This Big Ten Conference tournament semifinal matchup was like a heavyweight bout, champion versus contender.

While the champion withstood a series of blows in the final round, it was a knockout punch with 36 seconds left that won it.

That knockout punch was delivered by Matt Sylvester, who has a knack of coming up with clutch shots at the end of the game. This shot, though, was a layup not a three-pointer as the seventh-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes held on for a 52-51 win over the Indiana Hoosiers.

J.J. Sullinger led the Buckeyes with 19 points and 13 rebounds as the regular season champion will play for the tournament title Sunday at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis against the Iowa Hawkeyes. Tip-off time is scheduled for 3:30 pm.

Ohio State scored the game’s first eight points, and Indiana did not score until Roderick Wilmont’s layup at the 15:12 mark of the first half.

The Buckeyes were plagued by poor shooting once again, and the Hoosiers were able to get off the canvas to go on a 10-0 scoring run after Ohio State’s eight straight points to begin the game.

It was a tight battle throughout the first half with no team holding more than a four point advantage, and after a layup by Indiana guard Earl Calloway with 38 seconds left, the Hoosiers headed into the locker room leading 26-25.

But the second half belong to Ohio State and J.J. Sullinger, who scored 13 of his 19 in the final 20 minutes. In fact, those 13 points all came in the first six-plus minutes of the period, and he was the only Buckeye to score during that stretch as Ohio State took a 38-30 lead following a layup by Sullinger with 13:52 left to play in the game.

Indiana’s Robert Vaden scored on a jumper on the Hoosiers’ next possession, but Ohio State’s Ron Lewis drained a triple from the right wing the next time down the court to give the Buckeyes their biggest lead of the game at 41-32 with 13:07 remaining.

The Hoosiers chipped away at the lead and eventually tied the game at 47-all after a conventional three-point play by Calloway with 3:47 left.

Dials then made a nice move to the basket and scored on a layup while avoiding an offensive foul, and guard Jamar Butler made one of two free throws to put Ohio State ahead 50-47 with 2:50 remaining.

Indiana scored the next four points, one on a short jumper by Killingsworth in the paint, and another bucket when Wilmont drove the baseline and scored on a layup with 1:50 left to put the Hoosiers ahead 51-50.

Both teams missed open jumpers before Ohio State came down the court trailing by a point and needing a basket.

Ohio State’s Je’Kel Foster missed a trey with 54 seconds left before Lewis gathered up the loose ball and called timeout.

Eventually, Dials got the ball about 12 feet away from the basket towards the left wing, who found Sylvester cutting towards the left block for the game-winning layup with 36 seconds to play.

Indiana called a timeout with 25 seconds left to set up a play. The ball went to Killingsworth, who missed a short jump hook with five ticks on the clock, and the ball was tipped and eventually rebounded by Wilmont.

Wilmont’s jumper from about eight feet away with two seconds remaining hit the front of the rim and the miss was hauled down by Sullinger at the buzzer.

But there is nothing better that beating the Hoosiers, whether it is in Bloomington, Columbus, or in this case, Indianapolis, which is even better still since it’s in the tournament. This win avenges Ohio State’s lost to Indiana after the Buckeyes got homered with five seconds left in Bloomington back in January.

Tags: Buckeye Basketball //