Meechie Johnson Jr. early-enrolled at the semester break at Ohio State last year so that he could get his feet underneath him and get in the rhythm of college basketball. While the freshman guard played some minutes during last year's Big Ten runner-up run, he's still been looking for a moment to truly announce his presence to Buckeye fans.
Monday night, Johnson delivered his first signature moment in the Scarlet and Gray.
After the Buckeyes had coughed up an 11-point lead in the second half, they led the Pirates 76-74. With less than a minute to play, E.J. Liddell missed a 3-ball, but tracked down his own rebound. Unfortunately, Liddell then threw the ball away and Seton Hall's Jamir Harris took the fast break steal and turned it into a game tying layup.
With the game knotted at 76-76, Chris Holtmann didn't call a timeout and let the Buckeyes try to win the game. That's when Meechie stepped up.
Johnson buried a 3-ball from the top of the arc to win the game with 2.3 seconds left. Ohio State survived an awkward, low-percentage triple-try from Seton Hall before the buzzer and the Buckeyes prevailed.
When asked after the game why he didn't call a timeout with the game on the line, Chris Holtmann told FOX Sports, "we had in our mind the play we wanted to run. We actually didn't get into it quickly enough, but we talked about it at the last timeout ... Meechie made a heck of a play, he's a gutsy kid man ... I didn't want to let them set their defense." He also referenced the situation at the end of the Michigan-Seton Hall game and how that factored into his team's decision to try and go win the game.
"Players make plays man, go let them play," Holtmann said.
Meechie Johnson delivered in a way that Buckeye fans won't soon forget.
Ohio State will play either Cal or Florida in the championship game of this short holiday tournament in Fort Myers on Wednesday.
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