Key, Thornton and Gayle save the day: 3 things we learned from Ohio State's opening win
Bruce Thornton and Roddy Gayle did something they’d never done before on Monday night, and it helped them avoid something they’d done plenty.
As Ohio State and Oakland approached the midpoint of the second half, the Golden Grizzlies were clinging to a 52-51 lead when Thornton stole a pass from guard DQ Cole. Turning upcourt, Thornton quickly spied his classmate, teammate, roommate and friend charging toward the basket. His pass hit the high-flying Gayle right in stride, and when he slammed home the alley-oop it put Ohio State ahead, 53-52, with 8:30 to play.
It marked the first time the guards, two of five players to appear in all 35 games during last year’s 16-19 season, had combined for an in-game alley-oop. And it provided the moment needed to flip the script on last year’s inability to make a clutch play when the Buckeyes desperately needed one.
The dunk came amid a personal run of nine straight points from Gayle, who alongside Thornton and fourth-year center Zed Key all finished with 17 points to lead the Buckeyes to a 79-73 win in front of 9,244 fans at Value City Arena.
“That was a very special moment for me,” Gayle said. “Obviously plays like that change the course of the game. Being able to use my athleticism and my ability to give the team energy, I’ll do anything for that. Bruce made an amazing play on defense. I just ran the floor and he found me, honestly.”
For a while, the two sophomores handled the scoring load. Starting with a Thornton 3-pointer with 11:12 left that cut Oakland’s lead to 50-47, the two combined to score 12 straight points as Ohio State went from a 50-44 deficit to a 56-52 lead.
Then Key inserted his name into the conversation, drawing three fouls in the span of only 2:13 and helping extend the lead to 67-60. As the crowd finally found reason to cheer, Key even threw in his “finger guns” celebration on a three-point play with 5:36 left.
Together, the three combined to score 32 straight points as the three-headed focal point of the Ohio State attack. Of their combined 51 points, Key, Thornton and Gayle scored 36 of them after halftime, accounting for all but nine of Ohio State’s points in the final 20 minutes.
The way those three closed the game were coach Chris Holtmann’s primary takeaway from the game – or at least, his top positive one.
“The poise we played with,” he said when asked what he learned from a close game that tested his team. “That’s probably the biggest, most positive takeaway is the poise that (those three) played with down the stretch. Zed making free throws. That’s the biggest takeaway. Outside of that there’s certainly some things we have to get better at.”
For starters, like the fact that Ohio State only led for 9:31 against a team ranked No. 271 nationally according to KenPom.com. Had Oakland won, it would’ve been the biggest upset loss for the Buckeyes since No. 271 Florida Atlantic won at Value City Arena in overtime, 79-77, on Dec. 6, 2016. In the first game of the year, Ohio State went 7 for 25 (28.0%) from 3, allowed Oakland to connect on 40.0% (14 for 35) of its 3s and struggled to seize control of the game to the growing consternation of the crowd.
Is it a sign of another difficult season to come, or merely one data point in a 31-game regular season? It’s impossible to tell just yet, but it gave some insight into how this year’s team might be able to respond to adversity as opposed to last season.
“I was really proud of those guys,” Holtmann said. “It’s hard. It’s your first game. You see a different defense. We’re struggling against a team everybody thinks we should beat, so you can feel like the walls closing in, and that can be hard for a young kid. They have to relax and go be a player. Go focus on the play in front of you right now, do what you’ve been coached and then be you.”
Thornton played a team-high 34:27, drew four fouls and had three rebounds, two assists, a steal and one turnover while going 3 for 11 from the floor but 8 for 8 from the line. Key had eight rebounds, drew nine fouls and was 5 for 7 from the floor and 7 for 9 from the line.
Gayle, after crediting his teammates for helping him rebound from a difficult first half, drew 10 fouls and had seven rebounds and five assists with three turnovers. He was 6 for 11 from the floor and missed all four 3-point attempts.
“He certainly couldn’t have done this at this point last year,” Holtmann said. “His role’s bigger this year. He’s been asked to play a bigger role and he’s responded from a difficult performance against Clemson. His ability to draw fouls right now is going to be important for this group.”
Scotty Middleton quietly impresses in debut
There were 15.1 seconds remaining when Scotty Middleton strode to the free-throw line for his first career attempts. With Ohio State clinging to a 76-73 lead, the 6-7, 190-pound guard took the ball, squared up and missed the first attempt at making it a two-possession lead as a collective feeling of dread spread like lightning through the arena.
Then he hit the second one, finally extinguishing the final gasps from the Golden Grizzlies. For good measure, he made two more with four seconds left to set the final score and cap a strong first appearance.
In 28:10, Middleton finished with 13 points, eight rebounds, an assist, a steal and one turnover while finishing with a game-best plus-19 plus-minus rating. He tied Key for the team lead in rebounds.
“He made shots and didn’t play scared in any way and was active,” Holtmann said. “He had a few offensive rebounds. He did his job at a really good level.”
As Ohio State tried to erase a halftime deficit, Middleton’s 14:50 of playing time was fourth-most during the second half. He had 9 points and four rebounds after halftime and drew two fouls.
Only Gayle (17:16), Key (16:46) and Thornton (15:17) were on the court more than the freshman.
“He played really well,” Key said. “He gave us a spark off the bench. He came in right way and produced. He’s tenacious on defense. We need him. It shows how much work he puts in every day and he’s going to sacrifice, go out there and play as hard as he can.”
Middleton was one of two freshmen to play. Devin Royal was on the floor for 6:02 and grabbed two rebounds, blocked one shot and drew a foul but missed the front end of a one-and-one to finish scoreless in his debut. He did not play during the second half. Austin Parks was questionable but did not get off the bench and Taison Chatman was unavailable as he continues to recover from a preseason meniscus surgery but did go through warmups.
Holtmann said that while there were things Middleton had to correct, there was a lot he liked about his defensive impact on the game.
“Scotty had a really good look in his eyes and was detailed,” the coach said. “He and Bruce were the two most detailed guys on their shooters. It’s a credit to him.”
Ohio State battles against ‘unique’ Oakland zone
In preparation for the Buckeyes, Oakland coach Greg Kampe said he spent the offseason watching every single possession Ohio State played against a zone defense for the last few years.
“One of their frustrations was we knew everything they were going to do,” he said, before pausing and considering his train of thought. “Oh, I could make a comment right now. I’m from Michigan, but I don’t think I will.”
With the reference to Michigan football’s alleged sign-stealing saga complete, Kampe let the laughter subside before continuing.
“My staff did a hell of a job scouting them,” he said. “We’ve had every play they ran against zone since coach has been here. We felt we knew exactly what they were going to do. We had every set and we had all of them. We had a month to prepare for them. We were really prepared and knew what they were going to do. If we had played them man to man, (Thornton) would’ve physically abused us. We had to play zone.”
The goal was to force Ohio State to take tough 2s while keeping them from making 3s, he said. That, coupled with a prolific 3-point effort from his own team, would give the Grizzlies the best shot at an upset. It nearly worked.
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“You don’t see a zone that’s that extended that takes away the corners, takes away any type of overload,” Holtmann said. “They can be disruptive with it. We had some good looks, too, we just didn’t make, both around the basket and open 3s. I thought we settled a little bit in the first half but for the most part we got clean open looks throughout the game.
“That’s what their zone is built for. They’re going to give you some open looks and if you don’t make them, you can stretch the game.”
One bright spot was the play of Gayle, who seemed to be the lone Buckeye able – or willing – to attack some of the gaps in the zone and force the issue.
“There were gaps in the zone that he with his size and ability to attack was important for us,” Holtmann said. “We were not able to get the ball into the foul line, which is normally where you can attack a zone. The corners can get there but you have to punch gaps and I thought he was the best tonight at punching gaps and drawing fouls.”
Ohio State finished with 14 assists on 24 field goals for an assist percentage of 58.3. Last season, the Buckeyes assisted on only 43.2% of their field goals, the program’s lowest total since the 1983-84 season.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: 3 things: Key, Thornton and Gayle save the day for Ohio State
