First Posted: 11/15/2011
William Buford’s last shot against Kentucky in March bounced off the front of the rim to end Ohio State’s run toward a national championship. The missed three-point attempt also served as a strong reminder that to appreciate a college-basketball season is to measure it in months, not just moments.
Moments certainly have their place. The game benefits every time a piece of history gets hauled out during March Madness. Michael Jordan’s winning shot in the 1982 championship game, Chris Webber’s wince-inducing timeout in 1993 and Christian Laettner’s turnaround Kentucky killer in 1992 add necessary emotional texture to the NCAA Tournament.
But to fixate on the destination does a disservice to the four-month journey that precedes it. The Buckeyes were favored to win that East Regional semifinal against the Wildcats. Because they lost 62-60, the season ended with a premature thud, spurring some to think that everything before the Sweet 16 showdown in Newark, N.J., was for naught. As if it never happened.
That’s a shame.
Basketball should not be viewed in such light, because to do so almost always leads to a sense of failure. Only one team wins it all, and half the time it is the hottest team, not the best team, that’s left standing.
Basketball also is not football, where a season’s beginning, middle and end morph into one collective thought, and where the journey and destination sit side by side on a weekly ride that can careen off a cliff at any time. Football feels rushed; 12 games squeezed in by late November. Basketball breathes and unfolds. March? That’s next year.
But the slow unwrapping of a basketball season also can be its undoing if precaution is not taken to appreciate November as well as March. With no sense of urgency, the tendency is to look ahead to the NCAA Tournament, where moments dominate.
Even Ohio State coach Thad Matta gets caught in the trap of focusing too much on the finish line. He detests any suggestion that only one game –the final one –matters, yet he also grinds so hard toward the horizon that appreciation for present ground can get lost.
“My wife reminded me the other day: ‘Try to have fun,”” he said, smiling.
This season –this regular season –offers Ohio State fans a chance to do the same. The Buckeyes are as young and precocious a bunch as can be recalled. Buford is the only senior and one of only three upperclassmen. Fellow returning starter Jared Sullinger is a sophomore, as are Aaron Craft, Deshaun Thomas and Jordan Sibert.
Yesterday, Craft characterized himself and his fellow sophomores as “us older guys, if you can call us that.”
With such youth comes the propensity to make statements of unintentional humor. Stay tuned: It will happen. And it will be good stuff. One of the beauties of basketball is that players’ personalities are able to surface. The game is not played under helmets and behind face masks.
But with OSU’s youth also comes a difficulty in getting a solid read on how this team will play from game to game.
“It’s similar to raising your kids and watching the development, growth and progress they make every day,” Matta said. “One of the hard parts when coaching a young basketball team is (not) making excuses for them. I’ve told them upfront we won’t do that. There’s a standard we want to operate at, and we’ve got to get there.”
The standard will be tested tonight when the Buckeyes play host to Florida, which is mature and experienced.
“They’re the real deal,” Matta said.
It is only the Buckeyes’ second game, a second step in a journey of intrigue. Don’t look too far ahead, oh ye OSU faithful who expect basketball to soothe the pain of a football season on the fritz. Don’t tune out the regular season. Sit back and enjoy the ride.
Rob Oller is a sports reporter for The Dispatch.
Focus now on basketball: No 3 OSU vs. No. 7 Florida tonight
