Columbus, Ohio ? Just like their high school days, when Greg Oden wasn’t on the floor then Mike Conley Jr. took over.
Conley scored a career-high 23 points and when Oden was around he created havoc at the defensive end to lead No. 3 Ohio State past Michigan, 76-63, on Tuesday night.
“Mike can take over a game when he wants to,” said Oden, his teammate at Lawrence North High School in Indianapolis. “I just sat back and watched and did my part. He can do a lot. He’s a great player.”
Conley was a constant for the Buckeyes (21-3, 9-1 Big Ten) as Oden battled foul trouble and sat out 81â2 minutes of the second half.
The freshman point guard hit 9-of-12 shots from the field, including two three-pointers, and made all three of his foul shots. He also had six assists, one steal and just one turnover in 38 minutes.
“Conley’s outstanding,” Michigan coach Tommy Amaker said. “He scores when it’s there, he takes care of the basketball and he keeps everybody happy. He’s tremendous. I thought he was certainly the difference.”
Oden added 15 points, eight rebounds and six blocked shots – in addition to altering the trajectory of numerous other shots inside. The Buckeyes totaled 14 blocked shots, one shy of a 27-year-old school record.
“We played aggressive and didn’t get a lot of fouls called, and the guards did a good job funneling to the big guys,” said Oden, who tied his career high with his six blocks. “We just put our hands up.”
Jamar Butler added 11 points for Ohio State, which has won its last eight games overall and its last 23 home games.
Conley and Oden guided Lawrence North to state championships the last three seasons before coming to Ohio State. Their coach, Jack Keefer, always said that his team could win if Oden didn’t have a good game but that might not be true if Conley wasn’t on top of his game.
“He took over that game tonight,” Butler said of Conley.
San Diego State 62, No. 15 Air Force 41
San Diego – Mohamed Abukar scored 16 points, and San Diego State beat No. 15 Air Force for its first win against a ranked team in more than five years.
The defending Mountain West Conference champion Aztecs (16-7, 5-4) have won three straight. Air Force (20-4, 7-3) lost for the third time in six games.
SDSU had lost 10 straight games to ranked teams since beating then-No. 21 Fresno State 93-78 on Dec. 8, 2001. Since moving to Division I in 1970-71, the Aztecs are 11-73 against ranked opponents.
