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Athletics Good Stuff
Nov. 21 - Nov. 27

Nov. 29, 2011

Athletes of the Week

Ohio State freshman quarterback Braxton Miller has earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors, the conference office announced Nov. 28. The Huber Heights, Ohio, native posted career highs in total offense (335 yards), completions (14) and passing yards (235) in a 40-34 loss at Michigan Nov. 26. Miller ran for 100 yards with a touchdown on 16 carries while completing 14 of 25 passes for 235 yards and two touchdowns.

Senior assistant captain Natalie Spooner led the women's hockey Buckeyes with four points on four goals vs. eighth-ranked Minnesota Duluth in the series split. The Scarborough, Ontario, product scored all four goals in Ohio State's win Nov. 25, marking the second time this season she has scored four goals in a game. The hat trick is the fifth of her career and the four-goal performance was the third of her career.

No. 3/3 Men's Basketball (6-0, 0-0 Big Ten)
Head coach: Thad Matta

William Buford scored 23 points and Jared Sullinger added 17 points and 12 rebounds to lead No. 3 Ohio State past VMI 107-74 Nov. 23. Aaron Craft had 13 points and eight assists, Deshaun Thomas 11 points and J.D. Weatherspoon 10 points for the Buckeyes, who shot 68 percent from the field.

Buford scored 17 of his 25 points in the second half and No. 3 Ohio State routed Valparaiso 80-47 Nov. 25. Craft added 15 points and eight assists for the Buckeyes, who tuned up for a big home showdown against No. 6 Duke Nov. 29. Sullinger had 14 points and 13 rebounds and Thomas chipped in with 12 points.

No. 18 Women's Basketball (5-0, 0-0 Big Ten)
Head coach: Jim Foster

Tayler Hill scored 18 points, hitting three 3-pointers, and No. 18 Ohio State beat Howard 73-50 Nov. 22 to improve to 3-0 on the season.

Samantha Prahalis had 25 points and 11 assists in only 28 minutes to lead No. 18 Ohio State to an 84-37 rout of Stony Brook Nov. 25. Prahalis equaled her season scoring average of 15 in the first half, despite sitting the final 5 minutes, and the Buckeyes forced Stony Brook into missing 24 of its first 26 shots.

Prahalis scored 28 points and flirted with a triple-double and Hill added 23 including a critical high-bouncing 3-pointer, to lead No. 18 Ohio State past No. 20 LSU 77-68 Nov. 27. Prahalis had eight points and an assist in a 12-4 second-half run that gave the Buckeyes (5-0) the lead for good.

Football (6-6, 3-5 Big Ten)
Head coach: Luke Fickell

Ohio State's late comeback attempt fell short as the Buckeyes dropped a 40-34 decision to No. 15 Michigan in front of 114,132 fans at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor Nov. 26. Braxton Miller threw for a career-high 235 yards, ran for 100 and accounted for three touchdowns.

Ohio State Athletics Director Gene Smith announced Nov. 28 that he has named alumnus Urban Meyer head coach of the University's football program. Meyer, who has the all-time 10th-highest winning percentage among head coaches, returns to the institution from which he earned his master's degree and where he began his collegiate coaching career.

Women's Ice Hockey (8-5-1, 6-5-1-1 WCHA)
Head coach: Nate Handrahan

Senior forward Natalie Spooner led Ohio State by scoring all four goals in the 4-1 win over No. 8 Minnesota Duluth Nov. 25 at the OSU Ice Rink. The four-goal performance is the second of the season for Spooner and the third of her career.

Ohio State fell 6-2 to eighth-ranked Minnesota Duluth Nov. 26 at the OSU Ice Rink. Junior forward Hokey Langan and sophomore Ally Tarr notched scores for the Buckeyes in the loss.

Women's Volleyball (19-14, 9-11 Big Ten)
Head coach: Geoff Carlston

Ohio State, for the third consecutive season, has received an at-large bid to the NCAA Division I Volleyball Championship and begins play at 4:30 p.m. EST Dec. 1 against Middle Tennessee State (21-11) at Thompson-Boling Arena on the campus of the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.

Ohio State battled No. 9 Penn State, falling 3-1 (23-25, 25-22, 25-23, 25-13) Nov. 23 in front of 3,235 fans.

Ohio State closed out the regular season with a 3-1 (25-20, 25-22, 16-25, 25-20) road victory at 22nd-ranked Michigan in front of 2,286 fans in Crisler Arena.

Ohio State Athletics Schedule
Nov. 28-Dec. 11

Nov. 29
Men's Basketball vs. Duke, 9:30 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio, Value City Arena

Nov. 30
Women's Basketball vs. Florida State, 8:30 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio, Value City Arena

Dec. 2
Men's Ice Hockey vs. Lake Superior State, 7:05 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio , Value City Arena

Women's Ice Hockey vs. Niagara, 7:07 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio, OSU Ice Rink

Women's Swimming, Ohio State Invite, All Day
Columbus, Ohio, McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion

Wrestling, Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, All Day
Las Vegas, Nev.

Men's Swimming, Ohio State Invite, All Day
Columbus, Ohio, McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion

Dec. 3
Men's Basketball vs. Texas-Pan American, noon
Columbus, Ohio , Value City Arena

Women's Ice Hockey vs. Niagara, 2:07 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio, OSU Ice Rink

Men's Ice Hockey vs. Lake Superior State, 8:05 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio, Value City Arena

Wrestling, Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, All Day
Las Vegas, Nev.

Football, Big Ten Championship, TBA
Indianapolis, Ind.

Women's Swimming, Ohio State Invite, All Day
Columbus, Ohio, McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion

Men's Swimming, Ohio State Invite, All Day
Columbus, Ohio

Dec. 4
Women's Basketball vs. Oklahoma, 3 p.m.
Norman, Okla.

Women's Swimming, Ohio State Invite, All Day
Columbus, Ohio, McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion

Men's Swimming, Ohio State Invite, All Day
Columbus, Ohio, McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion

Dec. 9
Wrestling vs. Pittsburgh, 7 p.m.
Pittsburgh, Pa.

Men's Ice Hockey vs. Miami (OH), 7:05 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio, Value City Arena

Men's Track at Kent State Early Bird, All Day
Kent, Ohio

Dec. 10
Women's Basketball vs. Canisius, 12 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio, Value City Arena

Women's Ice Hockey vs. Minnesota, 3:07 p.m.
Minneapolis, Minn.

Men's Basketball vs. Kansas, 3:15 p.m.
Lawrence, Kan.

Men's Ice Hockey vs. Miami (OH), 7:05 p.m.
Oxford, Ohio

Men's Track, Kent State Early Bird, All Day
Kent, Ohio

Dec. 11
Wrestling vs. Kent State, 1 p.m.
Kent, Ohio

Women's Ice Hockey, 3:07 p.m.
Minneapolis, Minn.