Jon Diebler hit five 3-pointers to get No. 17 Ohio State off to a fast start, and the Buckeyes coasted to a 110-47 victory over St. Francis, Pa., on Saturday.
Diebler scored 15 of his 17 points during the quick start, Evan Turner had 16 points to go with eight rebounds and five assists, and center Dallas Lauderdale had one of his most dominant games at Ohio State (5-1). He flirted with career highs in points (11), rebounds (6) and blocked shots (6).
In addition, Jeremie Simmons came off the bench to score 18 points, William Buford chipped in 15 points and P.J. Hill had 10.
Cedric Latimer had 16 points for the offensively challenged Red Flash (1-5), who had scored 72 points in a 23-point loss at Notre Dame on Nov. 16. Devin Sweetney added 10.
After Diebler set the pace in the opening half, Lauderdale did the same in the second. He blocked one shot in front of the Red Flash bench, saved it from going out of bounds and then crashed to the floor, grimacing in pain. He also caught another shot in the lane.
And he brought one of the biggest ovations of the night when he banked in a free throw early in the second half. Lauderdale laughed long and hard after the shot clanged off the backboard and through the net.
The Buckeyes hit better than 70 percent of its shots from the field until the final few minutes. They finished at 63 percent after substituting heavily for most of the second half.
The first half was forgettable for the Red Flash.
Through the opening 12 minutes, they had more shots blocked (3) than made (2).
With Ohio State leading 5-3, the Buckeyes went on a runs of 11-0, 12-0 and 11-0 to build a 41-10 lead. The chief instigator was Diebler, who hit five 3-pointers for 15 points in the half, and also had two early steals and an assist to get the Buckeyes out of the gate fast.
After taking a 52-22 lead at the break, Lauderdale blocked several shots to intimidate the Red Flash inside and they became unraveled, the Buckeyes reeling off 18 of the first 20 points in the second half to make it 70-24.
It was the first time the teams had ever met.
