Buckeyes’ youth comes up short against Spartans’ experience

On Mar 5, 2023

EAST LANSING, Mich. – The ultimate difference in Saturday’s game was on display before the opening tip inside the Breslin Center.

Senior day festivities began at Michigan State with the introduction of Ohio State’s starting lineup, one that again featured four freshmen. Michigan State went with one that included four seniors and third-year guard A.J. Hoggard, creating a significant experience discrepancy between the Buckeyes and Spartans.

That’s not new for Ohio State, and certainly not by this point of the season. It’s part of the plan coach Chris Holtmann has stuck with, one that relies heavily on learning through the mistakes of a highly rated freshman class. It still gave him a moment’s pause before the opening tip, however.

“Honestly, I look at it and say this can be really, really good for us,” he said. “For all these guys to have this experience in these settings on the road. Starting four freshmen at Purdue, here starting four, we look at it and say this can be really good for us going forward. That’s what we hope. It has to be.”

It also provided the final separation in the game’s critical moments. Michigan State jumped out to a 17-4 lead thanks to a 15-0 run and led for all but 1:26 in an 84-78 win, but as has been the case especially of late the Buckeyes kept pushing. After pulling within six points on three occasions during the second half, Ohio State finally got the bucket it needed on the fourth attempt when Bruce Thornton’s 3-pointer made it 67-64 with 5:40 to play.

Michigan State hasn’t lost on senior day since Ohio State won here 11 years ago to the day, and real doubt was creeping into the arena as Tom Izzo called timeout. The Buckeyes roared as they headed to their bench, but the Spartans had an answer.

It was Tyson Walker, who finished with 15 points but none of them more important than his next two. Matched up with Ohio State’s Isaac Likekele, the fourth-year guard gained an edge, got to the left block, beat an attempted double-team and finished at the rim.

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Ohio State would never get within one possession again. Asked what the difference is in those moments, the kind that have consistently gone against the Buckeyes in a regular season that concludes at 13-18 overall and 5-15 in the Big Ten, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo pointed to his backcourt.

“Guard play is one of them,” the coach said. “I do think, Tyson Walker, that layup he made, I don’t know how he got it off. He made a couple big plays. Tyson’s now been a go-to guy in those kind of situations (for years).”

With a chance to answer, Ohio State turned the ball over a split-second before being called for a shot clock violation and then got a miss from freshman forward Brice Sensabaugh in the paint before third-year guard A.J. Hoggard drove, drew contact on Likekele and hit two free throws with 3:34 left to give Michigan State a 71-64 lead.

The Buckeyes got 20 points from their freshman starting guard Bruce Thornton and a team-high 21 points from Sensabaugh. Both were 7 for 15 from the floor. But in addition to his game-high 23 points, Hoggard dished out seven assists with just one turnover.

In addition to his 15 points, Walker added six assists and no turnovers. The two guards combined to score 38 of their team’s points, distribute 13 of their 17 assists and directly have a hand in 26 of Michigan State’s 29 field goals.

They’ve also played in a combined 209 Division I games. Some of what Hoggard did was the result of trust from a coaching staff who could let him just go make a play.

“Sometimes you’ve just got to let him go, because when we’d screen for him they’d trap him and try to get it out of his hands,” Izzo said. “Guard play is critical at the end of games. We were young at the guards. Now we’ve got experience.”

Ohio State is getting there. Saturday, it just wasn’t enough.

Justice Sueing nearly finishes with triple double

During his four healthy seasons of Division I basketball, Justice Sueing has posted six double-doubles. Five of them have been at Ohio State and the only one this season came in a Feb. 26 home win against Illinois that snapped a nine-game losing streak.

At the Breslin Center, he came just shy of not only another double-double but within shouting distance of his first career triple-double. In a team-high 33:46, Sueing finished with 10 points, nine rebounds and a career-high seven assists while committing just one turnover.