Buckeyes loose and ready

Associated Press

COLUMBUS

Evan Turner sat down and, just like a lot of kids if given the chance to play with a live microphone, began to make a rhythm sound with his mouth while pretending he was performing in concert.

“This is a March Madness piece,” he said, laughing.

Teammate David Lighty scoffed at the impromptu — and off-key — rendition: “His beat was terrible.”

That’s how No. 5 Ohio State began a news conference on Wednesday about all the pressure and hype surrounding the NCAA tournament and the Buckeyes’ first-round date with UC Santa Barbara in Milwaukee on Friday night.

For the record, the Buckeyes appear to be anything but uptight and nervous.

They addressed several serious topics with the silliness expected of underclassmen who are now officially on spring break.

At the same time, they spoke like old hands about this NCAA stuff.

“We’re more relaxed, we’re a very experienced team,” guard Jon Diebler said. “Coach [Thad Matta] always says, ‘Act like you’ve been there.’ Well, we have been there. We haven’t won a tournament game yet, but we know what to expect now.”

Second-seeded Ohio State (27-7) has won 15 of its last 17 games, including the last seven, following up a share of the Big Ten title by winning the conference tournament.

One reason the Buckeyes feel especially good about themselves and their NCAA chances is a year-old disappointment. Four starters are juniors, and they missed the tournament two years ago, although they did win the NIT. So when they made the NCAA field a year ago, it was a new experience.

It didn’t last long. Seeded eighth, they fell to ninth-seeded Siena 74-72 in double-overtime in the first round, blowing a 14-point second-half lead.

“We were kind of happy that we made it last year,” said Lighty, unable to play in that game after missing most of the season with a broken bone in his foot. “We were just so excited about finally getting to the tournament. Now that we’re there [again] we know what it takes to win a game in the tournament, just from the experience.”