Battle’s free-throw effort leads Buckeyes past Virginia Tech
Adam Jardy
COLUMBUS — There’s no convoluted routine for Jamison Battle when he steps to the free-throw line and no mantra that needs repeated.
All it takes is a deep breath. That, and the confidence born out of countless hours perfecting his left-handed shooting stroke with all eyes in the gym focused on him.
“I just always take a deep breath,” he said. “That’s really it. I go through my same free-throw routine and it’s natural. Nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing too crazy.”
The only thing that was crazy Saturday night was the frequency with which he was getting there. Battle scored a game-high 21 points despite going 2 for 8 from the field and missing all five 3-point attempts because he drew nine fouls, went 17 for 18 from the freethrow line and led Ohio State past Virginia Tech 81-71 in the second round of the NIT at Value City Arena.
A game featuring 44 fouls, 25 of which were called on the visiting Hokies, featured a parade to the charity stripe for the majority of the second half. It made for choppy viewing, a game short on flow and long on whistles.
That was fine for the Buckeyes, who got solid efforts at the line from everyone who went there but none more important than Battle’s.
“You feel like the ball’s going in every time he’s there,” coach Jake Diebler said. “It helps. We designed some press break to get the ball into his hands so he can get to the free-throw line. He played with great force the last 5-6 minutes of the game when we struggled to make some shots. He was able to get in there and put a ton of pressure on their defense.”
In doing so, Battle became the first Buckeye to score 20 or more points while only making two field goals in more than 13 years. On March 11, 2011, Jared Sullinger was 2 for 12 from the floor but went 16 for 18 from the free-throw line to finish with 20 points (and 18 rebounds) in a 67-61 win against Northwestern in the Big Ten Tournament.
Battle scored 16 of Ohio State’s final 33 points and they came exclusively from the free-throw line. He did not miss. After he went 1 for 2 during the first half, Battle was fouled with 12:56 left and Ohio State ahead 48-38. He hit the two free throws and his next two with 11:25 left to make it 52-40.
Then he was fouled with 8:05 left, pushing the lead to 61-55, and with 7:44 left, pushing it to 63-56. Hunter Cattoor fouled him at 5:01 and Ohio State pushed the lead to 67-61, Cattoor fouled on an offensive rebound with 3:35 left and Battle made the lead 69-64 and he made two with 27.6 seconds left and two more with 19.0 left to close out the win as the Hokies fouled to stop the clock.
Battle set new career highs for both free-throws attempted and made. His previous highs came Feb. 29, 2024, when he was 10 for 10 from the line in a 78-69 win against Nebraska. It was his second 10-for-10 outing of the year.
“It’s just repetition,” he said. “That’s things you work on and there’s a confidence that I had in myself because of all the reps that I’ve put in. You’ve got to stay focused and locked in because in the end you’ve got to make free throws. That ultimately was what helped us today.”
Ohio State shot 29 for 32 (90.6%) from the line. Virginia Tech was 16 for 20 (80.0%). Battle alone made more free throws than all the Hokies combined, and he said it atoned for his 2-for-5 effort in Tuesday night’s 88-83 win against Cornell.
Entering the game against the Big Red, Battle had missed three free-throws all season. Now, he’s at 92.7% (88 for 95) this season. Battle is five free throws shy of 100 for the season, the cutoff for inclusion on the program’s single-season freethrow shooting percentage list. Jody Finney sits atop that after shooting 90.0% (99 for 110) in 1968-69.
Battle attempted 49 free throws in the first 28 games of the season. He has taken 46 in the last seven.
“When teams put smaller guys on him, he’s able to get in the paint and shoot over them and make them foul,” Diebler said.
“Then when they put bigger guys on him, he’s able to get loose that way too. He’s a matchup problem for teams and we’ve been able to take advantage of it.”