Bruce Thornton surpassed Dennis Hopson as Ohio State career scoring leader. (Press Pros Feature Photos by Angie Greenwood)
Ohio State’s main goal Saturday was to beat Indiana. And along the way they secured an NCAA Tournament berth and Bruce Thornton became the highest scoring Buckeye in history.
Columbus, OH – Ohio State bet on Bruce Thornton.
Bruce Thornton bet on Ohio State.
On Saturday, as the sun was setting over the sold-out Schottenstein Center, Thornton, the workhorse carrying Ohio State basketball toward the winner’s circle, hit the Senior Day Trifecta.
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Part 1: Ohio State’s four-year captain surpassed Dennis Hopson’s record of 2,096 points to become the highest-scoring Buckeye. He needed 12. He scored 25. Thornton didn’t force anything to try to get the record out of the way. Teammates Amare Bynum and John Mobley Jr. were hot early, so it was for him to let the game come to him.
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“I told myself I wouldn’t put that kind of pressure on myself,” he said. “If it happens tonight it happens. If it don’t, it don’t.”
Part 2: The Buckeyes defeated Indiana 91-78 for Thornton’s first win in six attempts against the Hoosiers. Now he owns a win over every Big Ten team. When he was asked if he was aware of that he hadn’t beaten Indiana, he quickly answered, “Most definitely.”
Teammate Gabe Cupps, who was at Indiana for two years before transferring to Ohio State this season made sure Thornton knew he had never lost to Ohio State.
“That was the biggest thing out of everything I was thinking about,” he said. “I can’t go out and not beat Indiana. It wasn’t the scoring record, it wasn’t for the tournament. Like, I can’t go out of college and not beat Indiana. That really made me focus.”
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Part 3: In the fulfillment of a lifelong dream – because of the Buckeyes’ three-game winning streak and contenders stumbling all around them – Thornton will finally play in the NCAA Tournament. No more bubble. No more last four in.
“I don’t want to say too much till I see it for myself,” Thornton said and laughed. “The type of mojo and confidence like we have, I feel like we’re going to make a big run.”
ESPN updated its projections Saturday evening and slated the Buckeyes (20-11, 12-8 Big Ten) as a No. 9 seed. As of Friday, Fox Sports projected the Buckeyes as a No. 11 seed and one of the last four teams in. But that was before the Buckeyes won Saturday and bubble teams were popping all over the map.
Bruce Thornton scored in all the different ways he always does to set the record and score 25 for the game.
“I think so,” was Diebler’s response to being asked if he’s coaching a team that should be in the NCAA Tournament. “I said this before: I think you got to trust our metrics and resume. We’re peaking at the right time. We’re healthy at the right time. We’ve beat really good teams. I just found out Wisconsin won today [against Purdue]. So that gained us a Quad 1 win today too. They’re going to move up, I’m sure.”
The Buckeyes entered the day No. 32 in the NCAA’s NET rankings, one of the metrics the selection committee relies on. They are likely to enter the top 30. Wisconsin is No. 31 and will become the Buckeyes’ third Quad 1 win.
Next is the Big Ten tournament in Chicago. The Buckeyes earned a double-bye and will be the No. 8 seed, playing Iowa at noon on Thursday on the Big Ten Network. If the Buckeyes win, they will face No. 1 seed Michigan at noon on Friday.
“We’re not done yet,” Diebler said. “We can’t change now. We can’t change our approach, our focus. Work hard tomorrow.”
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That approach led the Buckeyes out of the wilderness of a 74-57 loss at Iowa, their worst performance of the season and a second straight loss. Since, they’ve beaten then-No. 8 Purdue 82-74, shellacked Penn State 94-62 in State College and handed Indiana, one of many bubble teams, its fifth loss in six games.
“I’m really celebrating my guys, and I feel like we really deserved it,” Thornton said of the three wins in March. “Could have folded against Iowa. We could have not fought, but we fight each and every day. I love them guys.”
Diebler said the idea that his team will play in the NCAA Tournament doesn’t come as a relief. He wants to be in it, but he focuses on other priorities that, if accomplished, will lead to being in the tournament.
Amare Bynum started fast and scored 14 of his 18 points in the first half.
“My job is to serve this program as well as I possibly can, as hard as I possibly can, and in that serve these players as well as I possibly can – that is my focus,” Diebler said. “Thankfully, I walk with Jesus, so I’m not alone.”
Still, a 20-win season, a late push to make the tournament and a sellout are good for Diebler’s image among the fan base. Saturday’s game created the best atmosphere in the Schott in a long time
“There was just a different type of energy in the Schott tonight that no matter what we was gonna win,” Thornton said. “Tonight was Ohio State basketball should be every night.”
Amid the hoopla, Diebler did admit to being nervous about distractions, but he said he trusted his team’s maturity. He told them to honor the seniors – Thornton, Christoph Tilly, Brandon Noel – with their play.
Bynum started fast with a spin move to the rim that was maybe his best of the season. He dunked three times. He scored 14 of his 18 points in the first half, grabbed a game-high nine rebounds, blocked a shot, and altered a few others.
John Mobley Jr. scored 11 of his 18 points in the first half.
“I love coaching him,” Diebler said. “The way he approaches each day, and the joy he has, he reminds me a lot of Bruce when he was a freshman.”
Mobley Jr. scored 11 of his 18 points in the first half and made three 3-pointers. Devin Royal scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half. Tilly scored seven points and suffered through foul trouble.
Thornton didn’t just set a record Saturday. He played a highly effective 39 minutes with 25 points on 7 of 9 shooting, 2 of 4 from 3-point range, 9 of 11 from the foul line, seven assists and no turnovers.
Thornton’s win-first mentality ruled the moment he set the record, and Diebler wasn’t surprised.
“When he steps on the court, he’s consumed with winning,” Diebler said. “We have a motto in our team this year, winning over everything. You need unique players to live that out. He does.”
In pursuit of gaining every edge possible to win, Thornton rushed the ball up court in the final minute of the first half thinking of it as a two-for-one opportunity. Shoot, and hopefully score quickly enough, that Indiana wouldn’t be able to hold the ball for the final shot, giving the Buckeyes an extra possession.
The bench celebrates behind Bruce Thornton the moment his 3-pointer went through for the record.
So Thornton sized up the defense and let a 3-pointer fly from the left wing. The ball went through the net with 43 seconds remaining, setting the scoring record, giving the Buckeyes an extra possession and capping the half with a 50-33 lead.
“When I passed half court, and I looked at the clock, like, I’m shooting this,” he said. “When I got the separation and how that crowd reacted, I knew I got it. It was a great feeling. I was so caught up in the game that I couldn’t really sit down and just take it all in. But I will.”
Diebler said Thornton’s two-for-one idea was the right play. He didn’t realize those were the record-breaking points.
A minute after the team headed to the locker room, Thornton and Diebler returned to the court where Hopson was waiting to present a game ball to Thornton. The crowd roared and chanted “BRUUUUUCE.”
“God has been a blessing in my life, my family’s life,” Thornton said. “Without him none of this would come true.”
Getting everything you want doesn’t mean you have to choose. But Thornton was asked which mattered most: the scoring record or the Buckeyes playing their way into the NCAA Tournament.
“Both,” he said and smiled. “In fact, I got both in one night.”
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