| A Final Four Date
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Greg Oden wasn't going to let foul trouble stop him, not with a chance to take Ohio State to the Final Four.
Frustrated by fouls for a third straight game, Oden made the most of his time on court during a key stretch of the second half, carrying the top-seeded Buckeyes past Memphis 92-76 yesterday in the South Regional finals.
Oden's numbers weren't huge: 17 points, nine rebounds.
The 7-footer's impact was.
The Buckeyes (34-3) went from up five points to down five during the 4:42 the fabulous freshman was on the bench after getting his third foul early in the second half. The moment he returned, everything changed. His presence on offense and defense sparked a 20-8 run that ultimately sent Ohio State to Atlanta for a showdown next weekend with the winner of the North Carolina-Georgetown game today.
The Buckeyes last made the Final Four in 1999, when a team led by Michael Redd and Scoonie Penn lost to eventual national champion Connecticut. That trip later was expunged from the records because of NCAA violations, making their last official appearance in 1968.
Second-seeded Memphis (33-4) fell a game shy of the Final Four
for a second straight season. The Conference USA champs were riding a 25-game winning streak and were plenty confident they could handle the Big Ten champs — and were doing just fine until the 260-pound future NBA lottery pick flexed his muscles.
In only 24 minutes, Oden made 7-of-8 shots and was 3-of-6 from the line with a block that came on the first defensive stand after he returned with three fouls. Memphis' inability to stop him was summed up best when Chris Douglas-Roberts threw both arms around Oden's waist and shoved him for an intentional foul — but Oden still made the shot.
When Oden caught a pass, spun and scored with his left hand against Joey Dorsey, the Buckeyes were up 71-64 and in solid control with about five minutes left. By then, Ohio State fans, who'd anguished through last-second victories the last two games were breathing easily, possibly even wondering how much longer they'll get to savor Oden in scarlet and white before he turns pro.
They made their thoughts on the subject clear by chanting "One more year!" during the postgame, net-cutting ceremony. They later hollered, "Two more games," which could bring the Buckeyes their second basketball title and first since 1960.
Freshman point guard Mike Conley Jr. — the son of a former Olympic star and Oden's high school teammate — set the pace for the Buckeyes with hard-charging drives from the start. He scored 19 points and led Ohio State to its most points of the season. He also was named the top player in the region.
Ron Lewis continued his steady senior leadership with 22 points and six rebounds. Jamar Butler added 12 points. The Buckeyes made 51 percent of their shots, and were 35-of-41 from the foul line, never giving Memphis a chance to get back in the game down the stretch.
The Tigers hung in early by shooting 7-of-10 on 3-pointers in the first half, an surprising start considering they began last year's regional finals loss to UCLA 0-for-14 from behind the arc.
But they couldn't keep it up. Memphis made only three more on 12 tries after halftime and were further slowed by its star player, Douglas-Roberts, getting into foul trouble.
Jeremy Hunt led the Tigers with 26 points, 17 in the first half. Douglas-Roberts scored 14, Willie Kemp had 12 and Antonio Anderson got 10 points and a suture over his right eyebrow after catching an elbow from teammate Robert Dozier in the first half.
Dorsey, who said Friday he was Goliath and Oden was "the little man," had four rebounds and no points in 19 minutes. He also drew four fouls.
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