The Ohio State basketball team continued its impressive run of play by getting by Central Michigan easily Wednesday night by a score of 88-61 to run its record to 6-1.
The Buckeyes jumped out ahead early but let the Chippewas hang around for most of the first half, even allowing CMU to be just two points down, 22-20, with about seven minutes left before heading to the locker room. However, OSU went on a run to end the half, heading off the floor with a 41-29 lead at the break.
From there, Ohio State cruised with the game never getting anywhere near a threat from Central Michigan throughout the second half.
Guard Bruce Thornton had another big night, scoring 25 points to lead all scorers on 9-of-14 shooting, including 3-of-7 from beyond the arc. He wasn’t the only bright spot. Felix Okpara turned into Felix Dunkpara, sending quite a few through the rim from close range as flushes. He tallied a career high 14 points on a perfect 6-of-6 from the field. He finished just one rebound short of a double-double.
Make it 5️⃣ in a row. #Team125 | #GoBucks pic.twitter.com/UvqYxf9RCP
— Ohio State Hoops 🌰 (@OhioStateHoops) November 30, 2023
Starters Jamison Battle (12 points) and Roddy Gayle Jr. (11 points), also finished in double figures, but it was nice to see Devyn Royal breakout a little with 11 points of his own on 4-of-5 shooting.
And while the offense was pretty good, the defense continued its trend of playing well this year, holding Central Michigan to just 40% shooting and forcing 15 turnovers. Ohio State also owned the boards, out-rebounding the Chippewas 44-30 — all a part of a winning formula.
Ohio State will next welcome Minnesota to Value City Arena on Sunday to break the seal on the Big Ten season.
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