Illinois at Ohio St.
When: 7:00 PM ET, Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Where: Value City Arena, Columbus, Ohio
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THE STORY: No. 6 Ohio State has hit some bumps in the road of late, but Illinois has gone into a full-blown tailspin, losing five in a row and eight of its last nine since its stunning 79-74 home win over the Buckeyes on Jan. 10. Tuesday’s rematch in Columbus features two of the Big Ten’s top post players in Ohio State PF Jared Sullinger and Illinois C Meyers Leonard. The Buckeyes still rank second in the conference in scoring and scoring margin despite totaling just 99 points in losses to Michigan State and Michigan during the last week and a half.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, ESPN, ESPN3.com (web).
ABOUT ILLINOIS (16-11, 5-9 Big Ten): The Fighting Illini are just 2-7 in true road games with five straight defeats, including an ugly 80-57 trouncing at lowly Nebraska on Saturday. The numbers reflect how badly Illinois has sputtered across the board during its five-week skid — in conference games, the team ranks near the bottom of the Big Ten in scoring margin (minus-4.2), rebounding margin (minus-1.3) and turnover margin (minus-2.1). Junior SG Brandon Paul still leads the Illini with 14.9 ppg, but he has been erratic since his 43-point outburst in the first meeting with Ohio State. Paul scored two points on 1-of-7 shooting at Nebraska.
ABOUT OHIO STATE (21-4, 9-3): The Buckeyes still average 74.9 ppg, but they have been held well below that figure in their two most recent setbacks. Ohio State shot just 26 percent in a home loss to Michigan State and 39 percent in Saturday’s 56-51 defeat at Michigan. Sullinger still leads Ohio State with 17.5 ppg and 9.2 rpg, but he totaled 13 turnovers in the two losses, well above his per-game average of 2.0. Senior SF William Buford and sophomore F Deshaun Thomas add 15.0 and 14.6 points, respectively, with Thomas coming off his first career double-double (25 points, 13 rebounds) against the Wolverines.
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1. Illinois leads the all-time series, 100-64, but Ohio State had won five straight and 10 of the last 12 meetings before their Jan. 10 defeat in Champaign.
2. The Buckeyes have won five of the last six meetings on their home floor, but the Illini still own a 40-39 advantage in Columbus, including a 70-68 victory in 2009.
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