Tag: Joey Brunk

Ohio State gets back on track, knocks off Michigan State at home

It sure was nice to get back in the win column. Who had Joey Brunk as a wild card in this one? #GoBucks

Welcome to the Joey Brunk show — sort of.

The Ohio State basketball team was without big men Zed Key and Kyle Young Thursday night because of injuries, and that means Brunk got a little extra playing time against Michigan State. And he made the most of it, helping lead the Buckeyes to an important 80-69 victory.

Brunk had a stat line to dream of. He scored 18 points, pulled down 6 rebounds, and forced 2 steals in a season-high 32 minutes of play. We’re pretty sure Brunk was not circled on the Spartans’ game plan as a player to stop, but good on him for giving OSU a lift when the Buckeyes needed it the most.

For the rest of the Ohio State players, what a difference a couple of days make. The Buckeyes came out much more energized and engaged just a couple of days away from looking flat and uninterested in a shocking loss to last place Nebraska in the Schott while shooting just 38.6% from the floor.

OSU shot the ball much better on Thursday night, knocking down 29-of-53 shots for 54.7%. That mark included a much better 9-of-20 (45.0%) showing from beyond the arc.

Despite Brunk’s unbelievable night, it was actually freshman Malaki Branham that led all scorers with 22 points. He had a very effective 9-of-16 night from the floor that included a sensational left-handed jam over to Michigan State defenders. But that wasn’t all. E.J. Liddell (19 points) and Jamari Wheeler (16 points) also filled it up tonight to make it four Buckeyes in double figures.

Bottom line — it was a much more polished effort that should give Ohio State fans a little more hope of what might be lying in wait for the upcoming postseason. OSU now sits at 19-9 overall and remains in a tie with Iowa for fourth place in the Big Ten with a 12-7 conference record.

If the Buckeyes can beat Michigan on Sunday at home and Iowa loses at Illinois this weekend, they will have clinched a double-bye in the Big Ten Tournament.

It is March after all.

 

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Ohio State gets Indiana transfer Joey Brunk

Former Indiana center Joey Brunk announced his decision to transfer to Ohio State via his Twitter account on Saturday night.

While you were sleeping and reveling in the insane amount of talent on display in the passing game coming out of the Ohio State spring game, Chris Holtmann and the basketball team were making moves again.

Indiana center Joey Brunk announced on his Twitter account that he is transferring to Ohio State. And yeah, it kind of came out of the blue, but makes sense. Brunk is 6-foot, 11-inches, and 255-pounds and sat out last season for the Hoosiers with a back injury. He’s opting into a sixth year, and all indications are that he’s ready to go. He’ll add to the post with some much-needed size and add to the frontcourt of E.J. Liddell, Kyle Young (yes, he’s back), Zed Key, and Ibrahima Diallo.

The Buckeyes were supposedly in the sweepstakes to land five-star center Efton Reid, but there are some shenanigans going on behind the scenes. Reid — or rather — his mom, announced late in the day of when he was supposed to announce his college of choice, that it was all being delayed.

Welp.

So, you have to believe there is pause from the OSU coaching staff because of that, and there is definitely a need for a big man in a league that’s as bruising and full of top-end centers as any out there (pending personnel choices across the league).

So, Ohio State went and got some size, defense, and a little scoring from a big body that already had a relationship with Holtmann and staff. In fact, Brunk played at Butler for one year before the current OSU head coach and assistants left to take the job in Columbus. Now, the two will be reunited once again on a roster that is shaping up to have a lot of really nice pieces.

In the 2019-2020 season, Brunk averaged 6.8 points and 5.2 rebounds in almost 20 minutes of play per game as a starter for Indiana. He’ll be bringing some of those same ingredients into a rotation with Ohio State.