Las Vegas, NV—Bruce Thornton led the Ohio State Buckeyes to an 80-72 victory over the 19th-ranked Texas Longhorns on Monday night, scoring 20 points in a standout performance.
Micah Parrish poured in 17 points and grabbed six rebounds for Ohio State, which led the game from start to finish and shot an impressive 55.6% in the second half.
Devin Royal chipped in 16 points, and John Mobley Jr. scored 14 off the bench, helping the Buckeyes to a dominant 33-10 edge in bench points.
Freshman Tre Johnson led Texas with a game-high 29 points and added five rebounds, while teammates Arthur Kaluma and Kadin Shedrick scored 10 each. However, the rest of the Longhorns combined to shoot just 24.1% (7 of 29) from the field.
Takeaways:
Ohio State:The Buckeyes opened strong, building a 15-point lead in the first half by shooting 50% (10 of 20) from the field, including an impressive 9 of 12 from beyond the arc.
Texas:Monday’s loss marked only the second season-opening loss for the Longhorns in their last 22 seasons.
Key Moment:
After Texas cut Ohio State’s lead to four early in the second half, Evan Mahaffey grabbed a key defensive rebound and scored on a fast-break layup, sparking a 9-3 run that helped the Buckeyes extend their lead to 49-39 and control the pace for the remainder of the game.
Key Stat:
15 Points:Tre Johnson showed no signs of nerves in his college debut, scoring 15 points on 6-of-13 shooting in the first half, including 3 of 6 from three-point range, keeping Texas within reach.
Up Next:
Ohio State will host Youngstown State on Monday, while Texas returns home to play Houston Christian on Friday.