Rapid Reaction - Ohio State

[Degaz-RU]

1. After getting blitzkrieg’d in the first half with OSU hitting 9-11 on threes and not missing many twos either, you have to give this team a ton of credit for not giving up and making this a game.

2. And it was done through tough defense in the 2nd half and (finally!) a game where Simpson was hitting that mid range shot.

3. Good move by Pike inserting Williams in during the second half. He really provided a defensive spark. Pike probably waiting too long though. OSU’s strong guards were eating in the paint, but Austin (and some strong help defense) slowed the Buckeye offense.

4. Why does Jamison Battle always murder us. Took Pike too long to put Mag on him.

5. We cut the lead to 69-66 and had several chances to pull closer, but the next few possessions were sloppy, and then Gayle hits that long three from straight away to make it 72-66. Nice answer by Noah with a three right back, but end game after it was 72-69 was not very good.

6. Refs had several poor calls and non calls in crunch time. No call on forearm shiv that almost crushed Cliff’s windpipe. No call on Gavin getting hacked on the missed dunk. Phantom foul on Thornton drive late in the shot clock.

7. I marvel at the job Holtmann does on offense. The Buckeyes almost ALWAYS get open looks. The ball movement is incredible, and their guys just do what we usually can’t do — hit shots. And bonus points to Holtmann for the way his team easily broke our full court press.

8. Just an outstanding game by Simpson. Shades of Geo Baker, hitting shot after shot after shot. I’ve been critical of him because of his poor shooting percentage, but tonight he was hitting shots all over the place. I hope this is a breakout rather than an aberration.

9. Gavin is just… lost. No confidence in his shot at all, 1-8 tonight. He will see less and less time if this slump continues. At least he wasn’t completely lost on defense tonight.

10. Glad we showed some fight tonight. I actually feel ten times better with this loss than I did with the Stonehill win. Maybe this fight will carry over to Carver-Hawkeye against a beatable Iowa team.

 

[S_Janowski]

OSU was hitting lights out in the first half but if we didn’t have some of the worst shot selection for 20 minutes it could have still been a close game.

 

[29PAS]

Totally agree on #s 3 and 4.

 

[RUJMM78]

1. After getting blitzkrieg’d in the first half with OSU hitting 9-11 on threes and not missing many twos either, you have to give this team a ton of credit for not giving up and making this a game.

2. And it was done through tough defense in the 2nd half and (finally!) a game where Simpson was hitting that mid range shot.

3. Good move by Pike inserting Williams in during the second half. He really provided a defensive spark. Pike probably waiting too long though. OSU’s strong guards were eating in the paint, but Austin (and some strong help defense) slowed the Buckeye offense.

4. Why does Jamison Battle always murder us. Took Pike too long to put Mag on him.

5. We cut the lead to 69-66 and had several chances to pull closer, but the next few possessions were sloppy, and then Gayle hits that long three from straight away to make it 72-66. Nice answer by Noah with a three right back, but end game after it was 72-69 was not very good.

6. Refs had several poor calls and non calls in crunch time. No call on forearm shiv that almost crushed Cliff’s windpipe. No call on Gavin getting hacked on the missed dunk. Phantom foul on Thornton drive late in the shot clock.

7. I marvel at the job Holtmann does on offense. The Buckeyes almost ALWAYS get open looks. The ball movement is incredible, and their guys just do what we usually can’t do — hit shots. And bonus points to Holtmann for the way his team easily broke our full court press.

8. Just an outstanding game by Simpson. Shades of Geo Baker, hitting shot after shot after shot. I’ve been critical of him because of his poor shooting percentage, but tonight he was hitting shots all over the place. I hope this is a breakout rather than an aberration.

9. Gavin is just… lost. No confidence in his shot at all, 1-8 tonight. He will see less and less time if this slump continues. At least he wasn’t completely lost on defense tonight.

10. Glad we showed some fight tonight. I actually feel ten times better with this loss than I did with the Stonehill win. Maybe this fight will carry over to Carver-Hawkeye against a beatable Iowa team.

Excellent recap of the key aspects of the game.I liked the fact Rutgers scored over 70 points.

 

[RUskoolie]

I think we played well and yet couldn't ever make it a game. Be happy it was a close loss. That's where I'm at for this year.

If our guards play well, we have a chance. If they don't its a 20 point blowout most nights.

 

[Degaz-RU]

11. Much better job on the boards tonight. We outrebounded them 39-35 and only allowed 8 offensive rebounds.

12. Also good job at the line. 12-14 on FTs.

That’s two key metrics that have hurt us all year, but were pluses tonight.

13. But still struggling from deep. Only 6-24 on threes. Last four games have been HORRIFIC beyond the arc.

 

[RW90]

I'm at a complete loss on just where this team is. How was that the same team in the second half, and where were they all season?

 

[G- RUnit]

#6. Story of second half.

Lots of Fernandes and Simpson bashing last week. They carried us. Apologies in order.

Great comeback.

Impressive foul shooting.

Gotta get Gavin on track.

Mag invisible in 1st half. Nice 2nd half.
J Mike struggling. Makes you appreciate Simpson more.

Officiating matters.

 

[BillyC80]

11. RU won the offensive glass.

12. RU won the turnover battle.

13. RU won the FT game.

14. Pike won halftime (as he most often does).

 

[motel00]

“3. Good move by Pike inserting Williams in during the second half. He really provided a defensive spark. Pike probably waiting too long though. OSU’s strong guards were eating in the paint, but Austin (and some strong help defense) slowed the Buckeye offense.”

And an incredibly bad move benching him for the entire first half. You know you are playing a team with a physical guard like Thornton and you leave your most physical, defensive guard on the bench and watch as your team gets destroyed the entire first half on the defensive end? WTF?

 

[RUisB1Gtime]

Does GG's performance this year give anyone pause about next year? The fab 5 was once in a lifetime..

 

[Scangg]

Mag on Battle and Williams on Thorton almost saved us. Williams will need to play against bigger guards if they bully us. Simpson Noah and Davis just can't handle the physicality of someone like Thorton

Simpson was what we hoped he would be this season tonight. If he can hit that mid range jumpers he can be very good. He can create separation to get that look consistently

Not sure why we didn't go to Simpson high ball screen down the stretch over and over. End of game possessions were poor unfortunately and lacked poise

2 assists first half is wild

We won the rebounding battle for once. Good to see better effort crashing the rim

Gavin has beyond 0 confidence at this point and we can't find a way to get him even one easy basket. He has looked better defensively and effort wise crashing the basket but if we can get Gavin going it would add a huge boost to the offense

Hyatt and Cliff 3 shots in the first half combined

 

[SirScarlet]

OSU was hitting lights out in the first half but if we didn’t have some of the worst shot selection for 20 minutes it could have still been a close game.

This. Not enough is made of how terrible our shot selection has been...its really killing us

Hey...but at least guys were boxing out tonight!!! Lol

 

[RW90]

Mag on Battle and Williams on Thorton almost saved us. Williams will need to play against bigger guards if they bully us.

Not trying to be a wise-ass, but aren't Noah and Derek already like the shortest and thinnest backcourt in the B1G?

 

[Scangg]

Does GG's performance this year give anyone pause about next year? The fab 5 was once in a lifetime..

He's a perfect compliment as a 3rd scorer with Dylan and Ace who can both dribble shoot and pass and will draw constant doubles

Gavin needs to hit the weights and we better hope he gets something going or he could portal if he gets stuck on the end of the bench

 

[Degaz-RU]

“3. Good move by Pike inserting Williams in during the second half. He really provided a defensive spark. Pike probably waiting too long though. OSU’s strong guards were eating in the paint, but Austin (and some strong help defense) slowed the Buckeye offense.”

And an incredibly bad move benching him for the entire first half. You know you are playing a team with a physical guard like Thornton and you leave your most physical, defensive guard on the bench and watch as your team gets destroyed the entire first half on the defensive end? WTF?

Williams is still working back from injury after missing a couple of games a couple weeks back, and he was listed as questionable tonight.

I wonder if Pike was hoping to give him the night off but then just couldn’t.

But, yeah, you wonder if the outcome would’ve been different if Pike had made that move in the first half.

 

[RUBlackout]

someone needs to find Hermione Granger to rub Harry Potters(Gavin) wand and maybe that will put a smile on his face along with some confidence

 

[S_Janowski]

I think we played well and yet couldn't ever make it a game. Be happy it was a close loss. That's where I'm at for this year.

If our guards play well, we have a chance. If they don't its a 20 point blowout most nights.

We played very well in the 2nd half.

But not sure if you saw the 1st half - we played awful.

 

[RUBlackout]

He's a perfect compliment as a 3rd scorer with Dylan and Ace who can both dribble shoot and pass and will draw constant doubles

Gavin needs to hit the weights and we better hope he gets something going or he could portal if he gets stuck on the end of the bench

When he isn’t hitting the outside shot he needs to start driving to the basket and trying to create for himself or others. Not sure why he is just relegated to shooting from the outside trying to get him hot

 

[Goku]

Great job again. Simpson at least has some fight in him. He plays with a chip on his shoulder and angry. Gavin is playing scared. I’m sorry to say it, but it’s rough

 

[S_Janowski]

This. Not enough is made of how terrible our shot selection has been...its really killing us

Hey...but at least guys were boxing out tonight!!! Lol

Part of our rebounding problems this year is actually our poor shot selection (in addition to poor effort, boxing out, positioning etc.)

 

[Scangg]

When he isn’t hitting the outside shot he needs to start driving to the basket and trying to create for himself or others. Not sure why he is just relegated to shooting from the outside trying to get him hot

We need to find ways to get him some easy buckets. I was REALLY hoping we could do that against Stonehill HS so he could build some confidence heading into B1G play

 

[RUBlackout]

We need to find ways to get him some easy buckets. I was REALLY hoping we could do that against Stonehill HS so he could build some confidence heading into B1G play

I agree..thing is he is settling for the outside jumpshot instead of creating. Pike needs to coach him on this so he sees the ball go in the basket and not be one dimensional

 

[RuWishBone]

DId we forget how to press and create points off turnovers. Not Creating turnovers off the press in the 2st half produced a deficit too large to over come

 

[Scangg]

This team has a tendency to not value offensive possessions often in key moments

 

[NewJerseyHawk]

Gavin is not portaling, please stop with anything like that. I tried to explain he would benefit by getting guards who push the tempo and Simpson aggressively pushing and letting Gavin float behind him, was what you want to see....it was his only make.

All fans have to realize is when you add Jeremiah Williams, Dylan Harper and Simpson/Davis to the equation and they can all push the tempo, Gavin will get looks like Jamison Battle saw tonight for Ohio State.

When you watch Gavin in HS, he did a lot of things well, but the staff needs to reverse roles om offense with him. Gavin is able to post up a guard, turnaround jumper over that defensive player. He's also able to use his length to score if you run a post up for him. Once he gets the 2s, then let him roam and find room for 3. We ran an occasional post up for Hyatt and Mag, both are still hit or miss in that role.

In terms of Simpson and Fernandes, clearly they stepped up and played aggressively and looked for their own offense, which is what RU needs to get into the 70s. Obviously you don't want to give up 45 in the 1st half or 9 3s, but all in all, they defended without fouling, which allowed them to get back into the game.....normally when you get down by 12 to 15 or so, the foul line keeps the opponent ahead and you have to play perfectly on defense.

Very enjoyable watch of basketball, a good indicator of what we should look like, pushing the tempo and showing an ability to rally.

Going to get very confident if Austin Williams can become reliable off the bench. I would bring Austin in very early vs Iowa on Saturday and make Tony Perkins work for his offense and let Fernandes and Simpson, run wild and push the ball on offense to make him work.

This is a NCAA roster if Jeremiah Williams gets cleared (I know, I know, he's potentially not ever getting cleared by the criminals in the NCAA offices), but he launches this backcourt on offense and defense once he's on the floor. No way would Thornton or Battle cook like that if Jeremiah is on the court. Probably worth 3 to 5 game swing in the B1G, if he's on the floor and able to play.

 

[Scangg]

Gavin is not portaling, please stop with anything like that. I tried to explain he would benefit by getting guards who push the tempo and Simpson aggressively pushing and letting Gavin float behind him, was what you want to see....it was his only make.

All fans have to realize is when you add Jeremiah Williams, Dylan Harper and Simpson/Davis to the equation and they can all push the tempo, Gavin will get looks like Jamison Battle saw tonight for Ohio State.

When you watch Gavin in HS, he did a lot of things well, but the staff needs to reverse roles om offense with him. Gavin is able to post up a guard, turnaround jumper over that defensive player. He's also able to use his length to score if you run a post up for him. Once he gets the 2s, then let him roam and find room for 3. We ran an occasional post up for Hyatt and Mag, both are still hit or miss in that role.

In terms of Simpson and Fernandes, clearly they stepped up and played aggressively and looked for their own offense, which is what RU needs to get into the 70s. Obviously you don't want to give up 45 in the 1st half or 9 3s, but all in all, they defended without fouling, which allowed them to get back into the game.....normally when you get down by 12 to 15 or so, the foul line keeps the opponent ahead and you have to play perfectly on defense.

Very enjoyable watch of basketball, a good indicator of what we should look like, pushing the tempo and showing an ability to rally.

Going to get very confident if Austin Williams can become reliable off the bench. I would bring Austin in very early vs Iowa on Saturday and make Tony Perkins work for his offense and let Fernandes and Simpson, run wild and push the ball on offense to make him work.

This is a NCAA roster if Jeremiah Williams gets cleared (I know, I know, he's potentially not ever getting cleared by the criminals in the NCAA offices), but he launches this backcourt on offense and defense once he's on the floor. No way would Thornton or Battle cook like that if Jeremiah is on the court. Probably worth 3 to 5 game swing in the B1G, if he's on the floor and able to play.

Clearly Gavin is thriving playing with a player like Simpson and this "up tempo" offense

Gavin was 1-8 today. Unbelievable take 🤣

I would agree Gavin posting up for some touches especially if he has a height mismatch

 

[RU84]

Gavin is not portaling, please stop with anything like that. I tried to explain he would benefit by getting guards who push the tempo and Simpson aggressively pushing and letting Gavin float behind him, was what you want to see....it was his only make.

All fans have to realize is when you add Jeremiah Williams, Dylan Harper and Simpson/Davis to the equation and they can all push the tempo, Gavin will get looks like Jamison Battle saw tonight for Ohio State.

When you watch Gavin in HS, he did a lot of things well, but the staff needs to reverse roles om offense with him. Gavin is able to post up a guard, turnaround jumper over that defensive player. He's also able to use his length to score if you run a post up for him. Once he gets the 2s, then let him roam and find room for 3. We ran an occasional post up for Hyatt and Mag, both are still hit or miss in that role.

In terms of Simpson and Fernandes, clearly they stepped up and played aggressively and looked for their own offense, which is what RU needs to get into the 70s. Obviously you don't want to give up 45 in the 1st half or 9 3s, but all in all, they defended without fouling, which allowed them to get back into the game.....normally when you get down by 12 to 15 or so, the foul line keeps the opponent ahead and you have to play perfectly on defense.

Very enjoyable watch of basketball, a good indicator of what we should look like, pushing the tempo and showing an ability to rally.

Going to get very confident if Austin Williams can become reliable off the bench. I would bring Austin in very early vs Iowa on Saturday and make Tony Perkins work for his offense and let Fernandes and Simpson, run wild and push the ball on offense to make him work.

This is a NCAA roster if Jeremiah Williams gets cleared (I know, I know, he's potentially not ever getting cleared by the criminals in the NCAA offices), but he launches this backcourt on offense and defense once he's on the floor. No way would Thornton or Battle cook like that if Jeremiah is on the court. Probably worth 3 to 5 game swing in the B1G, if he's on the floor and able to play.

You're teasing us with Jeremiah Williams Hawk ... Richie doesn't think he plays this year. On the positive side, Derrick Simpson beginning to emerge as a go to scorer.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Fools gold with us on offense tonight. 7 assists. We will die offensively 8 to 9 nights out of 10 hoping Derek and Noah carry the load without teammates.

Love the way we toughened up down the stretch.

The 3 PG were awful defensively. For every basket Simpson made he got beat on the other end. A Williams saved the day just like he did against Illinois.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Uptempo? We got back in the game when the pace slowed.

Ill say it until i am blue in thr face. If we are foing to win it will be with defense.

 

[toby83]

Great comeback, lot of heart

Just needed one more contributor on offense in second half

 

[RUBOB72]

Gavin is now beyond just lacking confidence. The kid is talented but is playing like the old school dork in the after school or Saturday program. Just needs to take it to the hoop and stop worrying about making 3’s

 

[NiTeKnight]

Gayle Jr.'s 3 pointer was a killer. It was the only 3 pointer he made all game.
0-3 before it. Took a lot of confidence to take that shot in crunch time.

 

[RU84]

Fools gold with us on offense tonight. 7 assists. We will die offensively 8 to 9 nights out of 10 hoping Derek and Noah carry the load without teammates.

Love the way we toughened up down the stretch.

The 3 PG were awful defensively. For every basket Simpson made he got beat on the other end. A Williams saved the day just like he did against Illinois.

Defense is great but you also need baskets. Without Simpson and Fernandes scoring it's a blowout. Thornton had more assists with Battle sizzling from 3.

 

[S_Janowski]

This is a NCAA roster if Jeremiah Williams gets cleared (I know, I know, he's potentially not ever getting cleared by the criminals in the NCAA offices), but he launches this backcourt on offense and defense once he's on the floor. No way would Thornton or Battle cook like that if Jeremiah is on the court. Probably worth 3 to 5 game swing in the B1G, if he's on the floor and able to pl we’re an

How can you say this is an NCAA roster with Jeremiah Williams (without ever having seen him step on the court in an RU uniform)….

But you refuse to believe that if we didn’t lose Mag last year we probably would have been NCAA bound.

Keep in mind our roster this year isn’t as good or deep as last years (without Caleb, Cam and Paul).

No way anyone can say we are an NCAA team this year if we have had Jeremiah.

 

[Mr Magoo]

Gavin is now beyond just lacking confidence. The kid is talented but is playing like the old school dork in the after school or Saturday program. Just needs to take it to the hoop and stop worrying about making 3’s

Agree with you 100%…a backdoor, a post up, anything to get him going. He’s getting worse and all he’s doing is rushing up 3s.

 

[gigantor1024]

someone needs to find Hermione Granger to rub Harry Potters(Gavin) wand and maybe that will put a smile on his face along with some confidence

what a useless and derogatory remark insulting both an RU player and the woman you would be referring to insinuating someone needs to **** him. It’s 2024 grow up

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Defense is great but you also need baskets. Without Simpson and Fernandes scoring it's a blowout. Thornton had more assists with Battle sizzling from 3.

In theory, just theory because player isnt on roster, if instead of shooting we had guards that primarily looked to get others invilved. They made passes instead of shots. In trasition they hit the trailer. They penetrates with the sole purpise of drawing the defense and passing.

We had 7 assists. Gavin chucks the ball at the rim whenever he touches it becauese he mever touches it. Cliff lead the nation in dunks and he only got 4 shots.

 

[kcg88]

This. Not enough is made of how terrible our shot selection has been...its really killing us

Hey...but at least guys were boxing out tonight!!! Lol

We don't have the players to create better shots. I hated our selection with the Geo, Ron, JY teams because they were good enough to get better looks. This year's roster just isn't skilled enough to do what good teams do in terms of getting good shots so we've got to take what we can get.

 

[RUBOB72]

If I’m Pikiell I tell Gavin you take the ball to the basket every time you have the lane. Right now he looks like me trying to play at 73 . Good effort by team but no cigar.