Big Ten Basketball Championship 2011: Ohio State Defeats Penn State 71-60, All But Locks Up No. 1 Seed

Penn State played well in the first half of the 2011 Big Ten Basketball Championship, but Ohio State has come out guns blazing in the second half as they have steadily pulled away from the Nittany Lions. Their lead was only six points at the half, but at the under eight minute media timeout, Ohio State had gotten out to a 55-38 lead. Jared Sullinger has upped his game in the second half and the entire team is shooting well from behind the three point line. William Buford has almost certainly been the player of the game so far, scoring 16 points on 7-13 shooting.

In the second half, Penn State has been completely out-worked in every facet of the game. Ohio State are passing better, shooting better, and rebounding better. In the end, their athleticism and shooting ability has been way too much for the Nittany Lions to cope with.

Ohio State have been the better team in the first half of the 2011 Big Ten Basketball Championship, but not by nearly as wide of a margin as most people expected. The Buckeyes have a 29-23 lead, which is hardly impressive. Taylor Battle and Penn State are hanging around, playing tough defense and making some timely shots. They’ve forced Ohio State to play at their pace and the Buckeyes are shooting just 38.5% from the field. However, Jon Diebler nailed a three point shot at the buzzer to extend Ohio State’s lead from three to six points, possibly giving them some positive momentum going into the second half.

Penn State have been incredibly effective in containing Jared Sullinger, and that’s probably the biggest reason why they’re still in this game at halftime. The Nittany Lions are a very good defensive team, but really, Sullinger should be able to take over this game if he really wants to. He doesn’t look cut out for this whole “three games in three days” thing, as he’s breathing heavily and walking around the court.