Back to Main MenuCelebrationsFraud PreventionManage Your AdPlace an AdPITTSBURGH, Pa. When in doubt, tire ’em out. It’s not hard to look at Ohio State and its short bench and decide that trying to wear the Buckeyes down through defensive pressure might be a way to go.”They’re not very deep,” Loyola senior forward Shane Walker said Wednesday as his team prepared to open the NCAA Tournament today against the Buckeyes. “I feel like we can run them.”For a team nicknamed the Greyhounds, that’s typically part of the game plan, with No. 15 seed Loyola (Md.) matching an up tempo style with an aggressive pressing defense.”We’re a pressing team and we like to run. We’ll try to drag them down and make them tired,” Walker said. “We’ve got a lot of Air Jordan 8 Retro experience doing it. Hopefully, it’ll work out this time.”Loyola coach Jimmy Patsos said his goal with the pressure and tempo is primarily to speed the game up from a strategic perspective, not to use it to tire out the Buckeyes. He noted that the extra long, two and a Air Jordan 12s half minute timeouts in the NCAA Tournament give everyone longer breaks throughout the game.Where Ohio State can steal an edge: Loyola doesn’t start anyone heavier than 221 pounds, which may be why Loyola coach Jimmy Patsos called OSU 265 pound sophomore Jared Sullinger a “monster.” Loyola big man Shane Walker is 6 10, but expect Sullinger and Deshaun Thomas to get some work done inside.Where Loyola can steal an edge: Justin Drummond, a 6 4 guard, was the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Sixth Man of the Year, the fifth Greyhound to win the award in Pastos’ eight seasons. He averages 10.9 points and could be a shot of energy and scoring off the bench to which the Buckeyes must adjust. Williams. Craft is averaging 8.6 points, with a high of 17 points against Duke in November, but this could be a game where he really looks for his offense.Loyola player who must be locked down: OSU coach Thad Matta said Loyola’s Robert Olson can stretch a defense with Nike KD 7 his quick release and ability to get off shots. Olson has made 65 3 pointers this season, 13 more than any Buckeyes Nike LeBron 12 player, and is shooting 44 percent on 3s, 5 percentage points higher than any Buckeye. OSU has defended the perimeter well lately and must continue that.Next: OSU Loyola winner vs. winner of No. 7 Gonzaga Nike Air Foamposite One No. 10 West Virginia, SaturdayDoug Lesmerises’ prediction: Ohio State 84, Loyola 63And that will continue. Expect the Buckeyes to go to their bench for any real significant playing time other than Sam Thompson sharing the two guard sport with Lenzelle Smith Jr. only during blowouts in the tournament or in cases of foul trouble. This is on the starters, with the bench averaging just 6.2 points per game in the 16 games Ohio State played this season against NCAA Tournament teams. The bench averaged 18.8 points in the 18 games against teams not in the tournament.The starters say they’re ready for it.”I feel great,” starting OSU big man Jared Sullinger said Wednesday. “When you get a couple of days off and then you don’t have to play against a Big Ten opponent with Big Ten officials, I think it’s going to be tremendous.”The weight Sullinger lost in the off season allows him to recover more quickly between games, he said. At this point in the season, OSU strength and conditioning coach Dave Richardson said, the goal with Sullinger is to just keep him going, with “damage control” for all of the players one of the priorities.Smith dropped weight since his arrival in Columbus and continues to get stronger. Deshaun Thomas continues to work on making fluid movements on the court, but is strong enough to fight inside. Aaron Craft goes hard enough that Richardson’s main concern is pulling back on his workouts. And senior William Buford watches his legs, knowing his jump shot may flatten out if they’re tired, though he’s playing fewer minutes than he did as a sophomore.”I feel rejuvenated,” Buford said, extolling the virtues of Monday’s day off. “I’m so excited, I’m not even thinking about getting tired. If I don’t take a day off for the next three weeks, I’ll be fine. I’m just trying to take full advantage of this.”