In need of wins, Ohio State aiming to bolster struggling 3-point defense at Northwestern
Ohio State went to Indiana’s Assembly Hall with a four-game winning streak, a growing sense of confidence and a pretty good 3-point defense. The Buckeyes weren’t leading the nation in keeping opponents from hitting from deep, but a defense overseen by first-year assistant Brandon Bailey was at least providing more resistance than its last several predecessors.
Then Indiana, a 33.5% 3-point shooting team, went 5 for 12 (41.7%) from deep in a 71-65 win against the Buckeyes. It was the first of a stretch of four losses in five games for Ohio State as well as the first of five less-than-stellar defensive outputs for the Buckeyes, particularly on the perimeter.
After holding opponents to 30.8% 3-point shooting through the first 14 games, Ohio State’s last five opponents have combined to go 49 for 108 (45.4%) from behind the arc. It’s not the only reason why the Buckeyes have encountered turbulence in the last three weeks, but as they go to Northwestern, it’s pretty close to the top of the list of areas they are trying to improve.
“The last five games, we’ve had a lot of (defensive) slippage, mainly from the 3-point arc,” Bailey said. “There are certainly some things we certainly need to be better within the confines of our system in order to protect the paint first but limit and take away shots. The 3-point line is where we are struggling at right now defensively.”
During these last five games, four of Ohio State’s opponents have shot better than their season average from 3 entering the game. Two of them have made more than of their attempts: Michigan went 12 for 23 (52.2%) and Nebraska went 14 for 27 (51.9%). Accordingly, four of Ohio State’s five worst 3-point defensive efforts have been during this stretch, with Wisconsin’s 31.8% effort in what was still an 11-point Badgers win the lone outlier.
Through 14 games, Ohio State was 70th nationally in 3-point defense. Five games later, the Buckeyes woke up Friday morning ranked 244th as opponents are now shooting 34.8% on 3-point attempts. It’s the highest mark allowed by Ohio State since the 2017-18 team allowed teams to shoot 35.1% from deep.
Nobody hammered that point home quite like Cornhuskers center Rienk Mast, who poured in a career-high 34 points in Tuesday night’s 83-69 Nebraska win thanks to a 6-for-8 effort from beyond the arc. In eight prior Big Ten games this year, Mast was 5 for 25 (20.0%) from 3.
“It’s emphasis on keeping a hand up, running guys off the line and understanding these last five games we haven’t done that well,” fifth-year forward Jamison Battle said. “The first 14 games, we were one of the best in the country at doing that. These last five games, we’ve slipped off that.”
The porous perimeter defense has coincided with a prolonged poor 3-point shooting slump by Ohio State. As teams have shot 45.4% from deep in the last five games, Ohio State has combined to shoot 24.3% (27 for 111) from 3. Battle is 14 for 29 (48.3%); the rest of the Buckeyes are 13 for 82 (15.9%).
That has meant that while Ohio State 39th nationally in two-point defensive field goal percentage at 45.6% and 52nd in block percentage (12.1%), the 3-point discrepancy has been too much to overcome.
Bailey said it’s not a question of having players capable of guarding the line. It’s about executing the game plan.
“Not only do we have the guys with the ability to do that, we have the guys that care about it as well,” he said. “They work at it. They’ve committed to it. They know why it matters. Our guys are more than capable of getting that job done and improving, it’s just going to come down to us getting better with it, working on it, showing it on film.”
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Thursday, Bailey said the Buckeyes had a film session dedicated solely to their 3-point defense. Then, in their first practice since coach Chris Holtmann described the team as “soft” and questioned Ohio State’s toughness in the loss to Nebraska, Battle said there was an extra edge to the action.
“I’m not going to go too far into details about it, but we had a different jump,” he said. “We had a different life to us, just knowing it’s another opportunity to go out here and respond.”
Any signs of progress will quickly be put to the test. Fresh off a Wednesday home win against No. 10 Illinois, Northwestern is second in the Big Ten in 3-point shooting at 37.4% and features four players with at least 60 attempts who are all shooting at least 35% from deep.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State's perimeter defense lacking as Northwestern looms
