National Basketball Association
Ohio St. 77, Michigan 55
When: 4:05 PM ET, Saturday, March 10, 2012
Where: Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana
Officials:
# Michael Kitts, # Gene Steratore, # Terry Wymer
Attendance:
18451
By SportsDirect Inc.
Ohio State 77, Michigan 55: Jared Sullinger scored 16 of his 24
points in the first half as the No. 7 Buckeyes routed the No. 13
Wolverines in the semifinal round of the Big Ten tournament in
Indianapolis.
Ohio State (27-6) never trailed en route to its
eighth straight tournament victory and will make its fourth consecutive
championship game appearance on Sunday. The Buckeyes have won two
straight Big Ten titles and will face top-seed Michigan State.
Deshaun
Thomas added 22 points for the Buckeyes, who improved to 19-8 all-time
at the Big Ten tournament and have defeated Michigan (24-9) each of the
six times the arch-rivals have met in the conference tournament.
Sullinger
and Thomas scored 14 of Ohio State’s first 16 points. The Buckeyes used
their frontcourt’s size and athletic advantage early and often in the
first half, forcing the Wolverines to miss seven straight shots over a
6:44 stretch. Ohio State scored 12 unanswered points to establish a 16-3
lead.
The Wolverines never got closer than nine points the rest
of the way as the Buckeyes put the game away with a 10-3 run to open
the second half to open up a 44-24 advantage.
Tim Hardaway Jr.
had 13 points and was just one of two players to finish in double
figures for Michigan. The Wolverines shot a season-low 30.9 percent en
route to their third-worst offensive output of the season.
GAME NOTEBOOK:
Sullinger nearly surpassed his season averages of 13.5 points and 6.5
rebounds in two games against the Wolverines with 16 points and six
rebounds in the first half alone. … Co-Big Ten Freshman of the Year Trey
Burke, who scored a career-high 30 points in Friday’s overtime win over
Minnesota, committed eight turnovers and did not convert his first
field goal until the 6:55 mark of the second half. He finished 1 of 11
from the field for just five points.
Top Game Performances
Ohio St. |
|
Michigan |
Jared Sullinger 24 |
Scoring |
Tim Hardaway, Jr. 13 |
Aaron Craft 4 |
Assists |
Trey Burke 4 |
Lenzelle Smith Jr. 6 |
Rebounds |
Trey Burke 7 |
Jared Sullinger 6 |
Free Throws Made |
Tim Hardaway, Jr. 7 |
Aaron Craft 3 |
Steals |
Trey Burke 2 |
Jared Sullinger 2 |
Blocks |
Blake McLimans 1 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
Ohio St.
|
77 |
49.2 |
5-14 |
10-14 |
14 |
34 |
7 |
11 |
11 |
Michigan
|
55 |
30.9 |
4-25 |
17-22 |
7 |
35 |
2 |
6 |
18 |