Canada
This article was added by the user . TheWorldNews is not responsible for the content of the platform.

Strong second half fuels No. 25 Ohio State past St. Francis (Pa.)

Brice Sensabaugh scored 15 points off the bench and No. 25 Ohio State used a dominant second half to post a 96-59 victory over visiting St. Francis (Pa.) on Saturday in Columbus, Ohio.

Bruce Thornton scored 13 points, Roddy Gayle Jr. chipped in 12, Zed Key added 11 and Sean McNeil and Felix Okpara each had 10 points for the Buckeyes (6-2), who outscored the Red Flash 52-23 over the final 20 minutes.

Sign up to receive the daily top stories from the National Post, a division of Postmedia Network Inc.

By clicking on the sign up button you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. You may unsubscribe any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link at the bottom of our emails. Postmedia Network Inc. | 365 Bloor Street East, Toronto, Ontario, M4W 3L4 | 416-383-2300

Josh Cohen had 18 points for the Red Flash (2-7), who have lost three straight games. Cam Gregory scored 15 points and Maxwell Land added 14.

Ohio State led 44-36 at halftime. The Red Flash scored the first two points of the second half but that was as close as it would get.

McNeil made two buckets and Thornton drained a 3-pointer to push the Buckeyes’ advantage to 13 points.

The lead expanded to 73-47 with a 14-0 run over a 4:18 stretch. Landon Moore ended the skid with two free throws at the 8:40 mark.

The Buckeyes had excuses for a sluggish start of the game. They went 2-1 in the Maui Invitational with a win over ranked Texas Tech then lost 81-72 at No. 17 Duke on Wednesday. Throw in a noon start local time against St. Francis and it would have been easy for them to sleepwalk through the first half.

Instead, Ohio State went on an 8-0 run to take a 27-11 lead on a pair of free throws by Tanner Holden just eight minutes into the game.

But St. Francis chipped away at the deficit and pulled to within 38-31 on a Cohen jumper as part of his 12-point first half. Land also had 12 points by the break as the Red Flash shot 55.2 percent from the floor while the Buckeyes made 51.6 percent.

It was no surprise that Cohen and Land, a Cincinnati native, would lead the way. Cohen entered averaging 20.4 points and Land 13.0.

— Field Level Media

Check out our sports section for the latest news and analysis. Care for a wager? Head to our sports betting section for news and odds.