Written by David Regimbal

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The Big Ten tournament provided Ohio State fans with one of the most memorable weekends ever. From jaw-dropping buzzer beaters to nail-biting overtime sessions, Evan Turner and Co. gave Buckeye Nation plenty to cheer about on their march to a tournament championship. Without further delay, let's look back at each contest and revisit the amazing ride Ohio State took us on.

Quarterfinals: Michigan -- As I said in my tournament preview, the easiest way to beat Michigan is by finding a way to limit their two stars, Manny Harris and DeShawn Sims. Spoiler alert – Ohio State did not limit them. Sims got his work in early, scoring the Wolverines' first eight points and helping his team rush out to a 19-10 lead. The Buckeyes came out a little rusty from the (nine day) layoff, committing five turnovers in the first 10 minutes. After a timeout, Ohio State kicked it into gear and closed out the half on a 25-6 run, leading at intermission 35-25.

Ohio State protected its lead at the beginning of the second half by trading baskets with the Wolverines. That wouldn’t last as a Michigan rally was sparked by two Stu Douglas three pointers. Through the entire second half, it seemed as though the Buckeyes would build a 10 point lead and then let it disappear in a matter of minutes. With five minutes left and Ohio State up by four, Manny Harris took over. Harris hit two three’s in a run that evaporated Ohio State’s lead. With the game-clock winding down and the two teams knotted up at 66, Harris hit a fade-away jumper from 10 feet to put the Wolverines up by two. There was only 2.2 seconds left, and it looked like Ohio State’s Big Ten tournament was over. Then, it happened.

This was the scene – I was at BW3's with my two brothers, and everyone was bummed about the game. With only two seconds on the clock, people were grabbing their coats and heading for the door. That’s when the music cut and I was able to get everyone’s attention. I turned to the bartender and said, “I’m not ready to go home yet. You think you could send this thing into overtime?” A dramatic pause followed and every head in the restaurant turned toward the bartender as he replied, “Overtime? Who needs overtime? Watch this..”

Everyone stood there and watched as the bartender used a special pager to send a message off to parts unknown. We don’t know what he did or how he did it, but seconds later, David Lighty passed the ball into Evan Turner, Turner advanced the ball just past the half court line and heaved up a shot right before the buzzer sounded. Nothing but net.

I can’t tell you what happened next. The place exploded. You know the show Extreme Home Makeover, where someone like a single mother of 19 children gets her house all jazzed up, and then they hide the mother behind the bus and slowly reveal it to her, and she freaks out? Yeah, that was pretty much my reaction. I reacted like a mother of 19 who just had her house remodeled. Evan Turner is my hero.

Semifinals: Illinois -- The best way I can describe this game -- a game of runs (elegant, no?). Ohio State started hot and raced out to an 8-2 lead, and the Illini couldn’t find the bottom of the net. That certainly wouldn’t last as Illinois clamped down on defense and started moving the ball effectively on offense. After Diebler got hit with his second foul (and was forced to the bench), everything went wrong for the Buckeyes. They suffered six scoreless minutes and Illinois used that time to put together a 14-0 run. Buford was able to keep the Buckeyes in the game during the first half, but the Illini outplayed the Bucks in most areas and took a six point lead into halftime.  

Ohio State’s poor play continued into the second half. Evan Turner was struggling with turnovers and the team couldn’t get stops on defense. Illinois kept up their hot shooting and John Diebler had a bazillion three’s (number slightly exaggerated) rim out as the Illini built an 11 point lead half way through the second. Ohio State head coach Thad Matta then initiated the best in-game adjustment of the tournament and put on the full court press against Illinois. The press created turnovers, forced Illinois out of their comfort zone and got Ohio State out on the ‘fast break’. In a span of just over four minutes, the Buckeyes put together a 20-0 run (!) that gave them a nine point lead.

With Ohio State seizing control of the momentum and the clock winding down, I think all of Buckeye Nation relaxed a little bit. Illinois dutifully responded by assembling a 14-3 run. Ohio State had possession of the ball and a one point lead, but John Diebler turned the ball over and Demitri McCamey hit a three point shot on the resulting fast break opportunity. With Illinois leading by two with 31 seconds remaining, this was the scene:

My brothers and I were back at BW3's, and many of the people that witnessed Turner’s heroics the previous day had returned as well. When McCamey put the Illini up two, everyone was bummed, but remembering the situation yesterday, all eyes turned to the bartender. I said, “What do you say? Can we send this thing into overtime?” The bartender then took on the body language of a surgeon who was about to give the family members some bad news, and said “BW3's has this policy where we’re only allowed to change the result of one game per week. Sorry folks.”

Everyone screamed in horror. I mean, the only reason we went back to BW3's on consecutive days in the first place was because we knew they could affect the ending of games. I demanded to see a manager, and during the commercial break, we had a heated debate. I said it wasn’t fair to enforce this kind of policy on the customers without warning them first. By the end of the conversation, I was screaming and flailing my arms in a way that would make Bobby Knight proud, and the manager finally caved. He gave the okay to the bartender, and of course, Evan Turner made a tough layup and forced overtime.

The overtime session featured a lot of Evan Turner, and he began to take over the game. It continued to go back and forth, but the Illini were able to gain a 4 point lead. With everyone losing hope and the manager cowering in the corner, all I had to do was make eye contact with him and raise my hand in the‘if you don’t do it, I’m gonna backhand you so hard your assistant manager will feel it’ gesture. The manager lowered and shook his head, defeated, then told the bartender to send it into double overtime. An Ohio State field goal and two made free throws tied the game and sent it into double overtime. Sometimes, it pays to be aggressive.

Evan Turner continued his great play in second overtime while the Buckeyes shot 73% in the extra sessions. Ohio State’s efficient offense proved to be too much for Illinois, and the Buckeyes prevailed 88-81, one game away from the tournament title.

Conference Championship: Minnesota -- The day started with my brothers and me heading to BW3's for the game, but when we reached the front door, we saw that it was locked and a sign was posted that read: 'This location has been shut down for violating company policy. If you want wings, go to Quaker'. Crazy.

Anyway, the championship game started the same way many of the other conference tournament games had begun -- slowly. At the 13 minute mark in the first half, Ohio State held a commanding lead... 4-3. Evan Turner continued to struggle with turnovers, as did the whole team, in the first half. Minnesota had come into the day playing four games in as many days, and Ohio State was just as tired playing three games in three days. I'd guess that the fatigue factor was a push considering Minnesota goes deep into their bench, while Kyle Madsen is the only OSU player that contributes any significant minutes off the Buckeyes bench.

The offense picked up as the half came to a close, but neither team was able to gain a significant advantage as Ohio State entered intermission with a 33-30 lead.

The second half began with both teams going on small streaks, but neither gaining any separation. It started to become apparent that if either team was able to put together a sizable run, that team would probably be able to get the win. (Ridiculous amount of offense for Ohio State, enter stage right).

It's hard to comprehend exactly what took place in the final 11 minutes of this game. Up to that point, it had been a competitive match-up as the Buckeyes led 44-40. Suddenly, Ohio State was able to completely take over, making 14 of their last 15 shots. It was a stretch where the Buckeyes outscored Minnesota 46-21. Turner, Lighty, Diebler and Buford were all money in the second half as the Buckeyes ran away with the championship.

To put Ohio State's remarkable second half in perspective -- they put up a total of 57 points in the final 20 minutes of this game. If the Buckeyes were playing in the A-10 title game, those 57 points would have been enough to beat their league champion, Temple, who only managed 56 points in 40 minutes. Also, if you think about the last 11 minutes of the second half -- Ohio State put up 46 points on a Minnesota team that held Purdue to 42 points for the entire Semifinal game the day before.

The Buckeye bench celebrated as the clock ran down, and the game ended with a final score of 90-61.

The tournament started with an improbable 37 foot buzzer beater by Evan Turner, and concluded with another Big Ten tournament title for the Ohio State Buckeyes.