Turner nets 27, but OSU needed late Diebler three to escape upset in 75-62 win over Penn State.
It had been a rough night shooting the ball for Ohio State shooting guard Jon Diebler.
The junior sharpshooter had missed his first five three-point shots and was in danger of going scoreless for the first time since late in his freshman year.
But with the 13th-ranked Buckeyes clinging to a three-point lead late against upset-minded Penn State, Diebler rose up and rang the bell. His three from the right wing with gave the Buckeyes a six-point cushion with 1:28 left and they went on to take a hard fought 75-62 win over the visiting Nittany Lions before 14,148 Wednesday night at Value City Arena.
“It felt good (to make it),” said Diebler, whose scored his only three points of the game on that critical shot. He had not been held scoreless in his previous 57 games, dating to OSU’s NIT win over Mississippi in March 2008.
“It was just frustrating. I got some really good looks. But they just weren’t falling.”
Ohio State (17-6, 7-3) won its sixth straight Big Ten game, but it was far from easy as Penn State – winless in Big Ten play and a distant 229th in the computerized RPI rankings – made the Buckeyes earn it.
“I don’t think we overlooked them,” said OSU coach Thad Matta. “We had great respect for Penn State. They did exactly what I’ve seen them do at least nine times on tape this season. They gave great effort. I said it before, I think that’s the best 0-and-9 team I’ve ever seen in the Big Ten.”
Point guard Evan Turner led the way with 27 points, 10 rebounds and six assists -- including the pass that led to Diebler's clutch three -- in 40 minutes of work. Turner had 22 of those points in the second half.
“Stuff opened up for me in the second half,” Turner said. “My teammates hit shots in the first half and they paid attention to them more. That allowed me to go to work and do my thing.”
William Buford added 19 points and five assists, while David Lighty had 12 points and five rebounds for the Buckeyes, who had just six turnovers.
“We obviously did not play our best, but you have to give Penn State credit,” Diebler said. “They did a good job of attacking our defense. We won. That’s all that matters, especially this late in the season. We know we can do a lot to improve on this game. It was one of those games and everybody has them. We were fortunate to win.”
It was a familiar finish for hard-luck Penn State, which fell to 8-14 overall and 0-10 in Big Ten play. The Lions battled back from a 36-24 halftime deficit to get it down to a one-possession game before Diebler's big three.
Guard Talor Battle once again shined for Penn State, just missing on a triple-double with 24 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. David Jackson added 12 points and six rebounds.
“History kind of repeats itself,” said PSU coach Ed DeChellis. “We tried to hang in there as long as we could and gave ourselves a chance. It was a one-possession game with 1:53 left and we were down three.
“I don’t think there are any moral victories. We have played people hard and played them close. We tried to come in and compete and give ourselves a chance to win, but we just didn’t win again.”
It was quite a match-up between Turner and Battle, two the Big Ten’s best players and teammates with USA Basketball this past summer.
“I thought both of those kids played pretty well,” DeChellis said. “Both of those kids made their teammates better. It was fun to see two of the top kids in the league battle each other and go at it.”
Turner added, “We were just both in a rhythm and making shots. It was a good atmosphere and this is what happens.”
After shooting 63 percent in an 85-63 win over Minnesota on Sunday, the Buckeyes picked up right where they left off in the first half of this game against Penn State. They shot 60.9 percent (14 of 23) from the floor, including 5 of 9 on three-pointers, in building their 12-point halftime lead. Buford scored 11 points and Lighty had nine in the first half for the Buckeyes.
But Penn State would not go away. The pesky Lions, who had led in the second half of six of their nine previous Big Ten defeats, kept whittling away. On four occasions PSU got the lead down to seven points, but each time Turner and the Buckeyes would answer.
Penn State trailed 65-57 at the under-four TV timeout after a missed Diebler three-pointer careened out of bounds to PSU.
Out of that timeout, Battle drove the lane and kicked it back to teammate Chris Babb, who swished a three from the top of the key to make it 65-60 with 3:22 left.
“They came out to win and they are capable offensively,” Turner said. “They are a dangerous team when you have guys making key shots like that.”
The Buckeyes then missed two chances to widen the lead as Buford missed a three with the shot clock running down and Lighty misfired on a pair of free throws.
Penn State got it down to three when Jackson collected an offensive rebound and was fouled by Lighty with 1:53 left. His two free throws trimmed the gap to 65-62.
There were some nervous murmurs from the VCA crowd as the Buckeyes worked the ball and looked for a good shot. Diebler, who had been passing up open shots after his 0-for-5 start, found one he could not turn down. Turner found him on the wing and Diebler connected from long range to stake the Buckeyes to a 68-62 lead with 1:28 left.
Matta was confident that Diebler could come out of his slump.
“I knew the odds were that he had to make it,” Matta said. “He’s a shooter. That’s what we do. I told him to keep taking good looks. He showed great poise to step up and knock it down.”
Diebler was relieved to see the shot finally swish through the net at such a key moment.
“I was just thinking one was bound to go in,” Diebler said. “I had a lot of good looks. In years past, my confidence would have gone down and I probably wouldn’t have shot it. But I felt good and I feel the next one was going to go in. It’s not cocky. It’s just being confident in my shot. I was fortunate to make the last one.
“I guess it’s better to make a late one than not make one at all.”
Penn State then took a timeout with 1:07 left, but disaster struck as Battle made an errant pass near midcourt. Lighty made the easy steal and advanced it to Turner. He was grabbed by Babb, who was called for an intentional foul.
“Dave had a huge steal over there with great effort,” Matta said.
Turner made 1 of 2 free throws for a 69-62 lead with 49 seconds left. Buford was then fouled on the inbounds play. His two free throws made it 71-62. Turner and Buford each hit a pair of free throws in the closing seconds to ice it.
Also Notable
* OSU’s Rose Bowl champion football team was recognized at halftime and quarterback Terrelle Pryor grabbed the game ball and had a dunk as he left the floor.
* OSU won its 12th consecutive game against Penn State. Ohio State now leads the all-time series with a record of 22-12, including a 12-3 mark in Columbus. The Buckeyes have won nine of the 10 meetings with Penn State at VCA. The lone loss was a 78-75 decision in 2001. Matta is now 11-0 vs. Penn State in his career. That is the only Big Ten opponent where he has an undefeated mark.
* Turner had a double-double for the 10th time in 17 games this season and the 21st time in his career. OSU is 7-2 since Turner returned from his back injury.
* Dallas Lauderdale added five points and seven rebounds in 26 minutes for OSU. He was 2-for-2 from the field. For the year, he is 41 of 49 (83.7 percent) from the floor at VCA. His backup, Kyle Madsen, added six points as well.
* OSU improved to 14-0 this season at VCA.
* At home against unranked opponents, OSU is now 84-2 overall under Matta.
* Ohio State hosts Iowa (8-15, 2-8) at noon on Sunday (Big Ten Network). The Hawkeyes lost at home to Illinois 57-49 on Wednesday. OSU rallied late for a 65-57 win at Iowa on Jan. 27.
