Welcome to Final Analysis!

We will try and provide this special extra column for most Ohio State men’s basketball games the rest of the way.

We’ll provide some quick answers to some ordinary questions as well as some analysis on how things transpired in each OSU game.

This time we look inside tonight’s 77-73 loss by the No. 15 Buckeyes against defending national champion and sixth-ranked North Carolina at Madison Square Garden in New York City in the 2K Sports Classic benefitting Coaches vs. Cancer.

Here we go:

* Player Of The Game – Deon Thompson, a very steady 6-8 power forward, led the way for the Tar Heels (4-0) with 15 points and 12 rebounds. His made-to-order double-double and heady defense was just what taller UNC needed as the Buckeyes never really were able to match up properly on the boards or crank up their offense until a late surge that cut the score all the way down to 75-73 in the final seconds.

Thompson was just 4 of 12 from the field but led the way on the backboards and drew several fouls on OSU defenders, putting frontliners Dallas Lauderdale and David Lighty in foul trouble. Plus, Thompson hit 7 of 8 free throws when getting to the stripe and added a couple blocked shots.

For Ohio State, 6-7 point guard Evan Turner logged his third double-double in as many games this season with 23 points and 11 rebounds but technically also recorded his second triple-double by amassing 10 turnovers compared to four assists. He still earns mention here by default as the other four starters combined to hit just 12 of 41 shots.

* Key Moment – The Buckeyes (2-1) missed on multiple opportunities to settle down and pull back into the game after falling into a 7-0 hole. In fact, soon after Lauderdale entered the contest at center for starter Kyle Madsen he threw down a dunk that put the Buckeyes on the board at 7-2. The game, however, remained helter-skelter.

Then the 6-8, long-armed Lauderdale tallied again with a hoop inside to cut the UNC lead to 15-7 with 13:46 left in the first half. What ensued was an entirely frustrating four-minute sequence in which neither team scored yet the Buckeyes had desirable looks at the basket.

After North Carolina 7-footer Tyler Zeller missed inside, OSU guard Jon Diebler fired up a three that rattled out. A turnover by UNC frosh Dexter Strickland only led to Lighty forging the lane and missing a short floater. A miss by another promising freshman, forward John Henson, provided another chance by the Buckeyes but Lighty misfired on a three. A rare miss by Thompson was followed by a turnover on Turner, which became an alarming pattern during the game.

And so it went. Madsen lost the ball. Diebler missed another three. By the time William Buford made a rare connection to make it 17-9, just 9:23 remained in the half. Reserve guard P.J. Hill scored off a steal and breakaway layup to make it 17-11, but consecutive Buckeye baskets were nowhere to be found thereafter until the desperate run in the game’s final minutes.

Plus, the Buckeyes went scoreless over the next two minutes and allowed UNC to up the lead to 26-11 and then 31-15. At that point, the Buckeyes not only squandered promising possessions, they also were a dreadful 1 of 6 at the free-throw line.

Never able to put together a decent spurt in the first 20 minutes, OSU went to the break down 38-24 thanks to 29.0-percent shooting.

* Unsung Hero – Hill. Period.

This kid is just pure hustle, and it doesn’t seem to matter who the foe is. A scrappy 6-1 point guard, Hill proved to be a useful option when Turner needed a breather or it was warranted to move him off the ball. He also played well in the final sequence of the game after Turner had fouled out.

He threw caution to the wind throughout the game by giving up his body to draw charges, scrapping along the baseline for loose balls and even flying into his own bench on one particular play.

Ohio State head coach Thad Matta has more evidence that Hill can affect the game positively on both ends of the court. He harassed UNC point guard Larry Drew II and also managed to come up with four points, a rebound and a pair of steals.

For the victorious Heels, 6-5 swingman Marcus Ginyard once again filled in the cracks and made key plays on both ends. The savviest veteran at the disposal of coach Roy Williams, Ginyard hit three triples in five attempts and finished with 13 points, two assists and three steals. He won’t get many headlines once again this season but continues to be a very important role player for UNC.

* Best Sign – When Lauderdale is in the pivot in place of Madsen, OSU’s defensive capability shoots upward and opposing players find driving lanes and little flips around the basket simply are not there anymore.

Lauderdale presumably continues to recover from surgery on his right hand and should make more plays as his playing time increases. In 21 minutes Thursday, he finished with four points, six rebounds, three blocks and two steals. However, he did commit four fouls, which hindered his potential impact.

* Worst Sign – Well, where do we start?

Evan Turner went back to being Evan Turnover in this game as he tried way too hard to make things happen. In fact, the Buckeyes as a group forced the action too much instead of reversing the basketball and looking more patiently for driving lanes.

Also, it appeared Buford had more than just an off night. Clearly, he was frustrated and let his poor shooting effort affect him throughout the game. In fact, he clanged his first free throw after being visibly perturbed about missing a shot. He finished 3 of 16 from the field. Diebler wasn’t much better at 4 of 13, although he did hit a couple threes as the Buckeyes rallied valiantly.

Also frustrating: Every single time, it seemed, the Buckeyes desperately needed a stop to garner some belief that they could get back in the game the Tar Heels whacked a huge three, many of them with a hand right in the shooter’s face.

And it should be noted that 7-0 center Zisis Sarikopoulos and 6-3 guard Walter Offutt, who showed signs of have consistent roles off the bench in the first two games, earned no minutes against North Carolina. Matta stuck to just eight players and 6-2 guard Jeremie Simmons saw just nine minutes of court time.

* Overall – North Carolina’s size combined with the Buckeyes’ off night shooting the ball, especially the cold hands of Buford and Diebler, was too much to overcome. Yes, OSU made this look respectable in the end and deserves credit for the fight it displayed, but, simply put, this team is going to have to play better than this against top-20 competition this season.

This game was ragged from the outset and was littered with offensive fouls, turnovers and ill-advised shots. It’s safe to say Williams and Matta have some developing to do but it’s also likely that both teams will come around to the extent of being factors in the NCAA Tournament.

Don’t lose hope, Buckeye fans, Ohio State’s outlook is still bright.

* This Was A Step … backward, but the beauty is that the Buckeyes can recover quickly. They have a chance to put this clunker of a game behind them by playing well against California on Friday. There’s no time for the Buckeyes to feel sorry for themselves or greatly question what they are doing, and that’s a good thing.

* Next Up – The Buckeyes have to shake off defeat in a hurry as they will tangle with No. 13 Cal in the consolation game at MSG early Friday evening (5 p.m. Eastern, ESPN2). That game will warm up the championship game between Syracuse and North Carolina, which is immediately following on ESPN2.

Syracuse handled the Bears in the first semifinal by the score of 95-73. Cal struggled early with SU’s matchup zone and also had difficulty defending the athletic Orange as guard Scoop Jardine had 22 points, six rebounds and six assists for the winners and forward Wesley Johnson also did damage with 17 points and 11 boards. California point guard Jerome Randle logged a game-high 25 points and forward Jamal Boykin added 14 but guard Patrick Christopher’s 12 points came on 6 of 20 shooting, including 0 of 7 from long range. Randle was 5 of 9 from behind the arc but his teammates combined to shoot 1 of 11 from deep.

Cal is considered the team to beat in the Pac-10 with Randle and Christopher in the backcourt. The No. 12 team in the coaches poll, Cal got by Murray State 75-70 and also beat Detroit 95-61 in the first two rounds of the event. Randle and swingman Theo Robertson each had 22 points in the blowout of Detroit.

California is 9-8 all-time against Ohio State but the Buckeyes won their only national championship in 1960 by defeating the Bears 75-55 in San Francisco. The Buckeyes also won the last matchup on March 24, 2008, a 73-56 win at St. John Arena in the second round of the postseason NIT.

More Links

Click here for James Crepea's game story on OSU-UNC. Click here for the box score from ESPN.com.