Ohio State started cold on Tuesday, missing its first 11 shots from deep, but started to heat up late in the first half of a 75-53 win over App State at Value City Arena.
The Buckeyes were led by senior forward Brandon Noel in the game, who had 17 points. Sophomore guard John Mobley Jr. was close behind with 16.
Ohio State played well defensively, too, holding the Mountaineers to just 26 points in the second half on 11-of-29 shooting (37.9 percent).
The Buckeyes were ice cold from the field to begin the game, scoring just two points in the first 6:30 of the game, missing each of its first eight three-point attempts during that span and making just 1 of 12 shots total. App State got out to a 10-2 lead with the help of five points from graduate guard Kasen Jennings.
It wasn’t until senior guard Bruce Thornton got to the line to make two free throws that their scoring drought ended. Freshman forward Amare Bynum put an emphatic stop to the Mountaineers run with an offensive board and a putback dunk over multiple defenders to make the score 12-6.
But after another Bynum bucket, App State made its next three field goals, two of them from beyond the arc to take a 22-10 lead into an Ohio State timeout.
Senior forward Brandon Noel knocked down the first three-pointer of the game for Ohio State with just under six minutes remaining in the half.
Mountaineers sophomore guard Jason Clarke Jr. responded with a jumper of his own, but the Buckeyes went on a 12-0 run to take a 27-25 lead with under a minute remaining in the half. A Thornton buzzer-beating three made it 15 straight points for the Buckeyes, who took a 30-25 lead into halftime.
The run was powered by eight straight points from Mobley on a jumper and six free throws. The Buckeyes closed the half on a 20-3 scoring run, keeping App State scoreless for the final 5:29 of the frame.
The second half started on a similar note as the first ended. Ohio State , with an 8-0 run that led to a 41-29 lead with 16 minutes left in the contest. After an App State three, the Buckeyes went on a 16-0 run to stretch their lead to 25. Six different Buckeyes scored points during the run.
The lead stretched to as much as 27 on an alley-oop from junior guard Taison Chatman to Noel, and the Buckeyes closed out the game with a 22-point win.
Ohio State was led by Noel’s double-double, with 17 points on 8-of-10 shooting and 11 rebounds. Mobley had 16 points and Thornton had 13. Senior center Christoph Tilly had a team-leading four assists.
The Mountaineers had just one player reach double figures. Jennings scored 12 points, shooting 5 of 17 from the field.
