The Fall and Rise of Ohio State Basketball

[IBMA]

Two More Recruits Commit to OSU
December 11
The Buckeyes were told within a matter of hours that two different recruits had decided to attend Ohio State next fall. The recruits are Andy Movalson and Matthew Kirkpatrick.
Movalson is from Henryetta, OK, but he said all along he knew he would be a Buckeye, “Yeah, I knew ever since I was young I wanted to be there in this position. Nobody could have persuaded me otherwise. I don’t think Thad [Matta] could have done anything to steer me away. I can’t wait for next year. Hopefully we’ll have a chance at the back to back.” - Movalson
Kirkpatrick, on the other hand, said he needed heavy persuasion to make his decision, “It was a close race, and at times I thought OSU was out of it. But Coach Matta made me change my mind. Without him I would’ve never made this decision to go all the way to Ohio [from Anaheim, CA]. I know Coach [Matta] has my best interests in mind, though. He has already proved it to me.” - Kirkpatrick
Well, I don’t know what type of water Thad Matta has been drinking lately, but I need some of that with the way these prospects speak so highly of him. Matta and the Buckeyes have just two more games left before conference play starts on January first against Purdue.

[Daonlyjmo7]

Quote: Originally Posted by IBMA

Ohio State Becomes Number One November 29 After wins against Dayton, Tennessee, Washington, and Auburn, two of which are ranked, and winning the Maui Invitational in the last week, the Buckeyes have finally burst into the number one spot of the AP poll for the first time this year. Thad Matta says he is happy at what these kids have done, but there is still work left on the table. “We are in no shape done yet. We still have many more out of conference games left before we get to in conference games. It’s no time to slouch around and be happy that we are in this situation. It’s time to work harder and get to where we envisioned ourselves at the start of the season: hoisting the championship trophy up.” - Matta This Buckeyes team has been led by none other than star junior Sean Frye, who is averaging 17.9 points per game to go along with eight and a half rebounds and about three blocks per game. Junior center Bobby Hardy has also shined in his role, as he is nearly averaging a double double (16.5 PPG, 9.8 RPG). Ohio State will look to stay undefeated this week with games against Oregon, Washington, and Clemson.

Wow, congrats to the team! Well deserved


Sent from my iPhone using Operation Sports

[IBMA]

Quote: Originally Posted by Daonlyjmo7

Wow, congrats to the team! Well deserved Sent from my iPhone using Operation Sports

Thanks man! Haven't played a game though! Simulating this season and next season before I take over. My next post here in about a minute or so will show you why this team is going to become worse by the time I take over, though.

[IBMA]

Breaking: Thad Matta Found To Be Paying Prospects

December 15

What an unlucky number thirteen is for the Buckeyes. Thirteen hours after getting their thirteenth win of the year a video leaks of Amory Soto, Ohio State commit, talking about how much money Thad Matta is offering him to attend OSU in the coming fall.

Amory stated in the video, “Yeah, [Matta] already promised me what he hasn’t already given me.” His counterpart in the video then asks, “How much have you already gotten?” To which Soto responds with, “Two [thousand].”

This is a disgusting act from a coach who payed to make his team good. Who knows how many other guys Matta has payed in his time at Ohio State. Both Matta and the school will make separate statements tomorrow afternoon. No other students, past, present, or future, have commented on the situation yet.

[IBMA]

Full: Matta and Ohio State Statements

December 16

Both statements are, in full, written down word for word here. First, the school’s statement:

Athletic Director Gene Smith: “It is with great remorse that something such as this situation has happened to the our great school. In no way do we condone behaviour even in the slightest similar to that of Mr. Matta. I would like to personally apologize on behalf of all of Ohio State for this incident. This is not something we would like to be associated with, so Mr. Matta will be let go at the week’s end. Coach Newmann will fill in as interim coach for the rest of the year. The NCAA has already contacted me and would like to speak not only with us as a school, but also Mr. Matta and current, past, and future players to understand the situation better and be able to give just punishments to those who it concerns.
We have also spoken to Mr. Amory Soto, the young man who has been said to be receiving payments from Mr. Matta. We have come to a mutual agreement that it is in his best nature that he decommit from Ohio State, for his sake and ours equally. We wish him the best in the future and hope he goes to a great school.
We will inform the media immediately when we know of what our next step is, but as of right now it seems all has been covered. Any questions?”

Reporter: “Hi, yes, I am Kyle Furman, WKYC local news reporter, has the school been notified about any other prior or possibly future incidents with paying high school or college students?”

AD Gene Smith: As of right now we are not sure, but no student, prior, present, or future has reported an incident remotely near one of this gratitude. Again, the NCAA will be conducting an investigation over the next several weeks to find out exactly what has happened. Any more? No? Well, that is all from the school. Thank you.”



Now Matta’s statement, just hours later on Facebook.

“First off, this program has been nothing but amazing to me and treated me with the utmost respect and care for me and my family. I am forever grateful for the Ohio State school and basketball program specifically. I did make a mistake recently that I cannot go back on. It cost me my job and my favorite thing in the world. I love the kids and I will miss them, but I understand the school’s decision and can’t change it now. Thank you Ohio State for the greatest five and a half years of my life.” - Matta

[IBMA]

Matthew Kirkpatrick Decommits, Says He Was Paid Too

December 18

Matthew Kirkpatrick decommitted today from Ohio State, and said in a statement on Twitter, “I have decided that I am going to decommit from Ohio State today. Ohio State is a truly astounding school that deserves the rep it gets. I was, in fact, offered a sum of money from Coach Matta that would have helped pay for my family’s expenses. It was enticing at the time but I realize now that money should not be a reason to go to a college. College is about learning and finding the right place for me as a person. This means I am now once again looking at other colleges to attend this fall.” - Kirkpatrick

The other Buckeye recruits have not commented yet at this time. The NCAA says the investigation will probably take about a month or two after this new information.

The Buckeyes on the court right now have one more out of conference game, away against Hartford, Tuesday before starting BIG TEN conference play the first of the new year versus Purdue.

[IBMA]

Matta Investigation Over, School Penalized

January 28, 2010

The NCAA concluded its investigation into the Ohio State basketball scandal. They released a three page statement about the whole situation and the impending sanctions and penalties. We have made a quick summary here for your reading pleasure. Enjoy!

First and foremost, the only two kids to ever be paid by Matta were Amory Soto and Matthew Kirkpatrick, the two who were reported about late last year. Amory, as stated in the leaked video of him, received two thousand dollars in money and owed another three thousand over his collegiate career at Ohio State. Kirkpatrick’s sum was slightly less, being paid one thousand already with another one thousand coming his way in the future. Neither were punished by the NCAA.

As for the Buckeyes, there was no mercy shown. They have no recruiting restrictions for this year, as the season is almost over. However, the Buckeyes have a restriction for the next two years in their recruiting. They are not allowed to sign any McDonalds All-Americans or Mr. Basketball’s, or sign more than the amount of seniors on the team. They also have a two year ban of any preseason tournament, and a three year ban of any postseason tournament. Those three years include this year. Nobody was fired besides Matta in result of this.

Onto the oncourt Buckeyes who have proved to be human this year after taking two losses to Purdue and Michigan. But they still beat Michigan State, a team now projected to easily make it to the Elite Eight, and possibly even furthur. This makes the Buckeyes’ record 20-2, and 6-2 in BIG TEN play. The Buckeyes look to get back on track Saturday with another game against the Fighting Illini.

[IBMA]

Buckeyes End Season, Questions Arise For Next Year

February 21

The Buckeyes season came to an end yesterday with a 79-68 win on senior night over Indiana. The Buckeyes ended at 25-5, going 11-5 in BIG TEN play. Sean Frye ended fourth in BIG TEN player of the year voting and third in BIG TEN defensive player of the year voting. He was also on the second All BIG TEN team and on the first All BIG TEN defensive team. The only other player on the Buckeyes roster considered for an honor was Bobby Hardy, ending in tenth for BIG TEN player of the year.

Now that the year is over, people wonder what this team will do for next year. OSU is losing five seniors, Antawn Muhammad (80 overall C), Will Burnsides (77 overall SF), Theophilus Crossley (77 overall PG), Cameron Jarrett (75 overall PG), and Tyson Middleton (74 overall SG), yet the Buckeyes have only managed to sign three recruits. Plus, who knows what scraps of talent left out there want to attend the university with these sanctions placed on it.

Also, the Buckeyes need a permanent head coach. Coach Newmann has already said he does not wish to be the head coach next year. Some cantadites have been interviewed, but nobody has been named to the position yet. Jeff Anderson is the expected new coach, however, according to multiple sources. He is a High School coaching legend at Northwest High School in Canal Fulton, Ohio, but he has no real experience with the college level. He is said to be exceptionally good at maturing young kids, which is the type of leader this school will need.

April 8 Edit

March Madness ended with a Final Four with all number one seeds, just the second time ever. Kentucky beat Villanova 87-68 in the first game of the Final Four. The second game saw Tennessee beat Texas 81-72. The championship was a complete domination by Kentucky, winning by forty, 94-54. John Sheppard was named Final Four MVP.

Let’s see if the Buckeyes can scout and recruit well enough to be set up well for a few years down the road. The future of this program hangs in the balance of this year’s recruiting.