Ohio State Ends Loss to Penn State in Spectacularly Embarrassing Fashion
No one is quite sure what's going on with Ohio State basketball this season but there's no beating around the bush, the Buckeyes flat-out stink. They lost at home to Penn State Thursday night and fell to 11-17 on the season and 3-14 in the Big Ten. As if that wasn't bad enough, the Buckeyes finished the game with one of the more embarrassing sequences we've seen in college basketball this season.
After Penn State's Jalen Pickett made two free throws to extend the Nittany Lions' lead to 75-71 with 28 seconds remaining, Ohio State brought the ball up the floor looking for a bucket. Sean McNeil took it on the right wing, dribbled to the middle of the floor and fired a 3-pointer with roughly 21 seconds to go. He missed badly off the front of the rim, but luckily teammate Bruce Thornton secured the board. He immediately sprinted to the right wing and launched his own 3-point attempt with 16.5 seconds left, which went off the back iron. Oh but that wasn't all.
Justice Sueing proceeded to grab an offensive board and kicked the ball back out to McNeil, who launched another 3-pointer from the middle of the floor with 12.5 seconds left. You already know where this is going ... he missed. Freshman star Brice Sensabaugh somehow grabbed another offensive rebound, moved to the right corner and fired another 3-pointer which, you guessed it, missed. The ball somehow found its way back to McNeil who let yet another 3-pointer go, this time it went straight into the front of the rim. Sensabaugh grabbed a rebound and time expired.
Somehow, it looked even worse than you're imagining.
Here's video:
So to recap, the Buckeyes had the ball with 28 seconds left and managed to get five shots off in that time, while also grabbing five offensive rebounds and somehow they scored zero points. They went 0-of-5 from 3-point range and Sean McNeil went 0-of-3 by himself in 28 seconds.
Here's the worst part: Ohio State didn't need a 3-pointer in that spot. There was plenty of time left. Score a quick two and foul. Extend the game and put the pressure on Penn State's players to make their free throws.
That sequence just fully encapsulated Ohio State's season right there.