Georgetown at Ohio State

The two hottest teams in the country will square off in this semi-final. Ohio State has now run off 21 straight wins, while Georgetown has been victorious in 19 of their last 20. There is one element to this game that stands out to us. Georgetown doesn't play as well without Hibbert, and Ohio St. does not drop-off without Oden. The difference in a game that is basically very even is the bench. Georgetown has gotten very little from their reserves. The totals are considerably different. Georgetown is getting 7.7-points per game (PPG), 5-rebounds per game (RPG) and 3-assists per game (APG). Ohio St. is getting 15-ppg, 10.7-rpg and 2.3-apg. This amounts to an extra player pulling down a double-double for Ohio St., and will be the difference in this game. Ohio St. just has more of a margin for error than Georgetown. Ohio St. has more workable combinations than Georgetown, and more options. Oden is a much better player in this type of half-court game. Over the last 22 games, 11 of which Ohio St. scored under 70 points, and in the other 11 games, they scored over 70 and that shows exactly that. When Ohio St. is under 70, Oden adds 16.2-ppg, 11.1-rpg and 3.8-blocks per game. When the Buckeyes score 70+, he adds 16.4-ppg, 7.7-rpg, 3-bpg. His scoring average is the same but when less points are scored by his team, he is scoring at a higher percentage rate. He is also pulling down three more rebounds a game and blocking more shots. It is obvious that fatigue is less of a factor for him in this type of game. Ohio St. gets the call here