Bruce Thornton scores 31 points, make the game winning 3 to Will Ohio State past No. 18 Maryland in 17-point comeback, 73-70

On By Littum

No other man took the last shot for Ohio State.

Bruce Thornton caught an inbound passport in Backcourt with less than 30 seconds to play for Buckeyes, legs sore after playing all 40 minutes and willing Ohio State for a fierce comeback in the 2nd half.

Thornton dribbled down the shot clock for less than five seconds, crossed over his defender and pulled up for a deep 3 as the clock ran below eight seconds in a tie game.

It knocked in and Buckeyes (14-9, 6-6 Big Ten) held on for a 73-70 victory over No. 18 Maryland (17-6, 7-5).

TEAM

1

2

Finally

#18 Maryland

41

29

70

Ohio State 32 41 73

For all the picturesque performances of Bruce Thornton’s Ohio State career, he painted his masterpiece Thursday night in Value City Arena.

Buckeyes’ Star Point Guard would his team back from a 17-point deficit against No. 18 Maryland to take their first lead with 2:02 to play, take a quiet Schottenstein Center audience and make it one of Buckeyes ‘Best atmospheres of the year. Thornton got 31 points, 21 of them in the second half.

Guard Micah Parrish followed 13 points for Ohio State. Julian Reese and Rodney Rice led the way for Maryland with 24 and 18 points.

The victory and comeback were a huge delimitation of Buckeyes’ progress over the last three months of the season. Terrapins Shelled Ohio State 83-59 In the team’s first meeting, a game of Maryland led 50-17 at the break.

“I just want you to understand how connected and hard this group is,” Diebler said after the game. “I thought it was on full view tonight. Maybe we were missing a bit of it early, but it took everything we had from a toughness and a get -together (point of view) to come back, win this game against this team that without Doubt plays some of the best basketball in the league right now.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qSO9PR0_S0

First half

In the first five minutes, it felt as if Ohio State was destined to be run by the floor by Maryland a second time this season.

Terrapins opened on a 15-2 race where he got three baskets each from Reese and Rice, where they died the sparse audience in Value City Arena. But Mobley and Evan Mahaffey managed to revive it briefly, the former with one and one and a float and the latter with a coast-to-coast drive and two slamed sludge through a defender.

Five equal points of Micah Parrish slices Maryland lead to 17-12, but Terrapins launched another 12-3 race, catalyzed by brands on the inside of Guard Ja’kobi Gillespie and Forward Derik Queen.

A silky turnaround jumper in the painting of the Terrapin Guard Selton Miguel and a way for the light set of Reese pushed Marlyand’s lead to 17, their biggest of the game.

But Thornton wouldn’t let his team slip into the ether yet. The junior rattled eight straight points for Buckeyes and then found Mobley in transition to cut Maryland’s lead to single digits of 41-32 into the break.

Second half

Maryland

State

Ohio State

70

Points

73

23-55 (41.8%)

FGM-FGA (pct.)

27-59 (45.8%)

3-13 (23.1%)

15.00-15. (Pct.)

4-16 (25%)

21-30 (70%)

FTM-FTA (pct.)

15-18 (83.3%)

12

Revenue

9

36

Collected rebounds

30

11

Offensive rebounds

8

25

Defensive rebounds

22

2

Bench points

12

4

Blocks

5

2

Stealing

7

10

Helps

11

A 6-0 Ohio State race early in the second period put Buckeyes right back in the mixture, only down 45-40 with less than 15 minutes to play. A stealing and coast-to-coast set up by Sean Stewart had the Schottenstein center the highest it had been all evening on a 47-42 scoreline.

Buckeyes had a shot to trim the lead even more in the transition, but Parrish missed a 3 and Rice responded with her own triple left corner at the other end. Thornton and Que Glover changed the cut edge to six, but Reese and Miguel combined for five points to push it back to 11.

After 61-50 with less than seven minutes to play, Thornton again took the reins to Trot Ohio State back in the game. He converted two floaters, the other led to a three-point game, then stole the ball from Queen on an offensive rebound and came to the free-castle line. He made his first and missed his second but Royal Skied for rebound and threw the ball back to withdraw Ohio State within a possession for the first time since the game’s opening dinner.

Parrish ended strongly through contact and got a friendly rejection to make it a 63-60 ballgame with 4:11 to play. Reese pushed the lead back to five, and Parrish repeated his efforts. Thornton cut it to 66-64 on an ugly stepback from the middle class.

Then Thornton preserved a right -wing triple with two defenders trying to corralate him. Cheers in Value City Arena rings as Buckeyes took their first lead of ball games with 2:02 to play.

Queen made a mistake on Stewart a minute later and stepped forward out of the game. Queen hit both free kicks to make it 68-67 terrapins. But Thornton drove directly to the rack for a goal call and a mistake as the lead again switched to 70-68 Ohio State. Ohio Chants went around on timeout but rice equalized at the other end.

All that did was make room for Thornton’s game-winning 3-pointer.

What is the next

Ohio State goes back on the road towards Nebraska in Pinnacle Bank Arena on Sunday. Tipoff is at. 14 on the Big Ten Network.

Game notes

  • Forward Stewart (Disease) and Colin White (ankle) returned to Ohio State’s lineup towards Terrapins. Center Aaron Bradshaw (Disease) and Guard Meechie Johnson Jr. (Personal reasons) missed the game against Maryland.

  • Ohio State equalized its record for all the time to 11-11 against Maryland.

  • Buckeyes won despite tying their season-low for made 3-Pointers with four.

  • Terrapins shot 15-of-20 from 2-point range in the first half and only 5-of-22 in the second half.