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Sullinger, Ohio State thump Iowa

Jan 8, 2012 - 12:20 AM Iowa City, IA (Sports Network) - Jared Sullinger scored 28 points, and sixth- ranked Ohio State used a strong defensive effort to rout Iowa, 76-47, at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Deshaun Thomas netted 10 points for Ohio State (15-2, 3-1 Big Ten), which has won two in a row since losing at Indiana. William Buford finished with 11 rebounds, eight points and five assists in the victory.

Eric May scored nine points to lead the Hawkeyes (10-7, 2-2), who had won their last two. They shot 32.1 percent in Saturday's loss.

"You find yourself shooting a lot of either contested or sort of rushed shots, and then like I said, the thing they do, also, is they rebound," Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery said of Ohio State. "So if you don't make it a contested shot, then you don't have a whole lot of second-shot opportunities."

Iowa stayed close for most of the first half, and was within a possession late in the period even after falling behind by nine. May hit a long-distance shot and a layup during a six-point burst the Hawkeyes used to pull within 22-19 with just under three minutes remaining.

However, Sullinger followed with a layup, and the Buckeyes closed the half with dunks by J.D. Weatherspoon and Sullinger.

They carried the 28-19 advantage into the locker room and opened the second half with a 10-2 run. Thomas and Lenzelle Smith, Jr. connected on threes during the surge, which had OSU ahead by 17 points.

"We made some shots, and it's like I told Lenzelle and Deshaun at halftime -- they had to sit the majority of the first half. I said, 'Look, don't even think about scoring, don't even think about it. All I need you to do is play defense,'" said Ohio State head coach Thad Matta. "And they went out and hit three threes. So, maybe I'll keep them in that mindset."

The Buckeyes' lead continued to grow, and reached 51-29 when Buford made a foul shot with just under 12 minutes to play. That free throw closed an 11-2 burst, and OSU cruised from there.

Game Notes

OSU has won seven in a row against Iowa, and nine of the last 10 meetings...The Buckeyes shot 51.6 percent, sinking 33 field goal attempts...Iowa made just 17 shots from the field...The Buckeyes have won by double figures in 13 of their 15 victories this season.