Iowa-Ohio State hoops breakdown

Here's a breakdown of Tuesday's Iowa-Ohio State (noon, ESPN2) match-up:

1. Backcourt.

No Big Ten basketball team has changed its character and its offensive style of play more in one year than Ohio State.

The No. 18 Buckeyes (11-2) ranked ninth last year in Big Ten scoring at 69 points a game. Now, as Ohio State enters Big Ten play, it sits at second with 85.3 points a game. Ohio State still maintains its traditional tough defense under Coach Thad Matta, holding opponents to 58.5 points a game and 37.4 percent shooting from the floor.

Freshman guard D'Angelo Russell, a five-star recruit, has transformed the Buckeyes' offensive attack. He averages 17.7 points a game and leads the team in 3-pointers with 35. He's second on the Buckeyes in assists and steals. At 6-foot-5, Russell is an aggressive rebounder and is tied for the team high with 47 defensive rebounds.

'What they do is they let Russell play his game, which is a smart thing to do because he's capable of being a scorer but he's capable of having the ball and they let him do both,” Iowa Coach Fran McCaffery said. 'He's a really good passer, he's a really good shooter, he can get in the lane. He plays at a great pace. He's a guy that is a very integral part of anything that they do.”

Monday, Russell picked up his second Big Ten Freshman of the Week Award by averaging 19.5 points, 6.0 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 2.0 steals in wins against Miami (Ohio) and Wright State. He shot 12 of 18 from the field and 10 of 14 from 3-point range in those two games. Against Wright State, Russell scored 24 points and set a school freshman record with six 3-pointers (in six attempts). He ranks fourth in Big Ten scoring and assists and is tied for first with 35 3-pointers.

Senior point guard Shannon Scott has a Big Ten-high 100 assists with only 31 turnovers. He averages 7.9 points but also ranks second in the Big Ten with 2.5 steals a game. Wing Marc Loving has elevated his play year-over-year and averages 12.4 points a game. He's a killer from 3-point range, making 57.8 percent (26 of 45) and ranks second in the Big Ten in free-throw percentage (89.6). Freshman Kam Williams comes off the bench and ranks third among Big Ten players in scoring (10.2) and 11th in field-goal percentage.

'I think (Scott's) playing really well,” McCaffery said. 'I've always liked him, but I think now that it's kind of his team as opposed to it was always Aaron Craft's team, I think he's playing that way with that kind of confidence. That backcourt combination is pretty impressive.”

Iowa counters with veteran point guard Mike Gesell, who led the Big Ten in assist-to-turnover ratio last year and ranks 10th this year. Gesell averages 7.0 points with 51 assists and 23 turnovers. He also has 15 steals. He played his best game against North Carolina, where he put up 16 points, including the game's final five.

At shooting guard, Iowa is likely to start sophomore Peter Jok in the place of junior Anthony Clemmons. Part of it is health-based; Clemmons sprained both of his ankles in Iowa's final two non-conference games and has worked just halfway through practice, McCaffery said. Part of it is Jok's potential and Iowa's offense malaise. Jok averages just 5.8 points but has an offensive skill set that no one else at Iowa possesses. Clemmons (5.3 ppg) is Iowa's best backcourt defender and plays point guard as well. If he's limited against Ohio State's guards, that's a major disadvantage for Iowa.

Iowa senior Josh Oglesby scored eight points in last year's upset at Ohio State. He helped complete a nine-point comeback with a 3-pointer and a layup that twice tied the game inside of eight minutes. He has struggled mightily so far, shooting 25 percent from 3-point range. Freshman Brady Ellingson will continue to play this season and a red-shirt appears off the table, McCaffery said.

The Buckeyes lead the Big Ten in assist-to-turnover ratio, while Iowa ranks 10th. The teams are close in assists and steals.

ADVANTAGE: Ohio State

2. Frontcourt.

Iowa's frontcourt remains its strength. The Hawkeyes lead the Big Ten in offensive rebounds (13.7) and total rebounds (40.5). Native Ohioan Aaron White is ninth in Big Ten scoring (15.8 ppg) and sixth in rebounding (7.2). He's also efficient with 24 steals and only 25 turnovers. White is one of the nation's best free-throw shooters at 88 percent, ranking third in the Big Ten. He also has the league's second-most made free throws with 81. In his career, White has sank 504 free throws, just 12 shy of Iowa's record held by Roy Marble. He's 14th in all-time Iowa scoring with 1,507 points. With 19 points, White can move up to No. 11.

Jarrod Uthoff averages 10.6 points and is ninth in the Big Ten with 6.6 rebounds per game. Iowa's center tandem of Adam Woodbury and Gabe Olaseni combines for 15.9 points and 11.6 rebounds a game. Olaseni ranks second in Big Ten blocked shots with 32. Woodbury is 16th in rebounding at 6.0 per game. Both are deceptively good from the free-throw line. Olaseni ranks 12th, shooting 80 percent. Woodbury makes 64.5 percent from the line.

After an impressive performance against North Carolina, where he connected on five of seven shots and grabbed seven rebounds, Woodbury has struggled scoring. In the past five games, he's only six of 29 from the field. But Woodbury does impact the game in many other ways, especially with his toughness.

'He is the epitome of a tough guy,” McCaffery said. 'He's also incredibly intelligent, and that's a great combination to have. I think with him, when he stays to his strengths ... he can shoot the ball facing the basket, he can run the floor, he can score with angles, he can pass and catch, he's a physical low-post defender. He plays ball screens really well. He communicates really well. He impacts our team in such an incredibly positive way every game.

'Some people see him miss a couple shots they think he should make and they want to tee off on him. But that's not what his impact is. Now he needs to eliminate those plays from his game, and that's what he's trying to do. That's part of the growth process for him. But the overall impact that he has is immeasurable.”

Ohio State has size and athletic ability in the post. Center Amir Williams (6-foot-11) started 35 games last year and has 12 starts this year. He averages 8.3 points and ranks third in the Big Ten with 2.2 blocked shots a game. He leads the Buckeyes with 5.8 rebounds.

Athletic marvel Sam Thompson (6-7) puts up 9.7 points and 4.4 rebounds a game. He has 27 assists to only 10 turnovers, has blocked nine shots and has 10 steals. But he's liability from the perimeter thus far, making just 25.7 percent from 3-point range. But Thompson is much more important than highlight-reel dunks and has drawn comparisons to former OSU star David Lighty with his approach.

'Sam is completing himself as a player,” Matta said. 'Statistically it probably shows that. I really like what Sam's doing right now in terms of all the intangibles of helping our team. I know he's going to have big nights scoring. When are they? I'm not exactly sure. But I do like the things he's bringing to the table.

'I love the leadership and the things that he is doing for this basketball team. He's probably taken on more of a role than he has in the past, to be honest with you. If you want to term him the glue guy, I guess I'm OK with that.”

Off the bench, Ohio State throws waves at the opposition, which is vastly different from its recent past when Matta played only six or seven players. Freshmen Jae'Sean Tate and Keita Bates-Diop average 18.0 and 13.8 minutes per game, respectively. Tate puts up 6.5 points and Bates-Diop scores 5.3. Tate also brings down 4.8 rebounds. Veteran Trey McDonald and fifth-year transfer Anthony Lee both average 12.2 minutes a game and combine to score 8.5 points.

ADVANTAGE: Iowa

3. Intangibles/other.

There's no question Ohio State's athletic ability runs laps around Iowa's players at virtually every position. But the Hawkeyes have dealt with this before in a five-point win at North Carolina. The Tar Heels later beat Ohio State by eight points.

There is some question about Ohio State's record and competition to this point. OSU has played only two games outside of Ohio and lost both. The Buckeyes' strength-of-schedule ranks 167th and the team's RPI is 66th. Outside of an 11-point win against Marquette, the Buckeyes have no quality wins. Iowa has played five opponents that are currently or formerly ranked but has lost four. The Hawkeyes' RPI is 107 and their strength-of-schedule ranks 91st.

Among Iowa's biggest problems has been the players' inability to mentally move past mistakes. North Florida Coach Matthew Driscoll talked about that unprompted in great detail, and McCaffery addressed some of those points with his team.

'I talked to (Driscoll) about it actually and I talked to our players about it,” McCaffery said. 'I think any time anybody says something that is essentially true based on his opinion and his analysis, which I can only assume that he was asked for maybe he wasn't, I have no problem with it. I thought it was honest. I didn't think it was said to hurt anybody, I think it was said to essentially help our guys to understand, ‘You've got really good players, just play with confidence. This is what I'm seeing on film. This is what I'm reading as an opposing coach.' I think he really meant it to help our team and to help our players. That's how I took it, and that's how I told them to take it, and I think they did.”

Ohio State lost a chunk of experience with point guard Aaron Craft's graduation and LaQuinton Ross declaring for the NBA draft. Last year was a modest season by Big Ten standards for Ohio State, finishing fifth in the league and losing its first NCAA tournament game to an instate foe.

If anything, Big Ten play is a ramp-up in intensity, of which Matta is aware.

'I love the mentality of our guys right now, the new guys, just in terms of how they've adapted to the system, how they've adapted to Ohio State basketball and they seem to have a good understanding and good appreciation of what we're trying to do,” Matta said. 'Do they completely understand a conference race? I don't know that.”

If they don't understand what the Big Ten race is all about, Olaseni can fill them in.

'I expect a lot of bruises, a lot of cuts, a lot of blood,” Olaseni said. 'But it's going to be fun. It's my last time playing in the Big Ten. The teams are good top to bottom. Penn State's improved. Purdue's got two animals inside, so top to bottom it's going to be a very difficult schedule going forward. I think we're in a good position. Obviously we didn't want to lose those four games going into conference play, but all four of those teams are going to compete for their conference championship.”

Advantage: Ohio State

KEY MATCHUP

Iowa's guards vs. D'Angelo Russell. Russell is the perfect example of a future one-and-done. He was a highly touted recruit and already has become one of the top players in a competitive league. He's a do-it-all guard from setting the offense, to scoring and taking advantage of his opponent. He's similar to former Iowa guard Devyn Marble, although Russell's skill set is much sharper. Defensively, Iowa tends to take out the opponent's best player, so what Russell can do when not scoring is pivotal. Also, Iowa's guards need to hit shots from the perimeter. Check that, Iowa must (all capital letters) hit shots from the perimeter in order to have a chance of sticking around against the Buckeyes.

KEY STATISTICS

SCORING/OPP:

Iowa 70.7/58.8; OSU 85.3/58.5

FG%/OPP FG%:

Iowa 40.7/36.9; OSU 52.6/37.4

3PT%/OPP 3PT%:

Iowa 30.8/30.3; OSU 42.0/30.1

FT%:

Iowa 77.5; OSU 71.9

LIKELY STARTERS

Iowa:

G Mike Gesell (6-2); G Anthony Clemmons (6-2) or Peter Jok (6-6) or Josh Oglesby (6-6); F Jarrod Uthoff (6-9); F Aaron White (6-9); C Adam Woodbury (7-1)

Ohio State:

G Shannon Scott (6-1); G D'Angelo Russell (6-5); F Marc Loving (6-7); F Sam Thompson (6-7); C Amir Williams (6-11)

KEY RESERVES

Iowa

: C Gabe Olaseni (6-10); G Trey Dickerson (6-1); G Brady Ellingson (6-4); F Dominique Uhl (6-9)

Ohio State:

G Kam Williams (6-2); F Jae'Sean Tate (6-4); F Keita Bates-Diop (6-7); F Anthony Lee (6-9); C Trey McDonald (6-8)

BOTTOM LINE

After 13 games, there still are questions about both teams. We'll have a better read on how Ohio State's weak non-conference slate and inexperience affected the team by mid-January, when it plays four of five games on the road in 16 days. Iowa's problems are more ingrained. The lack of outside shooting has become a major issue. Oglesby, Jok or Gesell must hit consistently from outside or Ohio State's zone will suffocate Iowa's interior advantage. Until that happens regularly enough to count on it, it's more of a wish for Iowa than an expectation.

Prediction: Ohio State 65-57

l Comments: (319) 339-3169; scott.dochterman@thegazette.com