tBBC All-Time Tourney #2 2007 vs. #7 2010

Joe D and WVaBuckeye bring you another round of the tBBC All-Time Tourney! Today pits Evan Turner and the 2010 Buckeyes versus the Diaper Dandy 2007 squad featuring Greg Oden and Mike Conley. Enjoy! 

As the seeding’s were finished and Joe and I prepared to do our match up research, this game became the most intriguing. Both teams feature National POY candidates in Greg Oden and Evan Turner and of course Evan walked away with every major award during his junior season in Columbus. Both teams feature a star from our previous match up in David Lighty who has the distinction of being on three of the nine teams we are featuring. The 2007 team came close to being only the second Buckeye team to bring home the big dance hardware since 1960. They had attempted to go through a Florida team that had their number during the regular season 86-60. The 2007 squad never lost at home going 27-0 and lost just three on the road to UNC, the Gators and Wisconsin. They finished the season ranked #1 in the AP poll and in the RPI. The 2010 team was led by quite possibly the best all around player to ever don the Scarlet and Gray. Evan Turner led this team to a second place Big Ten finish behind great single season stats that made the rest of the starting line up better. Almost averaging a double/double at 20.4 PPG and 9.2 RPG as well as 6 assists a game the rest of the starters averaged in double digits.

What are to follow will be several comparisons of each team’s makeup. We will be including our opinions of each comparison with who has the advantage and at the end will be guest appearances. We hope you enjoy our tournament as we look forward to the outcome!

2007 Starters and Stats

2007 Team Stats

2007 Team in the Record Books

The 2007 team had three freshmen lead them to the promise land and all three left for greener pastures in the NBA.  There wasn’t a National list that Greg Oden was left off of and Mike Conley Jr. garnered several on the way as well including the Final Four all tourney team with Oden. Daequan Cook won the 6^th man award in the Big Ten coming off the bench all season except for one start. Conley set single season marks in steals (87) and assists (238) on his way to a stellar freshman season.

2010 Starters and Stats

2010 Team Stats

Evan Turner in the Record Books

Evan Turner had two triple/doubles during this campaign which were number two and three in Ohio State history behind Dennis Hopson being the first and only. One of 21 Ohio State players all time with 1,000 plus points and 500 plus rebounds. (1,517;682) Evan earned 6 different POY awards and at the same time earned 7 Big Ten POTW honors which is a conference record to go along with a record 10 career POTW conference honors. As a team these buckeyes set the standard for three point attempts, makes and percentages.

Playmaker

We have gone over the definition of playmaker before and in this match up they come from different positions. Evan Turner will quite possibly go down as the greatest playmaker in Ohio State basketball history. As fans, we saw flashes of it in the previous season and he didn’t disappoint. Leading the buckeyes in just about every statistical category, Evan had two triple/doubles on his way to National POY honors and put the buckeyes on his shoulders many times during the regular season. For the 2007 Buckeyes the playmaker was obviously Greg Oden. A great center for the buckeyes, the offense always went through him and because of his size and abilities on defense, he dictated that other teams not be successful around the basket. Almost averaging a double/double for the season Oden made several POY lists and was the Big Ten Defensive POY as well as several other honors to go with it. Advantage to 2010

Post Presence

What makes this match-up so great is the differences in styles of play on both the offensive and defensive side of the basketball. Thad Matta’s 2007 squad depended so much on an inside presence game in and game out.  For the ’07 squad, it started with Greg Oden. His 306 rebounds are just second to Herb Williams 308 for a season high. He shot 61% from the field, and averaged 3.3 blocks per game.

Some would argue he is the best post player in Ohio State history, despite hanging around for just one season. The 2010 inside game was underrated, considering Evan Turner’s ability to bring down the basketball. Everyone knows about his slick jumper, great first step and intangibles offensively. His 9.6 rebounds per game though is proof today that he remains one of the best rebounding guards in the game of basketball. Without a doubt, Lighty and Turner are one of the best rebounding duos in the history of Ohio State back courts. Dallas Lauderdale added grit and a game changing shot block ability as well.

Still, nothing in this era has compared to the post presence of Greg Oden. Advantage to 2007

Ball Handler

Evan Turner was a do all for the 2010 buckeyes and led the team in rebounds and assists on their way to a good season that saw three other starters’ average in double digits in scoring. Great at making things happen when the ball was in his hands; one of his best attributes was taking care of the ball.  His assist to turnover ration was 1.4(5.9 to 4.4) and his steals per game was at 1.74. Mike Conley Jr. basically rewrote the formula for a point guard in Ohio State history. His assist to turn over ratio was a good bit higher than Turners at 2.8 (6.1 to 2.25) and his steals total rank him number one all time at 87 in a single season and 2.23 a game. Mike had a knack of making things happen when the post game wasn’t going, which wasn’t very often. He had the kind of floor vision that doesn’t come along very often and had the ability to get to the basket when he wanted to. Advantage to 2007

Supporting Cast and Future Stars

What more can be said about the supporting cast on these two teams that hasn’t already been said? The 2010 team features the same supporting stars that were in our last match up with Diebler, Lighty and Buford. The 2007 team featured very capable stars in Jamar Butler and Ivan Harris. For more information on these teams check out these links.

http://statsheet.com/mcb/teams/ohio-state?season=2006-2007

http://statsheet.com/mcb/teams/ohio-state?season=2009-2010

What if Sports Match up Result

How funny is it that the Comeback Buckeyes would have another run in the second half, even in a silly simulation? Down 35-20 at the half, the 2007 squad would outscore 2010 44-27 for the 64-62 victory. Conley hit a look from the perimeter on the assist from Greg Oden to make it 64-59 with :19 seconds left. Needing to foul, 2010 put Conley on the line for the one and one. The freshman would miss the first from the charity stripe with :04 left. Jon Diebler would clear the rebound and put up a prayer that would fall, but it was too late as the 2010 team lost by two. To view the full boxscore, click here.

Please leave a comment and make sure you vote on our poll up the top left corner of the site for which team you believe deserves to make it to the next round. Who will be our first mythical champion? Stay tuned as we roll onto the next round next week!