
Photo courtesy of sportsillustrated.cnn.com. Ohio State came up just short today without their star Jared Sullinger (pictured above).
By Josh Kramer
Now I am fully aware that the vast majority of you are flabbergasted by the headline of this post. How could the number two ranked team in all of the land have a moral victory? Especially when they did not play against the number one ranked team in the country, or even a top ten ranked team for that matter. Well let me elaborate for you.
Today, Ohio State headed to a very hostile environment to take on the number 13 ranked Kansas Jayhawks at Phog Allen Fieldhouse. The Buckeyes first road game of the year. A true road test right off the bat. In addition, Kansas is no slouch of a team in the own right. Outside of a very humbling experience at Madison Square Garden against Kentucky, this team has looked very good. I realize that the same Duke team who Ohio State beat by 22, came in and handled the Jayhawks a couple of weeks ago, but the Jayhawks are still a very solid opponent.
Ohio State had played just one game that had stayed within single digits all year until today (W over Florida). The Buckeyes have been a team that relies on a stifling offensive attack that is one of the most efficient in all of the land. In other words, Ohio State is a team that hits over 50% of their shots a game. This amazing stat is due in large part to their best player, Jared Sullinger. Continue reading