First Half Notebook: No. 20 Ohio State vs. Purdue

Here are my first half thoughts with the Buckeyes looking to start Big Ten play with a road win.

Halftime Score: No. 20 Ohio State 33, Purdue 38

First and foremost, it's so great to have Big Ten basketball back. What a competitive, physical, fun first half to watch. After a bad start defensively (Buckeyes allowed Purdue to hit five of their first seven from the floor), OSU turned things around pretty dramatically on the defensive end.

I think there's a couple reasons for that. First, Chris Holtmann started a lineup that has never been on the floor together in a game this year. He told Big Ten Network that it wasn't a disciplinary thing, he is just trying to changing things up and see what works best as he learns more about what this team can do.

That lineup change included putting both seniors (C.J. Walker and Kyle Young) in reserve roles. Instead, Jimmy Sotos was making his first ever Ohio State start, and Zed Key made the first start of his career. Holtmann said there's no disciplinary action involved in his decision on the starting lineup.

The Buckeyes are obviously short-handed: no E.J. Liddell, who leads the team in scoring and rebounding this year, and no Ibrahima Diallo (which was a pregame surprise). It's forced Zed Key to play more minutes than he otherwise might have to and he's playing tough, but looks a bit fatigued. The physicality seems to be getting to him a little bit. He's missed some fairly ordinary rebounds and two field goals that weren't overly challenging.

Notably, Trevion Williams also didn't start tonight for Purdue. But when he came on the floor in the first half, his passing really stood out. He had three fabulous first half assists, two of which came early in the game that helped Purdue get out to a good start. 

The Boilermakers hit five of their first seven shots from the floor, and even though the Buckeyes only hit 1-of-5 3's to start the game, the Buckeyes trailed by just two eight minutes into the game. Most of the half was played within a 10-point window, until Purdue got it going offensively in the last few minutes.

Game Preview: No. 20 Ohio State vs. Purdue

It can't be understated just how tall Purdue center Zach Edey is. He is towering over Ohio State's tallest players on the floor at any given time. But I like the way the Buckeyes are making things chaotic for him. He and freshman Jaden Ivey are second and third in the Big Ten in freshman scoring, but through the first half, those guys haven't played their best.

CJ Walker is playing phenomenal defense. The moment he came on the floor, things looked much calmer for the Buckeyes. After starting 5-of-7, Purdue missed eight of their next nine shots.

Neither team shot the 3-ball particularly well: both are 3--for-11 at the break. Purdue leads on the glass 18-11, which I don't find too surprising.

The difference on the scoreboard right now is entirely from the free throw line. Ohio State has made one more shot from the floor, but trails by five because Purdue has hit 11-of-11 free throws. OSU has hit 4-of-5.

Great response from Purdue, 8-0 run to jump back out front late in the half. OSU has had several games this year already where they've closed out the first half poorly on the defensive end. Let's see how they respond coming out of the locker room.

One last thing - I love the way Justice Sueing is playing tonight. He looks MUCH sharper than he did against Cleveland State. His vision has been really impressive tonight, he's driving with great vision, playing tough on both ends of the floor.

-----

You may also like:

Ohio State Will Now Play UCLA Instead of North Carolina on Saturday

E.J. Liddell's Monster Night Leads Buckeyes Past Notre Dame

Chris Holtmann's Postgame Comments After Win Over Fighting Irish

-----

Be sure to stay locked into BuckeyesNow all the time!

Join the BuckeyesNow community!
Subscribe to the BuckeyesNow YouTube channel
Follow Brendan on Twitter: @brendangulick22
Follow BuckeyesNow on Twitter: @BuckeyesNowSI
Like and follow BuckeyesNow on Facebook