — Florida — 3:45 p.m., CBS
1/ 3 — Thu — at Illinois — 8 p.m., ESPN
1/ 6 — Sun — Northwestern — Noon, BTN
1/ 9 — Wed — Iowa — 7 p.m., BTN
1/12 — Sat — at Purdue — 4 p.m., BTN
1/15 — Tue — at Michigan State — 7 p.m., ESPN
1/19 — Sat — at Tennessee — 3:30 p.m., CBS
1/22 — Tue — Illinois — 9 p.m., BTN
1/26 — Sat — Minnesota — 8 p.m., BTN
1/29 — Tue — at Penn State — 7 p.m., ESPN
2/ 2 — Sat — at Iowa — 6 p.m., BTN
2/ 5 — Tue — Michigan — 7 p.m., ESPN
2/10 — Sun — Indiana — 1 p.m., CBS
2/13 — Wed — at Northwestern — 9 p.m., BTN
2/17 — Sun — at Michigan — 1 p.m., CBS
2/23 or 24 Sat/Sun — Wisconsin — 2 or 4 p.m. ESPN or BTN
2/26 — Tue at Indiana — 7 p.m., ESPN
3/1 or 2 — Sat/Sun at Minnesota — 4 or 6 p.m., ESPN or BTN or CBS
3/4, 5 or 6 — Tue/Wed/Thu — Purdue 7 or 9 p.m., ESPN or BTN or ESPN2
3/9 — Sun — Michigan State Noon, 2 p.m. or 4 p.m., BTN or ESPN or CBS
3/13-16 — Thu-Sun at Big Ten Tournament, Indianapolis BTN or ESPN or CBS

BTN— Big Ten Network

Note—Opponents and/or dates for at least four and as many as six games are not yet available.

Ohio State will play two games in New York in the NIT Season Tip-Off if it wins home games Nov. 12 and 13. It also has nonconference home games against Presbyterian College and Virginia Military Institute, according to other media outlets, and two other teams.

By Adam Kiefaber

Greg Oden is putting on a show in Las Vegas. So far in two games, Oden has committed 19 fouls.

In game one, Oden played only 21 minutes, grabbed two rebounds, had two blocks, turned it over four times and scored only six points. Furthermore, Oden missed all three free throws before fouling out with 10 fouls. NBA Summer League rules allows a player to commit 10 fouls before fouling out. Oh yeah, the Portland Trail Blazers (probably the most talented Summer League roster) lost 74-66 to the Boston Celtics.

Many people describe appearance as ugly, but now you are open to describe his performance as just that - ugly.

In game two, Oden continued the foul show by committing nine in less than 28 minutes of play. However, Oden did improve in some areas by scoring 13 points, grabbing five rebounds and swatting four blocks. Oden did continue to struggle at the free throw by hitting one of five. So far in two games, Oden is shooting 12.5% from the FT line. Maybe he should go back to his left hand. Again Portland lost the game 72-68 to the Dallas Mavericks. Oden’s next game will be on Wednesday night at 10:30pm against the Los Angeles Lakers.

While Sportscenter talked about the Oden foul show, they did not mention how his lifelong teammate Mike Conley Jr. did. Conley Jr. came off the bench in the Memphis Grizzles 86 to 77 win over Team China. In 28 minutes, he scored 12 points, grabbed five rebounds, had two assists, three steals and didn’t commit a single turnover. Conley Jr.’s Memphis team will play the Detroit Pistons at 6pm today, the game is supposed to be broadcasted live on NBA-TV.

Daequan Cook’s Miami Heat is due to begin play today in the Pepsi Pro Summer League in Orlando. The Heat will play the Charlotte Bobcats, the game will begin following the Inidiana Pacers and Chicago Bulls contest. Then the Heat will play the New Jersey Nets at 3pm tomorrow. Followed by the Bulls on Wednesday, Pacers on Thursday and the Magic on Friday. Friday is the last day for the Pepsi Pro Summer League.

Still waiting to see Ron Lewis in action. His Houston Rockets are playing tomorrow at 10:30pm against the Los Angeles Clippers. It should be interesting to see how much playing time Lewis will receive.

-Buckeye Fans to Watch the NBA Summer League-

By Adam Kiefaber

Before the ’07 NBA Draft, Michael Redd was the only former Ohio State Buckeye left in the league. In fact, only four Buckeyes including Redd, Lawrence Funderburke, Jim Jackson and Ken Johnson played a game in the NBA during the 21st century.

Now, Greg Oden, Mike Conley Jr., Daequan Cook and Ron Lewis are expected to play in the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, which begins today and runs through July 15th.

Oden and Cook have already signed multi-million-dollar contracts. Also, undrafted-NCAA-tournament star Ron Lewis signed to play for Houston Rockets’ summer-league team. Currently, the Rockets team website has a poll asking- ‘Which Rockets player will have the best week in the Las Vegas summer league?’- the choices are John Lucas III, Steve Novak, Lior Eliyahu, Aaron Brooks or Carl Landry. Who in the world is Lior Eliyahu? I don’t know, but he has 12% of the vote.

Conley Jr. and the Memphis Grizzlies will take on Team China tonight at 7:30pm Eastern time. Yi Jianlian will be playing for Team China. Jianlian was the sixth overall pick by the Milwaukee Bucks. NBA.com claims that all of the games will be televised on NBA-TV. Many games will be shown by way of tape delay.

At 10pm Eastern time tonight, Oden’s Portland Trail Blazers will face the Boston Celtics. Oden will team up with Florida’s Taurean Green and Duke’s Josh McRoberts. Many NBA experts are hoping to see Oden on the floor at the same time with LaMarcus Aldridge. I wouldn’t call this the official schedule, but the Trail Blazers are set to play Sunday (July 8th) at 4pm, Wednesday (July 11th) at 10:30pm, Saturday (July 14th) at 10:30pm and Sunday (July 15th) at 10pm. (all games given in Eastern time)

Besides tonight, Memphis will play Monday (July 9th) at 6pm, Thursday (July 12th) at 6pm, Friday (July 13th) at 6pm and on Saturday (July 14th) at 6pm. (again all times are Eastern- and the schedule is more official because it was given on the Memphis team website).

Lewis and the Rockets schedule starts on Tuesday (July 10th) at 10:30pm, Thursday (July 12th) at 6pm, Friday (July 13th) at 10pm, Saturday (July 14th) at 8:30pm and Sunday (July 15th) at 8:30pm. (Again Eastern time, but times are from NBA.com, which means some times will change)

NBA-TV and NBA.com are making a slight push at gaining viewers this week for their broadcast, which will be the first look at one of more popular drafts in some time. However, it is disorganized and times are not official on the NBA’s official website. That would be fine if play started a month from now, but the summer league starts today.

So if you have NBA-TV and you want to catch the action, you might have to randomly click over to the station. Personally, I wouldn’t believe what the guide tells you. Good luck.

By Adam Kiefaber

The best NBA Draft party this year has to Daequan Cook’s, which will be held draft night (Thursday June 28 at 7:00pm) in Dayton Ohio at the Holiday Inn on Dryden Road.

It is open to the public and has a $20 admission charge. The party is to include Cook and 150 of his closest friends, so it might not be smart to roll over on the carpet laughing if Cook isn’t chosen in the first round.

The atmosphere should be tense since Cook has fallen in most recent mock drafts. Some of the mock drafts have Cook climbing up the first round. However, it should be one interesting party.

“It will be a light atmosphere,” Dunbar assistant coach Albert Powell told the Dayton Daily News. “There will be finger food, soft drinks and a big-screen TV.”

That sounds like Powell, who scheduled Cook’s NBA workouts, is trying to downplay the event.

Here is what some of the mock drafts are saying:
NBA.com (just posted- 6-26)- Doesn’t have Cook picked in the first round
Chris Ekstrand of SI.com (updated 6-26)- Cook going 23rd to the Knicks
Chad Ford (ESPN The Magazine)- Cook going 30th to the 76ers
- (Ford comments ‘…he has no clue on how to play the game…weak work ethic and massive ego.’
Tony Mejia of CBS.Sportsline (updated 6-18)- Cook going 23rd to the Knicks
- (Mejia ranks Cook as the 8th best shooting guard and comments read: ‘he has the skills, but needs more experience. An up-and-down freshman season ended with around the league suggesting he return to school.’)
Gary Parrish of CBS.Sportsline (updated 6-18)- Cook going 24th to the Suns
Jeff Goodman of foxsports (updated one day ago)- Cook going 25th to the Jazz
Peter Schrager of foxsports (updated two days ago)- Cook going 25th to the Jazz
Draftexpress (updated 6-26)- Cook going 22nd to the Bobcats
TSX (updated 6-25)- Cook going 27th to the Pistons

Ex-college coach Fran Fraschilla said, on ESPN radio this past Monday, that he wouldn’t draft Cook in the first round unless he had a “gun to his head.”

It seems to me that most mock drafters are just throwing Cook in the later portion of the first round. Everyone seems to agree that Cook was the best player at Pre-Draft Camp in Orlando, but he wasn’t playing against or with any other first-round talent. Also, his performances at the camp were up and down.

It’s easy to throw Cook in the first round of any mock draft.

However, it could be uneasy to watch Cook on draft night at the Holiday Inn.

The following is breaking news - and was posted on The Plain Dealer’s website

Ohio State University basketball player David Lighty and two of his former teammates from Villa Angela-St. Joseph High School pleaded guilty today to charges related to them shooting a jogger with a toy BB gun that fired plastic pellets.

Lighty fired the shot that pelted St. Joseph alumnus James Nugent in the lower back on July 7, 2006. Nugent yelped and hopped in surprise. Lighty and pals Jimmy McLeod and Darryl Rushton, perched in the athletic-field bleachers scores of feet away, doubled over in hilarity.

Nugent, 55, told Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Kenneth Callahan he felt a sting, then heard, “I hit him! I hit him!”

“They laughed — they just thought it was a joke,” Nugent recalled.

Also from CBS Sportsline.com wire reports

CLEVELAND — Ohio State basketball player David Lighty pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor assault charge and was fined $250 in a case involving a jogger who was shot with a BB gun last year.

Two of Lighty’s former teammates at Villa Angela-St. Joseph High School in Cleveland also entered pleas in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas on Tuesday. Jimmy McLeod and Darryl Rushton each were fined $100 after pleading guilty to disorderly conduct, a minor misdemeanor.

James Nugent, 55, was not seriously hurt last June when he was hit in the back by at least one plastic BB while jogging on the high school track. In Cleveland, BB and pellet guns are considered firearms and it is illegal to have them in public places.

Nugent said Tuesday he had forgiven the 19-year-old defendants and thought the sentences handed down by Judge Kenneth Callahan were fair.

After he was sentenced, Lighty shook Nugent’s hand. Lighty told the judge he wanted to apologize “to Mr. Nugent, to my family, my community and my school.”

Lighty started seven games last season for the Buckeyes, who set a school record for victories at 35-4. Ohio State reached the national championship game before losing to defending champion Florida.

By Adam Kiefaber

The Ohio State basketball program has recently lost two recruits.

DeShaun Thomas of Fort Wayne, Ind., recently backed off a recent commitment to be a part of Ohio State’s 2010 recruiting class.

Thomas is considered to be the top recruit in the nation in 2010. He averaged 29 points and 13.3 rebounds per game during his freshman year at Bishop Luers High School.

The other recruit, Luke Babbitt, committed to Ohio State in February and was expected to sign this November to part of the 2008 class. However, Babbitt decided to remain close to home and will play for Nevada.

Babbitt, a 6-foot-8 power forward from Reno, Nev., was born in Cincinnati and moved to Nevada in the fifth grade. As a junior, he led his team to a state championship by averaging 28 points and around 11 rebounds a game.

Rivals.com has Babbitt ranked as the 45th best player in it’s top 150 recruits in 2008. Scout.com ranks Babbitt 33rd in it’s top 100. According to Scout.com, the lefty had offers from Arizona, Gonzaga, Michigan, Syracuse, UCLA, UNLV, USC, Washington and obviously Ohio State.

Babbitt decided to ditch the Buckeyes, while Thomas just seems to be delaying his decision.

“I know what school I want to go to,” Thomas told his local paper, the Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette. “The other schools didn’t think it was fair I made the choice so quick. My father just wanted me to look at other schools.”

Thomas might visit Indiana, Purdue, North Carolina and Duke before making his final decision. Indiana University really wants Thomas after Ohio State stole Indiana-state recruits Greg Oden and Mike Conley Jr. last season. However, the Hoosiers did land top in-state recruit Eric Gordon in this year’s class. Gordon is ranked second overall in the nation by Rivals.com, while scout.com has him ranked fourth. Gordon had offers from Ohio State, Notre Dame, Missouri, Miami (FL), Illinois, Duke, and Arizona.

By Adam Kiefaber

Will Kosta Koufos be the next great Buckeye Basketballer?

After reaching the Finals in the NCAA tournament, the Ohio State Buckeyes have to replace many key parts to their basketball team. Greg Oden, as expected, is leaving to play in the NBA, as is Mike Conley Jr. Also, Daequan Cook isn’t coming back (see Blog below – ‘Should Daequan Cook Dip Out of NBA Draft’) and some have to disagree about that move, but it is his life.

Seniors Ron Lewis and Ivan Harris will be gone, leaving Ohio State with only one (Jamar Butler, fifth with 8.5 points a game) of their top six scorers. Lewis was the main reason Ohio State was able to make the run last March. He scored 27 points in the unforgettable Xavier game, added 25 points in the one-point Sweet 16 win over Tennessee and had 22 points in the Elite 8 game against Memphis. Harris was a good three-point shooter and had the size to get some big rebounds.

So, who’s going to start for the Buckeyes in 2007-2008? Are two key freshmen going to run the show again? Is Kosta Koufos going to live up to his five-star billing or is Thad Matta going to start a more experienced player at center? Which freshman, Evan Turner or Jon Diebler will start? Which one will make a bigger impact? Will David Lighty emerge as the team’s leading scorer? Will it be Butler? Could Othello Hunter be the most important player on this team?

What should the lineup be? Honestly, I’m not sure. Here’s my crack at, please correct me if I’m wrong.

Buckeye 2007-2008 Basketball Lineup

Point Guard Jamar Butler (Senior, 6-foot-2 205 pounds)*
- Butler is a definite starter and team leader for the ’07-’08 season. Butler finished fifth on the team in scoring. Butler averaged 8.5 points and 3.6 assists per game last season, which was down from the ’05-’06 season when he had 10.1 points and 4.6 assists a game. Butler is a three-point sharpshooter and can’t penetrate like Conley Jr. could, but I see Butler stepping up and leading this team to a solid season.

Shooting Guard- David Lighty (Sophomore, 6-foot-6 220 pounds)*
- Along with Butler, Lighty is a definite starter for the upcoming season. However, he could be starting at the 2 or the 3. Lighty hit some big shots for the Buckeyes. Especially in the 85-84 win against Tennessee when his three tied the game at 79 with under three minutes to play. Ohio State never fell behind after that shot. People forget how big a recruit Lighty was because of the three five-star (Oden, Conley Jr. and Cook) commitments last year. Lighty had offers from Arizona, Florida, Michigan, Michigan State and Syracuse. Lighty was ranked as the 31st best player by Scout.com and 36th best by Rivals.com in the ’07-’08 class. I believe Lighty will emerge as the team’s top scorer this season.

Small Forward- Evan Turner (Freshman, 6-foot-6 175 pounds)
- Turner might not be the Buckeyes starter, but he will make an immediate impact. Ohio State could either go with a small lineup or a big lineup. In the case of the big lineup, which would be easier to do considering the team could have freshman Dallas Lauderdale and senior Matt Terwilliger come off the bench, Turner should start here. In a small lineup, look for freshman Jon Diebler to start at the 2 with Lighty playing the 3. Turner is rated as the 59th best player by Scout.com and 48th best by Rivals.com in the ’07-’08 class. Both Turner and Diebler need to add muscle.

Power Forward- Othello Hunter (Senior, 6-foot-9 225 pounds)*
- Hunter was a savior last season spelling Oden when the superstar center got in foul trouble. This upcoming season, Hunter will start and will put up impressive numbers for the Buckeyes. Hunter really showed great potential when Ohio State played Cleveland State, he scored 17 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in only 13 minutes of playing time. Hunter was part of last year’s recruiting class as a JUCO from Hillsborough Community College.

Center- Kosta Koufos (Freshman, 7-foot-0 252 pounds)
- Koufos isn’t the same kind of center that Oden was last season. Koufos has a mid-range jumper and can drill threes with regularity. When Ohio State plays a team with an athletic big man, the Buckeyes would have defend the scorer with seniors Hunter and Terwilliger. Don’t be surprised if Terwilliger and Hunter start at the 4 or 5 to begin the season with Koufos coming off the bench. Koufos is the biggest recruit in Ohio State’s ’07-’08 class, he is ranked 14th overall by Scout.com and 16th overall by Rivals.com. Other schools that offered scholarships include Illinois, Louisville, Maryland, Michigan and Michigan State.

Top Reserves
Jon Diebler (SG- Freshman, 6-foot-6 182 pounds)
-Diebler was a scoring machine in high school. In fact, Diebler broke Jay Burson’s 22-year-old Ohio high school basketball record as the No. 1 scorer of all-time. In his senior season, Diebler averaged over 40 points, 12.6 rebounds, 6.7 assists, 5.3 steals and 4.2 turnovers per game. Also, as Mr. Basketball he shot 47% from the field and 85% from the free throw line in his senior season. Rivals.com ranked Diebler 58th in its top 150 while Scout.com had Diebler 65th in its top 100. Diebler could start, however should share time with fellow freshmen Tuner and Eric Wallace.

Matt Terwilliger (PF-C- Senior, 6-foot-8 250 pounds)
-Terwilliger is a key role player and spelled Oden and Hunter when the two got in foul trouble last season. Terwilliger’s playing time (10.4 as a soph. and 10.6 as a jr.) will increase in ’07-’08, but his role on the team should remain the same. Terwilliger was a solid recruit in 2004, being ranked 76th in Scout.com’s top 100, which at the time put him ahead of recruits Roy Hibbert of Georgetown, JamesOn Curry of Oklahoma State and Joseph Jones of Texas A&M.

Kyle Madsen (PF-C- Sophomore, 6-foot-10 240 pounds)
-Madsen spent the 05’06 as a red shirt freshman on the Vanderbilt basketball team. However, Madsen got homesick and was cleared to accept offers to play at Ohio State, Dayton, Miami (OH) and Ohio University. Supposedly it came down to Ohio State and Dayton. It should be interesting to see what role if any Madsen will play for the Buckeyes.

Dallas Lauderdale (PF-C- Freshman, 6-foot-9 230 pounds)
-Lauderdale averaged 20.9 points, 10 rebound and 4.5 blocks a game last season. He picked Ohio State over Syracuse, Louisville and Michigan. Lauderdale is ranked 93rd by Scout.com and 112th by Rivals.com in the 2007 recruiting class.

Eric Wallace (SF- Freshman, 6-foot-7 195 pounds)
-Wallace, the least talked about Buckeye freshman, had offers from Clemson, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Virginia and Wake Forest. Known for being a team player and could surprise by ending up as the Buckeye’s best recruit in this class after a few seasons. Wallace is ranked 116th in Rivals.com’s top 150.

By Adam Kiefaber

Ohio State freshman guard Daequan Cook still hasn’t signed with an agent. Should he come to his senses and return to Columbus for his sophomore season. Let’s say, he is drafted this season in the late first round. That would make Cook a backup on a good team for multiple seasons. If he went back to school and averaged 15-to-20 points a game, wouldn’t that make him a top-ten and possible NBA starter for next season? What do you think?

However, Cook is expected to sign with Mike Conley Sr.

Cook and Mike Conley Jr. are opting not to sign with Conley Sr. until after the withdrawal date (June 18th) just in case either suffers a major injury. Former Buckeye teammate Greg Oden has already signed with Conley Sr.

Cook played well early last season, scoring in double figures in seven of the first eight games while Oden was out with a wrist injury. His play diminished during NCAA tournament play, which was the reason many Buckeye fans question his departure for the NBA. Cook had under 10 minutes of playing time in the Buckeyes biggest tournament games; eight against Tennessee in Sweet 16, seven against Georgetown in the Final Four and nine in the National Championship game against Florida.

Cook struggled during Wednesday’s during the pre-draft camp in Lake Buena Vista Florida. He shot 30% and scored six points and committed eight turnovers in 20 minutes.

However, Cook dominated on Friday when he scored 22 points on 9-of-15 shooting (3-of-4 on 3-pointers).

ESPN’s Andy Katz believed Cook to be the only lock in the pre-draft camp last week to go in the first round, regardless of play. However, I believe Cook wasn’t a lock, but should be after Friday’s play.

Dunbar assistant Albert Powell schedules Cook’s private workouts said Portland, San Antonio, Phoenix, Seattle and Orlando all called soon after Friday’s performance.

If Cook sticks with his plan to go to the NBA, Ohio State will have lost five or their top six scorers. Those scorers include Cook, Conley Jr., Oden and seniors Ron Lewis and Ivan Harris.

The question remains, should Cook go pro? If he stayed a season and dominated the big ten, couldn’t he be a top ten pick? You have to figure he would have to sit on the bench for a couple of seasons once he is drafted. So is this a dumb move by Cook?