NCAA 2nd Round: (2) Ohio State Vs. (10) Georgia Tech

• devil1197

  Better athletes does not equal a better team, end of discussion. Lauderdale also has a wing span of 7'3.
  
  Diebler, who you probably do not consider a better athlete, could take over the game tomorrow within minutes with his shooting.
  
  OSU will play a zone, back it in and make GT beat them with the 3 ball.
• wildcats20

  

  devil1197 wrote: Better athletes does not equal a better team, end of discussion.

  Who said it did?
• devil1197

  wildcats20 wrote:

  devil1197 wrote: Better athletes does not equal a better team, end of discussion.

  Who said it did?

  No one, but most are talking about GT's great athletes which is fine.
  
  But their not the better overall team. OSU will get wide open shot after shot tomorrow if they move the ball like they did.
• osu45804

  

  By the way .... Great story on ET on the NCAA Pre-Game show
• Swamp Fox

  It's gratifying to hear someone say that the coaching edge is with the Buckeyes in this upcoming contest. I agree. I think we win if we just go out and play the way we are capable of. I also agree with the poster who said our athletes are fine. They are. You don't necessarily have to be 7' tall to play like a 7 footer. Tech will have to cover those perimeter guys and we move the ball too well for them to cover them every time down the floor. Inside out will be too much for the Tech "D" to consistently shut down.
• wildcats20

  

  devil1197 wrote:

  wildcats20 wrote:

  devil1197 wrote: Better athletes does not equal a better team, end of discussion.

  Who said it did?

  No one, but most are talking about GT's great athletes which is fine.
  
  But their not the better overall team.

  I agree with that. But it's the match-up problems in the paint that worries me, but not enough to think the Bucks won't win.
  
  If they can just contain Favors and Lawal, and like you said make the perimeters guys beat you; they will win by 10+ IMO.
  
  But if Favors and/or Lawal have a big day, it could spell trouble.
• devil1197

  Question is how will GT guard OSU knowing that Buford and Diebler can shoot 50+% around the perimeter while Turner has a rough day?
  
  If GT plays zone, OSU will kill them with their ball movement. If GT plays man, I expect Turner to have a much better game and attack the rim shooting/kicking out.
• wildcats20

  

  I agree.
  
  While GT has the advantage inside offensively, it also is a big defensive liability with Favors or Lawal having to guard Lighty or another one of the guards for the Bucks.
• ytownfootball

  

  Favors or Lawal could easily get into foul trouble guarding Lighty/Buford/Turner. They'll be driving all day.
• Cleveland Buck

  

  Better athletes do not necessarily make a better team. I think Ohio State is a better team. I just don't like the matchup.
  
  If we have to play a zone to contain GT's bigs, then they will own the glass and get a bunch of put backs on missed jumpers. If we play man, Lauderdale will foul out and Madsen will get abused.
  
  I think Georgia Tech would be just fine with Buford and Diebler shooting jumpers all game. Ohio State isn't going to beat Georgia Tech if they are relying on forced jumpers because they can't get inside.
• devil1197

  Haha, take a shot of some optimism and hope Buck.
  
  Debbie Downer. From the looks of your posts GT is a Top 10 team.
• ytownfootball

  

  The Bucks haven't relied on getting inside other than driving to the hoop all season. Lauderdale/Madsen are hardly a force other than the occasional put back by Dallas and the occasional 8 footer by Madsen. The Bucks live off the drive/dish.
• Cleveland Buck

  

  devil1197 wrote: Haha, take a shot of some optimism and hope Buck.
  
  Debbie Downer. From the looks of your posts GT is a Top 10 team.

  I am a lifelong Cleveland fan. I don't know what the word 'optimism' means. I would be very happy if the Cavs could teach me the meaning of this word, but let's be real.
• Cleveland Buck

  

  And North Carolina isn't a top 10 team, but they showed what we look like against a team with a huge size advantage.
• big_hits24

  ^^And it works pretty much every game
• devil1197

  Cleveland Buck wrote: And North Carolina isn't a top 10 team, but they showed what we look like against a team with a huge size advantage.

  Exactly how long ago was that game and exactly how early in the season was it?
  
  This OSU team has been rolling for weeks now with W after W only slipping up to a healthy Purdue team by 3.
  
  Once again, a nice shot of optimisim will do wonders. This OSU team is good, will be meeting Kansas in the Elite 8 with a shot of an upset.
• big_hits24

  Talking about the Bucks living off the drive/dish
• centralbucksfan

  People worry so much about how OSU matches up with other teams with size. Ever wonder how those teams match up with OSU? OSU is a much tougher matchup, with 4 guard lineup, then the other way around. This team has been rebounding well all year long. They played BIG ATHLETIC Florida State team...spanked them. They played MSU, the best rebounding team in the country..out rebounded them at MSU.
  And what are the chances of ET having back to back bad games? He will step up in this game.
  Won't be easy...but if OSU plays there game as they have been the last 2 months...they will come out with a victory.
• chicago510

  

  I'm more worried about this game then a possible Tenn game then hopefully a UNI/MSU/MD game. Bracket is wide open though, OSU is the clear favorite.
  
  But i still think OSU's perimeter game gets it done tomorrow, OSU by 7-10
• hoops23

  

  EVERYBODY should be worried about this game. GA Tech isn't exactly the best coached team or most consistent either, but this is March Madness for a reason.
  
  OSU SHOULD win this game though and I hope they do.
  
  Ohio State has the scorers and the man-to-man defense to cause GA Tech a lot of problems.
• devil1197

  Some reason I am not worried at all.
  
  Diebler has shown no signs of slowing down. He is shooting 49% from deep in his last 5 games (25/51). For those of you who say he couldn't do it again, he has already made 7 3's in his last 5 games.
  
  Buford is also playing very well, shooting 46% in his last five games.
  
  OSU just has a starting roster of too many good perimeter players for GT to try and stop ET without letting the others go for 20+.
• hoops23

  

  The one thing that does worry me is the depth.
  
  GA Tech is a team that can wear you out inside, and it could be from the time off and not being in "game shape", but OSU started to look exhausted late in the second half against UCSB.
  
  I saw a lot of hands on hips/knees.
  
  Again though, that could be because they lacked the wind from not playing since the B10 tourney.
• devil1197

  They had basically a week off so I expected some rust.
  
  But these guys have played major minutes all season and have played extremely tough in the 2nd half of games down the stretch this season.
• hoops23

  

  Yes, but the tourney is usually a full 40 minutes of hell, especially as you get deeper. Not so usually with the regular season... (save for a few games)
  
  OSU has a great starting 5, no doubt about it.. But to always have to count on them to get it done is what scares me. Kentucky played 13 guys against Wake.
  
  The only thing I'd love as much as UNC winning a title in college basketball, would be OSU winning one. So I hope my worries are just me not trying to be too confident about this game.
• Swamp Fox

  I don't think anything is automatic in this year's Tournament. No predictions are safe and anyone can beat anyone. As the key teams continue to stumble, it obviously helps those top teams still in, but the remaining top teams must continue to play very consistently and win the games possession by possession. Georgia Tech
  is big, physical, and very athletic. It will be a real test for the Bucks. I'm hoping that by late afternoon, the Buckeyes will have their Regional ticket punched.