Live-Blog vs. OSU: Someone Has to Do It

We join at 3-0 Michigan. OSU Miss, Jerret Smith rebound. Pass in to Abram down low, he's fouled as he goes up. Sims started today, by the way. Lester hits his free throws. 5-0.

Maize Rage is jumping today. Conley nearly loses it, Oden saves it. Conley's three is off the mark. Time out, Smith has lost his shoe. Jerret Smith tries to do WAY too much inside, can't make a quick decision, and loses the ball. OSU runs the floor and Othello Hunter finishes with an easy layup. 5-2.

Turnover on the other end. Ergghhh.

Oden tries to back his way down against Courtney Sims, but instead gets called for the offensive foul.

On the other side, Oden's arm causes a miss. Butler three ties it up. 5-5.

Jerret Smith...knocks down a three?? OK. 8-5.

Conley finds an open spot and hits a long two. 8-7.

Lester Abram gets trapped by a double team trying to go baseline. A foul is called, but we won't know on whom until the commercials are over.

Looks like it was on OSU. Buckeyes already have five personals. Whoa, Jerret Smith walks in for a layup. 10-7.

AIR GEORGIA WOOOOO! Butler is rejected, and OSU gets it out of bounds. Petway has the winged helmet shaved into his head. Foul on the floor on Abram. Othello Hunter gets a lay-up. 10-9.

Dion Harris desperation three is terrible. Matt "Sideshow Bob" Terwilliger finds himself wide open at the top of the arc, but can't drop it. Udoh tries to dribble in from the 3-point line, but nothing doing. Udoh's defense forces a bad shot, even if the range was close. OSU's defense forces a bad shot, even if the range was close. Abram goes over the back. 13:00 left. Cook's 3 is no good. Ron Lewis gets it under the basket, and is just hacked from behind by Deshawn Sims. He makes 2. 10-11.

Dion Harris loses the handle on the other end. Was that supposed to be a pass? Weird. OSU turns it into a quick transition basket for Hunter. 10-13.

GAAAHHHH. TURNOVERS.

OSU launches a three that goes off the iron. Courtney Sims makes his first basket of the day. 12-13.

Jerret Smith gets a steal and goes all the way to the rim. He's fouled as his layup attempt is off. This time out is brought to you by The Media.

13,700+ is the announced attendance here. Smith hits his free throws. 14-13.

Petway almost gets a swipe at a pass, but Oden takes it and rolls to the hoop. 14-15.

Spot-up jumper from Ron Coleman at the high post. 16-15.

Runner for OSU doesn't drop, but it was open. Petway spins down to the baseline and makes a nice bucket. 18-15.

Sims commits his second foul, though it looked to me like Shepherd was more to blame. Butler's three is off the mark, good of Michigan to grab the rebound.

Dion Harris fouled, and misses the front half of a 1-and-1. Oden can't handle the pass and Michigan runs the floor nicely. Jevohn Shepherd finishes.

Oden's shooting free throws right-handed now. 20-17.

Foul on Butler. Harris gets to go to the line again. This time he connects on his first one. I hate this Spirit Fingers thing on free throws. He gets the second one, so maybe there's something to it after all. 22-17.

Bucks can't get it done from outside. They're 1-7 now from 3. Petway should not shoot from the free throw line. Ew.

OSU is 7/20 right now. We're 7/12. That tells you something about the turnovers, since we've been doing pretty well on the boards, I'd say. We're getting stranded outside here until Harris takes it in. Unfortunately, several Buckeyes are waiting for him and the shot won't drop.

Ron Lewis htis his layup and misses the +1. Jerret Smith committed the foul 22-19.

Good point, CBS color guy. We're just kind of throwing the ball around the arc, not probing for a place to go inside on this zone. All the same, Butler fouls Harris again. Dion hits both free throws. 24-19.

Nice defense on the three attempt by Cook. He wasn't nearly as open as he thought. Ball out of bounds on us. Wide open Buckeye sneaks out to three point range, but airballs it.

Things are a little wild on the transition, and Petway winds up on the line, foul on Oden. Makes his first free throw! Not his second. 25-19.

Ron Coleman commits a useless foul on the floor, which puts Cook on the line. He misses the 1-and-1.

OH SNAP!!!! Jerret Smith takes the pass on the wing, drives baseline, kicks it to Petway who LEAPS from 8 feet out for a thunderdunk.

Sigh. Cook goes baseline and his bad shot comes back to him. Foul on Jevohn Shepherd when he goes up again. He makes both. 27-21.

Shepherd's standing on the arc when he tries his shot, off iron. It goes right to our...someone camped out underneath. Scrum develops. Shepherd's followed up his miss and gets fouled. He makes 2. 29-21.

Well. Disorganized as OSU drives the lane, they kick it out and hit a three. 29-24.

Dion Harris quickly answers with two on the other end. 31-24.

Damn. Damn. Way, way downtown, falling backwards, and a prayer goes in. 31-27.

Harris tries a three. He is not as successful. Lewis hits a pull-up jumper from inside the free throw line. 31-29. Time out.

Smith's insane lob pass finds Petway. He reels it in, but is in no position to do anything with it. Over to Deshawn Sims and...something unclear happens because CBS needs to get some more commercials in.

Whatever. We've got the ball out of bounds. We work it around the perimeter, and Harris isn't really on target there. OSU gets the rebound. Udoh takes a charge on the other end. Dion Harris drains a sweet, sweet three 34-29.

Well, this time Jerret Smith is the one who gets called. Blocking foul. David Lighty makes his free throws. 34-31. 36 seconds left in the first half. We'll hold as long as possible. Jerret Smith again tries to "drive" and then kicks it out to Dion Harris, who didn't really see that coming. He walks with the ball. Butler's missed three essentially ends the half. 34-31, Michigan.

---

Hummer's using Star Trek to sell trucks. NERDS!!

ESPN is insisting that the score is 34-33. Uh, no?

Never. Gets. Old. Space, bitches. Space.

---

OSU starts out rationally, by passing it to Oden. Off the glass and in. 34-33. Are you happy now, ESPN?

Dion Harris from pro-length 3 range and he buries it. 37-33.

Oden misses a jump hook. Harris tries another three, but it's off iron. Butler says "I can miss just as good as you!" Inside to Sims, who's blocked by Oden, but Sims gets fouled. Should be on Oden, but it's assigned to someone else for his own third. Sims misses both. And that's the one thing he's usually good at.

OSU drives the lane in transition to make it a 37-33 game. Sims loses it, gets it back. Dion Harris drives to the hoop and loses the handle. Might've been a foul if he could've retained possession.

OSU shot misses, but Oden dunks the miss. 37-37.

Oden is Sims' own personal menace, block from behind (maybe from Lewis?). Amaker is incensed that no foul is called and gets T-ed up. Amaker is furious and not speaking nice words. The crowd is all over the refs. OSU's guy hits his free throw, putting them up 37-38. Michigan gets the ball back out of bounds. Jerret Smith starts to pull up for a jumper in no man's land, then sees Petway down low. NOW Oden gets called for his third. Petway makes his first and his second. 39-38.

Terwilliger's long two won't go down. Sims is getting double teamed down low. Finally, one guy rotates off him and he's fed inside for a lay-in. 41-38.

OSU tries for a transition basket, but Conley's lay-up doesn't work and Sims collects the rebound.

Harris's shot won't go, but Petway saves it back to half-court for Jerret Smith. TV time out. Yes. What we want is to KILL THE MOMENTUM. Crisler was rocking there.

Hey! Way to be, Alumni Band. Hi Mike! Hi, other people I know!

Smith tries for a lay-up, and he misses too. But it's another offensive rebound, and Smith accidentally pokes Butler in the eye while getting it. Block by Othello Hunter. Michigan gets back on D, and locks down, forcing Terwilliger out of bounds. He tries to fling it off Sims' face, but he steps out first.

Terwilliger looks frustrated. Wow. Our only victory against a #1 team was against Duke under Ellerbee, of all people. We're 0-17 otherwise. Abram drives and scores a floater. 43-38.

OSU answers with two of their own. 43-40. Smith drives baseline and kicks it all the way out to three. Udoh takes a shot that I don't really understand, and misses. OSU comes down and commits an offensive foul. Hunter, Harris, Conley, and Oden all have three fouls for OSU now.

Sims makes a move to the basket, but hooks Terwilliger on the way and picks up his own 3rd personal foul. Othello Hunter makes a longish two. 43-42.

Shepherd pull-up jumper won't happen. The ball is going out and an OSU player tries to save it, but travels. 11:49 left to go. Almost 3:00 since we've scored. Harris drives baseline, is fouled and...just gets the ball to drop. Misses the +1. 45-42.

Good defense by the blue. Conley gets around Shepherd, I think, but the help gets there quickly. Butler has a hand in his face when he tries the three, and it shows. Unfortunately, our trip to the other end is regrettably brief. OSU comes back down and their Harris gets his first points of the game. 45-44.

On the other end, Shepherd makes a low bounce pass to Petway who goes up and scores right over Oden. Sweetness. 47-44.

OH, COME ON. Conley was WIDE OPEN for the three. I guess he doesn't take a lot of those, though, and he misses it. Petway insanity continues as he makes a jump hook. 49-44.

Oden tries a longish jump hook and complains he's fouled. That's not getting called in the Big Ten on the road. As he grumbles, Courtney Sims is already putting another two in the bucket. 51-44. CRISLER A SPLODE. Thad Matta wants a time out.

Aww, Sims. He's a little lazy and gets a hold of an OSU jersey to take his fourth personal. Oden spins around Udoh, who fouls him going up. Oden makes both. 51-46.

Dion Harris finds Udoh outside, and he shouldn't take that shot. OSU goes right to Oden, who gets immediately fouled by flying Michigan defenders. Oden makes both. 51-48.

We have to get something going again, but not this trip. Ron Lewis is a terror as he drives the baseline. 51-50.

(Craig would like everyone to know that he fell asleep and just woke up seven minutes ago. Thus, this is all his fault.)

Abram's three is just off. Petway saves, and it's slight pandemonium. Out of bounds to Michigan on a blocking foul. Bad timing. Trying to go back out again as Udoh decides to come toward the rim. OSU out of bounds. 6:19 remaining now. Oh, sweet defence as OSU gets desperate to go inside. Abram almost has a gimme, but Butler hustles and breaks up the pass. Dion Harris elevates and floats one in. 53-50.

Good defense, but the motion eventually gets Conley WIDE OPEN and this time he buries the three. 53-53.

Michigan works the ball down inside to Sims and he goes up right at Oden. Foul called, on Oden. His fourth. Sims makes both. 55-53.

4:45 left. Oden takes it inside and ties it right back up at 55-55. He's just pwning us inside when they can get him the ball.

Aww yeah. Jerret Smith is en fuego (Well, relatively speaking). Three-bomb. 58-55.

OSU miss by Hunter, Abram clear. Sims goes up strong inside and gets fouled by Terwilliger and makes the +1. 61-55.

Conley immediately goes inside to get two. 61-57.

3:19 left. Sims gets it way to far outside, he makes a bad pass back out and OSU steals. Oden does his thing inside, tapping a miss in. 61-59.

Oden now does it on the other end, blocking Sims' shot. No one gets open and a time out has to get burned on the in-bounds play. We complete this one, but OSU steals it right out from Smith. Ron Lewis is fouled by Abram as they run the floor. He hits both to tie it. 61-61.

Harris's three is no good, leading to a long rebound. Conley runs the floor, makes the layup, and takes the lead. 61-63.

1:44 left. OH GOD OH GOD. SIMS MISSES THE GODDAMN DUNK.

Bad pass by Conley bails us out on the other side. Dion Harris is trying to singlehandedly win the game. Lewis gets called for an iffy reach-in when he goes for the block. what the hell? Harris is missing these free throws all over the place. 85% my ass. Still 61-63. Could've tied it.

GAAAAHHHH. Can't pull down the rebound on Conley's three-point miss. Have to foul. 10 seconds left. Jamar Butler hits his first. Huge free throw coming here. And he gets it. Dead. Dead. Dead. Even before Jerret Smith loses his mind on the worst pass I've seen in a long time. DEATH. Final score: 61-65.

I hate everything.