BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Kevin “Yogi” Ferrell scored 20 points and Will Sheehey added 19 on Sunday, leading Indiana past No. 22 Ohio State 72-64.
It was the second consecutive victory for the Hoosiers - both over ranked teams in the last four days.
“We still had to figure out how we were going to get fouled. And we had to rebound better,” Crean said after learning Vonleh, the Big Ten’s leading rebounder, wouldn’t play. “We had to open the court a little bit more. We just had to really make sure our spacing was really, really good.”
The Hoosiers (17-12, 7-9 Big Ten) did all that and more - even on a day that started bleakly.
Fears of a severe ice and snow storm kept some fans home from the usually packed Assembly Hall, and those who did make it in had to contend with travel advisories issued in the nearby counties after the game.
In between, Crean used his Twitter account to announce Vonleh would sit out with inflammation in his foot. He showed up for warm-ups in a gray sweatsuit with a boot on his left foot as the Hoosiers tried to pay back Ohio State for ruining last year’s Senior Night celebration with their own upset at Assembly Hall.
Ferrell and Sheehey made sure nothing would get in their way this time.
“I think it just shows the grittiness of our team,” said Ferrell, the only returning starter from last year’s Big Ten champs. “I feel like everyone stepped up to the challenge. We just really wanted to get this win.”
LaQuinton Ross and Lenzelle Smith Jr. had 19 points each for the Buckeyes (22-8, 9-8) who lost their second consecutive - both road games against teams in the bottom half of the conference race.
After falling into an early 19-12 deficit, the Hoosiers took control.
They closed the half on a 21-5 run to take a 33-25 lead, fended off two second-half charges from Ohio State and sealed it from the free throw line in the final minute.
Ohio State closed to 39-37with 15:04 to go and got as close as 48-47 with 9:22 left.
But Evan Gordon and Sheehey made consecutive three-pointers, right in front of the Hoosiers bench, on their next two possessions and the Buckeyes never got another chance to take the lead.
NO. 8 VILLANOVA 73, MARQUETTE 56
PHILADELPHIA - Darrun Hilliard scored a career-high 26 points and No. 8 Villanova set a school record for regular-season victories after downing Marquette.
Josh Hart added 13 points and Jay-Vaughn Pinkston had 11 points and seven rebounds for the Wildcats (26-3, 14-2 Big East), which has won four consecutive and 10 of 11.
The Wildcats had never won 26 regular-season games in the 95-year history of the program. Villanova won 25 games four previous times, most recently in 2008-09, a season it reached the Final Four.
Deonte Burton scored 13 points for Marquette (17-12, 9-7) and Todd Mayo finished with 11 points and five rebounds.NO. 14 WISCONSIN 71, PENN ST. 66
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - Josh Gasser scored 15 points to lead a balanced Wisconsin offense and the 14th-ranked Badgers beat Penn State for their seventh consecutive victory.
Wisconsin (24-5, 11-5 Big Ten) held onto third place in the Big Ten as Ben Brust scored 14 points and Traevon Jackson, who made four clutch free throws down the stretch, added 13.
D.J. Newbill had 23 points for Penn State (14-15, 5-11), which dropped to 2-5 against ranked teams this season. The redshirt junior became Penn State’s 31st career 1,000-point scorer. He leads the Big Ten this season with 178 field goals.
NO. 20 IOWA, PURDUE 76
IOWA CITY, Iowa - Roy Devyn Marble scored 21 points and No. 20 Iowa snapped a three-game losing streak by beating Purdue (15-14, 5-11).
Aaron White and Mike Gesell added 15 points each for the Hawkeyes (20-9, 9-7 Big Ten), who have recorded consecutive 20-victory seasons for the first time in eight years.
Iowa blew a 13-point halftime lead, but an 8-0 run put the Hawkeyes back ahead 68-64 with 5:56 left. Gesell then hit five free throws in the final 41 seconds to help the Hawkeyes narrowly avoid losing their fourth home game in five tries.
NO. 25 NEW MEXICO 72, NEVADA 58
RENO, Nev. - Cameron Bairstow scored 22 points as No. 25 New Mexico overcame an early 14-point deficit to claim a victory over Nevada.
Kendall Williams added 11 points and 10 assists and Alex Kirk had 10 points and 11 rebounds for the Lobos (24-5, 14-2 Mountain West), who remain tied for first place in the Mountain West Conference with No. 13 San Diego State.
Deonte Burton and Cole Huff had 15 points each for the Wolf Pack (13-16, 8-8), who held a 31-17 lead but were outscored 10-0 over the last 4:28 of the first half.
Sports, Pages 17 on 03/03/2014