Buckeyes survive, defeat Tennessee 85-84

Greg Oden finally looked like a freshman, getting mired in foul trouble as top-seeded Ohio State fell behind by 20 points before halftime. But senior Ron Lewis and fellow freshman Mike Conley bailed Oden out and lifted the Buckeyes past Tennessee, 85-84 Thursday night in the semifinals of the NCAA South Regional.

Lewis scored 25 points, and Conley had nine of his 17 from the foul line, including the winner with 6.5 seconds left.

But Conley missed a second shot, giving Tennessee one last chance. Ramar Smith grabbed the rebound and went all the way to the rim with Conley defending him. They went up together and time expired with his ball in the air.

Then it was Oden to the rescue, swatting the ball into the Volunteers’ cheerleaders and dropping back to earth himself with his biggest smile of the night, while Smith planted himself facedown in front of the Tennessee bench.