Tom Izzo made a strong admission about Ohio State’s Bruce Thornton after the Buckeyes fell to Michigan State, and it’s hard to disagree
Bruce Thornton received quite the praise from a legendary coach.
The Ohio State Buckeyes had a chance at a big Quad 1 win against the Michigan State Spartans on Sunday. Without a Quad 1 win still, Ohio State lost on the road to Michigan State by a score of 66-60.
Ohio State was without Devin Royal and John Mobley Jr. against the Spartans, its second- and third-most important players. Ohio State led 26-23 at halftime, but was unable to have the same result in the second half.
Tom Izzo didn’t hold back his thoughts on Ohio State’s Bruce Thornton
Thornton scored 32 points against Michigan State and had the Buckeyes right there throughout the game. At 17-10 on the season, Thornton and the Buckeyes are trending toward missing the NCAA Tournament once again. Even if Thornton hasn’t had the March Madness experience, he has the respect of coaches going up against him. Including the top coach in the Big Ten admitting his team couldn’t guard Thornton.
“I talked to [Bruce] Thornton before the game, told him it’s been an honor and a privilege to coach against him for four years,” Michigan State HC Tom Izzo said after the game. “I said you stayed put. You didn’t run and leave like everybody does nowadays. You’ve been an incredible player. You’ve been an incredible person. I’m a big fan, and I told him even more after the game. … We couldn’t guard him with a fish net.”
Thornton has improved steadily over his four seasons in Columbus and is having his best season yet averaging 20.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 3.9 assists per game. The Georgia native was 12-of-22 shooting against Michigan State and they had no answer for stopping him at the rim.
Ohio State has games remaining against Iowa, Purdue, Penn State, and Indiana. Beating the Hawkeyes or Purdue is key for the Buckeyes and they may end up needing both of those. A home game against Indiana to end the regular season isn’t one the Buckeyes can lose with the Hoosiers being on the bubble as well.
Sunday was the Thornton show for Ohio State and it was nearly enough to take down Michigan State. Izzo has been around a long time and he knows a great college player when he sees one.
The Buckeyes are back in action against Iowa on Wednesday with a 9 p.m. ET tipoff on tap.
Ohio State Buckeyes News
Ohio State football team captain confirms suspicion on how the Buckeyes are feeling over a month after their season ended
It’s hard for anyone to be okay with what happened to Ohio State to end the season.
