Ohio State blisters Iowa in front of near-sellout

IOWA CITY - Carver-Hawkeye Arena fell 100 fans short of a sellout Saturday afternoon.

That's a shame for Iowa, which could have used those extra fans to guard Ohio State super-sophomore Jared Sullinger. Or those same fans could have helped Iowa score a few more buckets.

Sullinger drilled Iowa (10-7, 2-2 Big Ten) for 28 points on 13-of-18 shooting and pulled down eight rebounds to help the No. 6 Buckeyes thrash Iowa 76-47 before 15,400 fans. Iowa struggled to mount any kind of offensive effort against Ohio State, especially in the first half.

Either way, those fans didn't come to the rescue and neither did anyone else. Sullinger battered Iowa on both ends of the floor, and it wasn't the performance Iowa Coach Fran McCaffery expected after winning consecutive road games at Wisconsin and Minnesota.

"I don't think we thought we would get blitzed like this," McCaffery said. "As you look at the stats and you go down and you keep going down, we don't have anybody in doubles."

Iowa junior Eric May led the Hawkeyes with nine points and six rebounds. Nobody else for Iowa had more than seven points or five rebounds. It was a complete blowout by one team (Ohio State) ranked among the nation's best over another (Iowa) that still has plenty of room for improvement.

But Ohio State didn't scout Iowa like it had beaten the Hawkeyes six straight times before Saturday. Ohio State Coach Thad Matta said his players were attentive in practice and film study in preparing for Iowa, mostly because of the Hawkeyes' recent success.

"With the win at Wisconsin and the win at Minnesota obviously that heightens our guys' awareness," Matta said.

Ohio State (15-2, 3-1 Big Ten) tightened its defense and allowed just five first-half baskets. Iowa shot just 21.7 percent from the field, committed 12 turnovers and had no points in the fast break in the first half.

"Last time we played like that was against Duke defensively,"  Sullinger said of the Buckeyes' 85-63 win over the No. 5 Blue Devils.

Ohio State had its own obstacles to overcome in the half. The Buckeyes played most of the half without starters Deshaun Thomas, Aaron Craft and Lenzelle Smith Jr., who all had two fouls. That's when Sullinger stepped up offensively.

With the score tied 9-9, Ohio State went on a 9-0 run with seven points coming from Sullinger. He hit a jumper to give Ohio State a lead it wouldn't relinquish. Sullinger then drilled a wide-open 3-pointer and concluded the run with an inside basket.

"I didn't say it, I showed it," Sullinger said about wanting to take control offensively. "The fellas really made a conscious effort to throw it inside because they knew if they threw it inside, it was either going to be double team or they was going to play one-on-one. Coach Matta thinks that's where it started."

Iowa chopped its deficit to three points with 2:49 left in the half with a Bryce Cartwright basket. But Sullinger kept Ohio State focused with a layup and jumper as part of a 6-0 run to push the lead back to 28-19 at halftime.

Sullinger said Matta's halftime speech was direct. It was about finishing the Hawkeyes.

"(Matta) said the game was not over," Sullinger said. "We have to go out there and take it, and I think that's what we did."

Ohio State started the second half on a 10-2 and eventually pushed its lead to 33. At one point Iowa scored just four points in a stretch lasting nearly eight minutes.

"You know, we win on the road twice, we are not sneaking up on anybody anymore," McCaffery said. "So we got their best shot today. And that's what we have to understand because the next two games are against ranked opponents as well."

Tuesday, Iowa plays at No. 10 Michigan State and plays host to No. 16 Michigan on Saturday. Thanks to Iowa's wins over Wisconsin and Minnesota - and its loss to Ohio State - the Hawkeyes' pluses and minuses are in full view for both teams' scouting reports.

OHIO ST. (15-2)

Thomas 4-6 0-2 10, Sullinger 13-18 1-2 28, Craft 2-4 0-0 4, Smith Jr. 2-4 0-0 6, Buford 3-14 1-2 8, Sibert 1-4 0-0 2, Scott 2-5 1-1 5, Ross 0-0 0-0 0, Thompson 2-2 0-0 5, Weatherspoon 4-6 0-0 8, Williams 0-1 0-0 0, Ravenel 0-0 0-0 0, McDonald 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 33-64 3-7 76.

IOWA (10-7)

Basabe 1-3 0-0 2, McCabe 2-4 2-2 6, Marble 1-8 3-4 5, Gatens 3-8 0-0 6, May 4-10 0-0 9, Olaseni 1-1 0-1 2, Oglesby 2-6 2-2 7, McCarty 0-1 0-0 0, Brommer 0-0 0-0 0, Cartwright 2-6 0-0 5, White 0-3 3-4 3, Stubbs 0-0 0-0 0, Stokes 0-1 0-0 0, Archie 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 17-53 10-13 47.

Halftime_Ohio St. 28-19. 3-Point Goals_Ohio St. 7-14 (Thomas 2-2, Smith Jr. 2-3, Sullinger 1-1, Thompson 1-1, Buford 1-4, Scott 0-1, Sibert 0-2), Iowa 3-12 (Cartwright 1-1, May 1-2, Oglesby 1-5, White 0-1, Gatens 0-3). Fouled Out_None. Rebounds_Ohio St. 41 (Buford 11), Iowa 31 (May 6). Assists_Ohio St. 21 (Scott 6), Iowa 7 (Cartwright, Marble, McCabe 2). Total Fouls_Ohio St. 18, Iowa 10. Technical_Iowa Bench. A_15,400.

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