I spoke to former Buckeye and teammate Brad Sellers this morning about his senior year, when Ohio State defeated Wyoming 73-63 to win the NIT Championship on March 26, 1986.  He was voted MVP of the tournament and later was a first round draft pick of the Chicago Bulls.  Earlier that season, Head Coach Eldon Miller was fired shortly after a tough road loss to a depleted Minnesota team.  Brad identified that incident as the turning point in the season.  There were rumors flying regarding the future of Coach Miller, which of course put more pressure on the team and the basketball coaching staff.  Brad felt that Coach Miller was a different man after the firing.  The team responded and the rest is history.  It was a heck of way for Brad and the other seniors to end their college basketball careers.  It was also the first and only championship for Eldon Miller as the Buckeyes head coach.  I was happy for him.  He was responsible for offering me the chance to play for The Ohio State University.  I can never repay him for that. 

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~ Ron Stokes
Go Bucks!

The Buckeyes are back in New York, but this time it will be for a bigger prize.  Ohio State will face a Mississippi team tonight for the chance to advance to the NIT Championship game on Thursday.  Ole Miss is a team with a chip on its shoulder for not making the NCAA tournament.  With a regular season record of 21-9 and wins over Clemson, Vanderbilt, Arkansas, and Mississippi State, I felt that they were in the field of 64 for sure.  However, they drew Georgia in the first round of the SEC tournament.  Five days prior to the opening of the SEC tournament, Ole Miss beat the Bulldogs on their home court for the season finale.  As Buckeye fans know all too well, it is tough to beat an opponent back to back.  (Ohio State played Michigan State back to back late in the year).  Mississippi lost to a sub .500 Georgia team that burst the bubble for head coach Andy Kennedy and his team.  They, like the Buckeyes, had to refocus and prepare themselves mentally for the NIT and not the NCAA.  
 

In speaking with the three Buckeye seniors yesterday, they all felt that the NIT Pre-season tournament experience could not hurt.  Staying at the same hotel, eating at the same restaurants, and playing in Madison Square Garden for the third time in the same season gives the Buckeyes an advantage that no one else has in this Final Four group.
 

KEYS TO THE GAME
 

Ole Miss is a quality team that beat Virginia Tech on their home court.  The front court will be the biggest concern for Ohio State.  Seniors Kenny Williams and Dwayne Curtis are 6-8 forwards with plenty of girth.  Prior to the the Ole Miss game, Virginia Tech had out rebounded its opponents by a rate 12 plus/game.  After the 40 minute battle on March 26, 2008, the Rebels had a rebound advantage of 46-23, of which 16 came on the offensive end.   The other factor will be the backcourt.  Freshman Chris Warren has the green light to shoot from anywhere and is capable of Jamar Butler-type performances.  In Ole Miss’s first round game, Warren scored 16 first half points against UC Santa Barbara.    The other perimeter player to watch is Sophomore David Huertas.  He is a Florida transfer that once hit 10 three point shots in a high school game.  He does a great job of allowing the game to come to him, and will welcome the opponents focus on the hot shooting Warren. 

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~ Ron Stokes
Go Bucks!

 

 

 

Do you feel that this Ohio State team was better off playing in the NIT vs the NCAA?  In other words, is it better to lose in the first round of the NCAA or win the NIT?  In my opinion, it depends on how many games that you win.   The top programs in the country look at reaching the NCAA tournament as a given and as something that should happen every year.  Thad Matta has transformed the Buckeyes to a point where they are considered to be a top-tier basketball program, but not one that is among the likes of Duke, North Carolina or Kansas.  After accepting the bid to the NIT, Coach Matta and his staff knew that there was a silver lining to the dark cloud of not making it to the NCAA tournament, and that this situation could benefit their young team in the long run despite not making it to the Big Dance. If the team continued to win, it would continue to have extra practice time and more experience to bring to bear next year.  There is nothing more disappointing to a team that doesn’t reach its goals during the regular season and then loses in the first round of the NIT.  Trust me, I know first hand.  I was part of the 1984 team that fell to Xavier. 

Again, the Big Ten will be looked upon as being overrated.  First round post season tournament losses by Indiana and Minnesota, and, more notably, lopsided defeats of two of the league’s top teams do not help strengthen the case.   The Buckeyes are the last hope for the Conference to earn respect, but it will take winning an NIT title to do it.  

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~ Ron Stokes
Go Bucks!

 

  

I was asked the question today whether it’s better to win an NIT championship versus simply earning a bid to the NCAA tournament without any sort of guarantee.

The answer will depend on the current status of your basketball program. If the team is the Buckeyes, I feel that winning a national championship is the big prize. No disrespect to the nation’s oldest post season tournament, but Ohio State has established itself among some of the elite programs. Two straight outright Big Ten championships and the ability to walk into the living rooms of blue chip high school athletes separate the Buckeyes from the rest of the pack. The top ten programs in the nation do not list the NIT year end tournament as a goal, even though a team still must refocus and play its best basketball within the NIT tournament.

On the other hand, if the team is one like UNC Asheville, that has only been to the NCAA tournament once and has had six straight losing seasons prior to this year, maybe this tournament would be a great consolation prize.

The Buckeyes found themselves out of favor with the NCAA committee by only beating one top 100 team on the road in the form of Cleveland State. They also hurt themselves by losing their first game in the Big Ten tournament. It was unfortunate that they had to play Michigan State in back to back games. The losses to Iowa, Michigan and Minnesota were damaging as well. There are several 11 and 12 NCAA seeds that lost to teams like these three but not all of them collectively.

I still feel that Ohio State reached a point that deserved a bid to the NCAA tournament. The Bucks’ zone defense has stifled many teams and their offense has finally come around where we now see at least three players in double figures.

The first five minutes of the game tomorrow night will tell me if this team really wants to extend the season. The worst thing that can happen is one loss. On the other hand, if the Bucks advance, they have a chance to play four additional games along with adding more practice days in front of Coach Matta and his staff.

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~ Ron Stokes
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