Aaron Bradshaw and John Mobley Jr. each scored 16 points to lead five players in double figures as No. 21 Ohio State went on an early run and then crushed Youngstown State 81-47 on Monday night.
Ohio State played outstanding defense, holding a Youngstown State team with mostly new players to 24% shooting.
The Buckeyes shot 55%, with Bruce Thornton scoring 12, Meechie Johnson Jr. adding 11, including three 3-pointers, and Sean Stewart 10.
Bradshaw was 5 for 8 and had eight rebounds. Mobley was 3 for 4 from beyond the arc as the Buckeyes hit 46% of their long shots.
Cris Carroll paced the Penguins with 10 points and seven rebounds, and Ty Harper and 7-foot-3 Gabe Dynes each added nine points.
The Penguins got back to within 10 points in the first half but couldn’t run with the Buckeyes, who steadily increased the lead throughout the second half and had all the starters on the bench by the final whistle.
Takeaways
Youngstown State: The Penguins lost most of their scoring and their coach after finishing 22-10 last season. New coach Ethan Faulkner is still trying to get all the new players to mesh.
Ohio State: The Buckeyes debuted in the AP Top 25 hours before they dispatched Youngtown State. They were unranked until taking down then-No. 19 Texas 80-72 in the opener.
Key moment
After Youngstown State went up 2-0 to start the game, Bradshaw dunked and then hit a 3-pointer as the Buckeyes went on a 12-0 run and never trailed again.
Key stat
Ohio State has scored at least 80 points in both of their first two games.
Up next
Youngstown State is at Syracuse on Saturday, and Ohio State is at No. 23 Texas A&M on Friday night.
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