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Some Links to articles from papers in San Antonio and Ohio...
AP piece in San Antonio Paper:OSU player says 10x better
Plain Dealer:OSU knows press will be on
Morning Journal(Ohio):Similar shot, Similar Foe
San Antonio: Lofton's Stature Increases
AP piece in San Antonio Paper:OSU player says 10x better
Ohio State is convinced it's a far better team than it was the last time it met Tennessee.
"We're playing probably 10 times better," Lewis said. "We're more confident in ourselves. We've got our rhythm. Our inside-outside game is way better than it was then, because now we know how to play off of Greg (Oden) a lot more. And we've been working on the press, so it's helped us a lot."
Plain Dealer:OSU knows press will be on
For the season, the Buckeyes averaged 11.8 turnovers per game. They have averaged only 10.2 per game in their 18 games since the Tennessee win started their current 19-game winning streak.
So they can handle the ball, and they think now that they can handle Tennessee. Butler said the Buckeyes know the Volunteers trap the first pass inbounds. Beat that, and the Buckeyes might have a numbers edge on the offensive end.
"We've gotten a lot better in practice and we're ready to go," Butler said. "We made some turnovers at the end of that game, and I don't think that's going to happen on Thursday. We've come a long way since we played them the first time."
Morning Journal(Ohio):Similar shot, Similar Foe
(OSU guard Ron)Lewis got all the practice he needed for last Saturday's 3-pointer against Xavier by beating Tennessee at Value City Arena on a game-winning 3-pointer with 11 seconds left in January.''I had the same mindset. I just wanted to get a great shot and get an open look,'' he said. ''They were the same play from different sides of the court.''
San Antonio: Lofton's Stature Increases
This season, however, the scouting reports on Lofton have been revised. The mind-boggling range is still there, but the 6-foot-2 junior who leads the Volunteers into Thursday's South Regional semifinal against Ohio State is no longer the one-dimensional guard he once was.
The Buckeyes are going to have to account for a player who now is more capable of putting the ball on the floor and driving to the basket. Or pulling up from inside the arc.
Lofton's 3-point attempts are down from last season, from an average of 8.7 a game to 7.1. But his overall field-goal percentage is up, from .466 to .478.
"Last year, he was a shooter," Pearl said. "This year, he's a scorer."