• Recap
• Bleachers
• Game Tracker

Ohio State routs Penn State

Jan 26, 2012 - 5:14 AM Columbus, OH (Sports Network) - Jared Sullinger had a double-double with 20 points and 13 rebounds, helping No. 4 Ohio State record a wire-to-wire victory over Penn State, 78-54.

William Buford added 15 points and nine rebounds for the Buckeyes (18-3, 6-2 Big Ten), who have won three straight games since dropping a 79-74 decision at Illinois on January 10.

Tim Frazier had 16 points and four assists for Penn State (10-12, 2-7), which has dropped five of six.

The Nittany Lions paid tribute to Joe Paterno by wearing black bands on their jerseys. Paterno, who spent 46 years as the head coach at Penn State and won a college-football record 409 games, died Sunday at the age of 85.

Ohio State limited the Nittany Lions to just 31.3 shooting from the floor.

"Ohio State had a lot to do with that," Penn State head coach said of his team's struggles offensively. "We have been playing hard on the road and competing on the road. We have been struggling scoring on the road. I said earlier today even though they (Ohio State) don't have the shooters they did a year ago, collectively, as a unit, they play hard and they defend. Every shot was contested and they sped us up. People don't see that. They speed us up on layups and they speed us up on jump shots. They are athletic and quick."

Jermaine Marshall nailed a jumper to give Penn State its first points of the game, 4:58 into the contest. The Nittany Lions connected on just one of their first 13 shots from the field as Ohio State jumped out to a 15-2 advantage with 12:42 remaining in the opening half.

The 20-point barrier was breached when Buford nailed a three-pointer from the left wing to give Ohio State a 33-13 lead with 3:33 to play in the first stanza.

Aaron Craft provided the highlight of the half when he attempted to throw an alley-oop pass intended for Sam Thompson from just inside halfcourt on the right side of the floor. But his pass went into the basket for a three- pointer.

"I got pretty lucky," Craft said. "For the record, I would much rather have had Sam [Thompson] catch it and dunk it. I think people get more excited about that. But I'll take what I can get."

Ohio State took a 38-18 advantage into the locker room. Craft netted 11 points while Sullinger had seven points and eight rebounds to pace the Buckeyes in the opening half.

The Buckeyes led by as many as 29 midway through the second half before cruising to the easy win.

Game Notes

Ohio State has won 37 consecutive home games, the second longest streak in the country behind Kentucky's 47-game stretch...Ohio State has won 17 straight games over Penn State and has a 28-12 all-time series lead...The Lions have lost six straight games when Frazier is their leading scorer.