In overtime, Ohio State defeats West Virginia thanks to a spectacular performance from Roddy Gayle.
They were given free basketball by Ohio State. In their first overtime match of the year, the Buckeyes (11-2) defeated West Virginia (5-8) 78-75 in a thrilling game that was driven throughout by a career performance from Roddy Gayle Jr. Despite missing a chance to win at the conclusion of regulation, they never trailed in the five-minute extra session.
Ohio State’s Jamison Battle said, “It’s extra basketball.” Five more minutes are added. Recognizing that our past mistakes are behind us and that we must go forward and utilize these five minutes is essential. You are unable to reflect on the past because you are powerless to alter the past. How can I contribute to winning in those five minutes?
We all posed the question to ourselves, and we all provided an answer. For today, we rang the bell.”ย Gayle led all scorers with a career-high 32 points on a night when scoring was sporadically difficult to come by, and every point was crucial.
With two possessions remaining, Gayle made his third 3-pointer as the Ohio State offense began to work. Jamison Battle had already scored five points in the first overtime period. Evan Mahaffey missed a clear-cut opportunity to score, but otherwise the Buckeyes scored on six of their first seven possessions in overtime, establishing a comfortable advantage that they were able to maintain. During that period of time, Bruce Thornton, Gayle, and Battle all hit threes.
Gayle finished with 32 points on 11 of 21 shots. In 37:55, he also had seven rebounds and six assists.ย “It would be selfish of me to take all the (credit) personally,” said Gayle. “I want to express my gratitude to my teammates especially Jamison, who found me on open looks for their support and faith in me.
“You might be surprised to learn that Evan had such a big impact on the game. I would like to commend Evan. He fought on the boards down there. Much appreciation to Evan. I learned a lot from his blunders.”ย Since defeating Indiana 80-69 at home on February 21, 2021, Ohio State has not won in overtime.
Despite missing their last five free throws and turning the ball over, the Buckeyes managed to win by three points with 1:15 remaining.ย With the exception of the five missed free throws, Ohio State coach Chris Holtmann stated, “Our guys stepped up and made a lot of plays down the stretch.” “Iโm proud of them for that.”
Ohio State had led by as much as 14 points in the first half and was up 58-49 with 6:59 remaining, having not trailed since the team’s 3-0 start. West Virginia just kept coming, sometimes driven by Noah Farrakhan alone.
In the second half, West Virginia pulled within two points for the third time, 63-61, on a deep 3-pointer by RaeQuan Battle with 2:47 remaining. In 1:14 remaining, Patrick Suemnick brought West Virginia within two points once more with a putback, and with 42 seconds remaining, the Mountaineers were able to hold onto possession when Jamison Battle missed a three-point shot.