Ohio State is shooting fewer 3-pointers than in any season under Thad Matta, trying to prove an inside game and defense can make up for a lack of sure outside threats.
View full sizeOhio State's William Buford (44) is the Buckeyes' most frequent 3-point shooter, on pace for 58 made treys this season -- a far cry from the 2010-11 Buckeyes, who had three players with more than 100 made shots from beyond the three-point arc.COLUMBUS, Ohio -- When an Ohio State jump shooter is preparing a 3-pointer, Buckeyes' coach Thad Matta can talk about all the things that he has to consider in the one second before he decides to shoot.
Who's the defender and where is he? Coach wants a great shot, is this only a good one? Are your feet set? Was the pass caught cleanly?
"It's such a fine line there," Matta said.
What that player does not think about is whether the act of shooting, or not shooting, from behind the arc is a sign of strength or weakness for the No. 3 team in the country.
But it's a valid question. Because when it comes to 3-pointers, the Buckeyes are unlike any team in Matta's eight seasons here. Going into Tuesday night's home game with Purdue, OSU is shooting fewer than 15 threes per game and making fewer than five, a far cry from the 8-for-22 average on 3-pointers in Matta's first season in Columbus.
"When I first started coaching, people said you took too many threes," Matta said Monday. "Maybe I'm trying to even it up."
What Matta is clearly doing is adjusting to his personnel after the graduation of Jon Diebler, the all-time leading 3-point shooter in Big Ten history. A year ago, 30 percent of Ohio State's scoring came on 3-pointers, and this season it's less than 19 percent. That ranks the Buckeyes 332nd in the nation, ahead of just 12 other teams, according to Statsheet.com.
Maybe that's a good thing.
Matta called the three "a great equalizer," and that's especially true for teams with a talent deficit. In the Big Ten this season, the Buckeyes are going to have a talent edge basically every night. So getting the ball inside to sophomore Jared Sullinger, one of the best post players in the nation, is the natural plan of attack.
Point guard Aaron Craft said the Buckeyes don't focus on the three because "when we've got a guy like Jared in the post, it's tough to not want to throw it in to him and play inside-out with him. It's the best offense we have."
When Sullinger does kick it out, the Buckeyes are as apt to fake a three and drive, or throw it back inside to Sullinger, as they are to put up a 3-pointer. That's unlike last year.
"Last year we could just stand there and knock down threes," Sullinger said of an offense that included Diebler, David Lighty and William Buford. "This year we're a little more athletic and we're slashing a little bit more. Having a guy like Jon Diebler was a really big help for my freshman season, but honestly, this offense, we kind of know what we've got to do to score the ball."
A year ago, Diebler made 227 3-pointers, shooting 50 percent; Buford made 138, shooting 44 percent; and Lighty made 119, shooting 43 percent. But Diebler also had his cold nights. As Matta said he was first told by All-American post player David West, whom he coached at Xavier, the closer you are to the basket, the easier it is to score. It's tougher for a player like Sullinger to go cold.
But aren't there times when a three is needed? Maybe this is a bad thing for Ohio State.
In dire straits, there was no doubt Diebler was capable of making a clutch three. He did it with 25 seconds left against Kentucky last season to tie the Buckeyes' Sweet 16 matchup. Brandon Knight then won the game for Kentucky.
This year, who takes the three when it matters? Saturday against Wisconsin, it was Buford, who made the Buckeyes' only 3-pointer with Ohio State up by just one and 2:27 to play. The Buckeyes were in danger of breaking a string of 284 games with a 3-pointer, which dates back eight years.
But Buford is making just 37 percent of his treys this season. He's on track to lead the Buckeyes with 58 threes a year after they had three guys make more than 100.
Yet Michigan coach John Beilein said it's no different guarding the Buckeyes this season. There is some threat still there on the outside.
"Diebler was incredible, we talk about him all the time, what an incredible shooter he was," Beilein said. "But 40 percent guys, 50 percent guys, I think you have to play the same type of defense. You're not going to let them get open."
Deshaun Thomas is second on the team, shooting 23 for 70 on treys (33 percent), but both Beilein and Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan also mentioned Lenzelle Smith, who is shooting 45 percent though he's just 17 of 38 out there.
"Sometimes he second-guesses himself, but when he shoots them, he makes them," Sullinger said of Smith.
Smith is a much better rebounder and defender than Diebler was. So though the Buckeyes are trading down in shooting, they're getting something else back.
So often in college basketball, teams live and die with 3-pointers. Wisconsin did it on Saturday against the Buckeyes, making just five of 27 threes. The Buckeyes may be trying to prove you can live without even shooting them.
Source: http://www.cleveland.com/osu/index.ssf/2012/02/ohio_state_emphasizing_the_pow.html
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