Thursday, January 29, 2009
COLUMBUS (AP) — When you think of Michigan vs. Ohio State, you think of hard hitting.
But in basketball?
Evan Turner scored 14 of his 22 points as Ohio State built an 18-point first-half lead and the Buckeyes hung on to beat Michigan 72-54 on Wednesday night in a chippy showdown between the rivals.
The game was held up for several minutes near the finish after Michigan’s Zack Novak elbowed Ohio State’s P.J. Hill in the face. The officials separated the players before the skirmish escalated. Novak was called for a flagrant foul and was ejected from the game.
“He got me good though,” said Hill, who said his jaw was sore from the shot. “I thought I was going to get the rebound. I had a step on him. But he gave me a step purposely so he could get me in the jaw.”
Ohio State coach Thad Matta said he didn’t see it but was pleased that the elbow didn’t erupt into something more.
“I don’t know if it was kind of like a punch or it was a high elbow,” Michigan coach John Beilein said. “[Novak] was boxing out. I know there was a lot of talk going on. At the same time, my guess is that they threw him out [because] he made a mistake that he’ll learn from.”
It was the second time in two weeks the Buckeyes (14-5, 4-4 Big Ten) beat the Wolverines (14-7, 4-5).
Jeremie Simmons matched his career high with 12 points for Ohio State, which had lost its last two games, both to ranked opponents. B.J. Mullens also had 12 points.
Manny Harris had a triple-double of sorts for Michigan, totaling 22 points, 12 rebounds and 10 turnovers. DeShawn Sims added 13 points.
Michigan, leading the Big Ten in 3-pointers made, misfired on all 11 attempts in the first half while falling behind 36-18. The Wolverines didn’t make their first shot behind the arc until more than a minute was gone in the second half.
Turner, meanwhile, was aggressively taking his man to the hoop every time he touched the ball. He outscored Michigan 14-13 over the first 14 minutes.
“He was very effective. He moved well without the basketball,” Matta said. “He found the seams and then they started loading guys up and taking his drives away and he did a pretty good job of moving the ball and finding guys.”
Turner hit 6-of-9 shots from the field and 12-of-13 3-pointers, and added five rebounds and four assists.
2008, The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.