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Men's Basketball
The Buckeye Watch - NCAA Third Round - George Mason
By Tony GerdemanWe are all witnesses.
The Buckeyes, playing in the House That Lebron Quit, laid the wood to the George Mason Patriots 98-66. When they were done laying wood, they poured cement. When the cement dried, they laid more wood. It was uncomfortable. The Buckeyes were beating a dead horse so bad, the CEO of Elmer's Glue even thought it was a bit much.
(Yes, I know Elmer's Glue isn't made from horse hooves, but if I would have referenced a glue company that does still use horse hooves, you probably wouldn't have gotten the reference.)
David Lighty showed everybody why his given middle name is "Freaking" by going 7-7 from behind the three-point line. From there, everyone else simply followed his lead. It was like a conductor leading his orchestra, a conductor who crushes wills and rips out hearts, but a conductor nonetheless.
5:03 Well, Duke beat Michigan, but it was only by two points. The Wolverines really have their number, per Zack Novak logic.
5:07 George Mason guard Luke Hancock is back at the hotel throwing up right now. He's going to try to get to the game, but he's not here now. Can't imagine he'd be much help even if he does show up. Better hope he doesn't read the gameplan or anything like that on the drive over (reading in a car makes me car sick, and I've never tried it with sour tummy).
5:11 I love Gus Johnson, but I'd be lying if I didn't tell you his being at this game is making me nervous.
5:15 Jim Larranaga's “When You Dream” speech is right up there with some random speech from 'Starship Troopers'.
5:16 What? Dallas Lauderdale didn't even jump for the tip-off. He's probably tired of the terrible tosses by the refs.
5:17 Great ball movement for a Lauderdale dunk that started with a Jared Sullinger pass out of a double team.
5:18 William Buford is now 0-2 from the field. Neither shot was all that close. This is concerning.
5:19 Two turnovers for Ohio State, the latest came from a Sullinger turnover on a double-team that he couldn't get out of. Gotta get rid of the ball quicker. Now George Mason is getting the rolls. A three-pointer bounced in for a 9-2 lead.
5:20 Another turnover for Ohio State, and that's followed by a terrible offensive foul call against Sullinger as he went up for a short jumper. Of course, he could have just gone straight up, but he chose to jump into the defender.
5:21 David Lighty nails a three to stop the bleeding. If Buford isn't shooting, then somebody else needs to be.
5:22 Aaron Craft enters the game and George Mason commits two turnovers. These two things are so related that their DNA is exactly the same.
5:26 Buford misses a third shot, but it turns into a Jon Diebler offensive rebound and Sully dunk. It's 11-9 now and George Mason just turned it over again. Oh my! Lighty with another three-pointer in his hometown to give the Buckeyes their first lead. That's a 10-0 run.
5:28 Lighty for another three! He's getting some very good looks. Clearly, the Patriots are willing to allow Lighty to beat them, and David is willing to oblige.
5:29 Beautiful pick and roll between Craft and Sully for a dunk. I'm thinking George Mason is going to work to get Sully his second foul because it would probably be pretty easy to do right now. Interesting, Thad Matta is taking Sully out now because he knew a second foul was coming as well.
5:30 George Mason came into this game hoping to draw charges, and they've gotten the refs to call two of them so far.
5:31 Aaron Craft just got hammered driving in for a layup. No matter how hard that kid goes down, I never expect him to get hurt. I wonder if he even feels pain.
5:35 David FREAKING Lighty with another three-pointer, and this one was of the semi-pull-up variety. “Well, if nobody's going to respect me...” Buckeyes lead it 22-16.
5:38 Jon Diebler is now 0-2 from three. I'm guessing David Lighty will give him some pointers at halftime.
5:39 Oh my goodness!! Aaron Craft just got trapped at mid-court, and somehow finds Sully under the basket for the and-one. The free throw is good. Buckeyes lead it 29-22. Does one school even deserve to have Aaron Craft for four years?
5:41 As we all say, when David Lighty is on, this team cannot be beat. But we usually say that knowing that one of Buford or Diebler will be as well.
5:44 The Buckeyes are 11-18 from the field right now, and that's with Diebler and Buford missing four open looks.
5:45 Lighty just missed two free throws. He should have stepped back a few feet.
5:46 Lighty scores in the post playing the two-man game with Buford. Leading 31-22. A thing of beauty.
5:47 Drive, drive on down the paint, men of scarlet and gray... Diebler just did, missed it, but Sully was there for the easy tip in. Even when things ain't clicking, they're still clicking. I'm liking the way Matta keeps subbing Lauderdale and Sullinger. Gives George Mason different looks at both ends and doesn't let them get comfortable.
5:54 Make it five three-pointers for Lighty now. Buckeyes lead it 36-24. He's 5-5 from three and now has 17 points. Just wait until...and there it is...Jon Diebler just hit a three as well. It's 39-24 with 4:00 to play. The crowd is alive.
5:56 We all know David will score about four points in the second half, which is standard for any Buckeye shooter this year when going off in the first half. The defense then focuses on the hot guy and the others get freed up. It's like an impossible math problem. I'm talking like Algebra II. Unsolvable.
5:59 Four straight points for Sully makes it 43-24. This is pretty impressive right here. Defensively as well as offensively.
6:00 Oh my. Buford with a 25-footer with a hand in his face. Len Elmore says George Mason is totally demoralized right now. They're down by 22 points, so it's understandable.
6:01 Holy crap. Diebler for three. It's 49-24. This is everything machines think they are.
6:03 The Buckeyes hate Cinderella, clearly, but this is a little bit excessive. Why keep berating Cinderella like this? Just walk away!
6:05 George Mason scores! They finally score!! Buckeyes get the ball for the last possession...it turns into a scramble and ends in another Diebler three-pointer at the buzzer. Insanity. Buckeyes lead it 52-26 at the half.
6:06 “Our start wasn't real good.” That's Thad complaining about the first half. It's not how you start, it's how you hold Cinderella's be-toweled face under the water.
6:13 Nice. Kenny Smith still can't compliment the Buckeyes. Weird. Says they're not comfortable in a running game. Charles Barkley agrees. 'Nuff said. Barkley also says they need to make Sullinger beat them. Okay. Gladly.
6:18 Jim Larranaga halftime speech: "It's 0-0 out there guys. Now let's get on our unicorns and prance, prance, prance on to victory!"
6:19 The Buckeyes are 19-30 from the field—and they started a little cold. George Mason is fortunate it's only 26 points.
6:22 Jim Larranaga's actual halftime speech: "The journey of a thousand miles starts by making the refs blow the whistle."
6:27 Game is back on. Buford misses a three-pointer. Uh ohs.
6:29 The Buckeyes have missed two good looks and George Mason has scored four points. Sully just scored, so the run stops at four. Now I can not be nervous again.
6:30 It just don't matter. Lighty hits his sixth three, and he was open again. They should stop leaving him open, maybe? They're obviously expecting him to shoot himself into a slump. He'd have to miss about ten straight threes to finally start shooting his average.
6:36 Diebler has now missed two open threes, and Andre Cornelius hits another. The lead has been cut to 61-40. Make it 63-40 because Lighty scores again. He already has one more point this half than I thought he'd get.
6:37 The Buckeyes have been going down to Sullinger quite a bit this half, falling right into Charles Barkley's trap!
6:39 George Mason is getting chippy. Time to end them. No mercy. I'm talking dynamite versus bunny rabbits. I want the cottontails to RAIN DOWN FROM THE HEAVENS!!!
6:40 Lighty is now 7-7 from three. That one came in transition, so it's hard to blame George Mason for ignoring him. The record is ten, still held all these days by Jon Diebler. The question now becomes whether or not Diebler would freeze Lighty out if he gets to nine three-pointers.
6:45 Buford for three. Yawn. It's 72-42. Yawn again. 75-42. Buford again. Save some of this demolition for the rest of the country!
6:46 This is just awesome to watch. When the Buckeyes don't score, it's a surprise. How are you supposed to compete against that? How are you supposed to not stay at home and hide against that? An opponent's phone rings. It's Ohio State. They immediately hit ignore. It rings again. Ignore. It rings again. Ignore. Then Ohio State leaves a voicemail. Delete without listening. Then when they see Ohio State later this summer, Ohio State will say, “Hey, we tried calling you. Did you get our message?” “Message? No. Oh, you know what, I was having some issues with my phone, so that's probably what happened.”
6:51 Deshaun Thomas three. William Buford three. It's 83-46. Gus Johnson and Len Elmore are laughing saying “You can't do anything!” There's nothing you can do about this game except forget it, or save it forever on your DVR.
6:52 Jordan Sibert has come in with 8:08 to play. I like it.
6:53 Un. Real. Aaron Craft nearly turns it over, spins on the ground and flips it to Diebler who hits a three and gets fouled. That's 12 assists now for Craft. I think the school record is 14 by Curtis Wilson back in the day.
6:55 Forget NBA lockouts. The Cavs ownership is going to 'Lock In' the Buckeyes.
6:57 Craft to Lauderdale for another dunk. That's 14 assists for him, tying the school record. George Mason is actually making shots right now and they can't gain any ground. It's 89-55 with 6:14 to play.
7:03 Ohio State has 92 points with 3:50 to play. I want eight more. Lenzelle Smith is now in with Jordan Sibert. Good minutes for those kids. The crowd is already chanting for Eddie Days.
7:04 Eddie Days goes to the scorer's table. I know this because the crowd erupted. Here he comes in for Aaron Craft. There's still about three minutes to play, so he's got a legitimate chance to score for the first time in his career.
7:08 Hey, hey! Eddie Days gets fouled bringing the ball up the court. He'll shoot one and one. He makes the first and gets a very nice hand from the crowd. Misses the second. Buckeyes lead it 96-61 with 1:10 to play.
7:10 The Buckeyes are stuck on 98 points and have the ball, but they're going to sit on it even though the crowd wants another bucket. There's the ballgame. Ohio State wins it 98-66. Yes, that score is correct—the Buckeyes gave up 66 freaking points.
7:11 Two down, four to go. If they all go like this, you would be bored by it, so I'm going to blame any future close games on you.
7:12 Up next is Kentucky. The city of Cincinnati is going to be torn--should they root for Kentucky, root for Ohio State, or continue going about their daily routine making corn liquor in the backwoods? My guess is the corn liquor.
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