December 30 is here, which, for the fourth time, means West Virginia will be taking on the Ohio State Buckeyes in men’s basketball.
After Saturday’s game, West Virginia and Ohio State will have played over a fifth of their all-time matchups on this date. While Ohio State leads the full series, WVU won two of the three previous games on Dec. 30.
More importantly for history, the Mountaineers have the opportunity to tie Ohio State at nine wins a piece. The legacy-altering game will be nationally televised from Cleveland’s Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse on FOX at 7 p.m..
Ahead of the matchup, this is the full history of the three eventful December 30 games between West Virginia and Ohio State. The day has seen three great series installments, and this season’s should not be an exception as the new-look Mountaineers take on the 10-2 Buckeyes.
Dec. 30, 1980: Double-overtime game finally hints an end to the Buckeyes’ dominance
The first eight games of the series matchup, which started in 1940, went in favor of the Buckeyes. This 1980 brawl in Columbus was the last of that run.
While Ohio State did come on top in the double-overtime game, WVU showed the fight that allowed its first win the next season and its own double-overtime win in 1982.
A junior Mark Kellogg and senior Herb Williams combined for 40 points on 15/27 shooting to lead Ohio State to the 70-67 victory. Williams also managed 11 rebounds, a block, and a steal in the game while Kellogg grabbed six boards and blocked two shots. Each played over 40 minutes across the four periods and two overtimes.
Coach Gale Catlett of WVU matched Ohio State with three guys playing over 40 minutes, but Catlett pushed the limits of this a bit more. Senior Greg Nance, sophomore Russell Todd, and WVU hall of famer and then-sophomore Greg Jones played 48, 49, and 50 minutes respectively. Each player scored in double digits, with Nance going for a double-double of 13 points and 12 rebounds. Overall, though, no one star led West Virginia in the game, as 6’2″ sophomore Diego McCoy led the team in scoring with 15 points in 32 minutes off the bench.
Though scoring was available from all across the floor, as five players scored in double-digits, one thing not available the whole game was starting center Phil Collins, who fouled out after scoring 12 points in 22 minutes. Nevertheless, West Virginia’s winning half of the game was actually the second, where they scored 28 points to tie the game at 61. Each team scored one point in the first overtime before OSU secured the three-point victory in the second overtime period.
West Virginia fell to 5-3 with the loss on its way to a 23-10 season including an NIT semifinals appearance. The Buckeyes improved to 4-3 and went on to finish 14-13 for the regular season.
Dec. 30, 1993 and Dec. 30, 1994: Back-to-back victories end WVU’s series hot streak
West Virginia countered OSU’s eight straight wins with five of its own between 1981 and 1994. The streak featured a double-overtime win in Columbus and closed with back-to-back Dec. 30 victories.
In 1993, the Mountaineers were concerned about a different win streak, as the victory gave WVU its sixth straight win of what became a nine-game winning streak. WVU entered St. John Arena with a purpose and made it clear that the win streak was not ending any time soon. The Mountaineers exploded for a 49-35 advantage at the end of the first half, giving leeway for Ohio State to gain a nine-point scoring advantage in the second period.
Seniors Marsalis Basey and P.G. Greene led the charge for the 87-82 win, scoring 24 and 26 points respectively. Basey, a 5’8″ guard, passed five assists and shot 4/6 from outside and 9/18 from the field in 40 minutes. Greene played 31 minutes and made his biggest impact defensively, going for five steals, two blocks, and six total rebounds. The 6’8″ forward shot 14/14 from the free throw line to propel WVU to the win. Greg Simpson led the Buckeyes and all players in scoring with 29 points, six assists, and five rebounds in 33 minutes. He shot 11/15 from the field and 4/7 from three.
The next season, Gale Catlett and West Virginia significantly declined, finishing 13-13 on the year after the previous 17-12 finish. Ohio State declined even more significantly, though, dropping from 13-16 to 6-22.
The Mountaineers exposed the skill gap between themselves and the Buckeyes early once again, posting a 42-25 halftime score. The early success allowed West Virginia to play just one player more than 30 total minutes. As the team rested in the second half, therefore, Ohio State managed a high-scoring second half that brought the WVU margin of victory to just 10 points at 79-69.
WVU was a very different team in 1994-1995 than it had been the previous season, as its entire core of seniors graduated. Transfer Zain Shaw did stick around for his senior year after averaging 23 minutes per game in his first season. Shaw increased his scoring production to 14.8 points per game in the 1995 season, and the win over Ohio State contributed to that average. The 6’6″ forward finished with 25 points, 14 rebounds, five assists, two steals, and a block in 29 minutes on 10/18 shooting. He did not score any of West Virginia’s four made three-pointers in the game.
Ohio State chose similar shots in the game, relying primarily on center Antonio Watson, who shot 8/13 for 23 points and also tallied seven rebounds, two blocks, and two steals. Despite his play and two other double-digit scorers, Ohio State could not get the job done against the stronger Mountaineers, giving WVU its fifth win in a row.
Dec. 29, 2019: WVU stuns Buckeyes at Rocket Mortgage
In addition to being the newest edition to the Dec. 30 matchups, Saturday’s game has historical precedent based on the neutral site.
In 2019, WVU and Ohio State traveled to Cleveland as well to play each other for the first time in a decade. The second ranked team in the nation, Ohio State was expected to take down the Mountaineers for their second loss of the season, but shocking production from Miles McBride off the bench pushed a double-digit upset.
The Knicks point guard was a freshman and Ohio State Football fan when he scored 21 points in 25 minutes in Cleveland. The Ohio native did not fill the stat sheet outside of his 6/12 (3/4 3PT) shooting day, but he gave West Virginia reliable scoring to make up for the lack of production from starters. McBride and senior guard Chase Harler (10 points in 24 minutes) were the only double-digit scorers for West Virginia.
This was not the case for the Buckeyes. Four players on the powerhouse team scored in double digits, but, thanks to West Virginia’s signature press and defensive scheme, they did not do so efficiently. Ohio State shot 15/48 from the field despite a respectable 8/24 clip from outside. The Mountaineers also forced 22 turnovers from the Buckeyes, five more than they gave up themselves. With the defense in line and McBride leading the offensive charge, WVU took no issue in coming back from the 37-31 deficit at halftime. The Mountaineers held the Buckeyes to 22 points in the second half for the 67-59 victory.
Dec. 27, 2008: Alex Ruoff leads team in scoring for sixth series win
Going back in time for the final key connection in this historic matchup, 2008 featured current assistant coach Alex Ruoff. Not only did it feature Ruoff, but he was the star of the show in the 76-48 blowout victory.
A senior, Ruoff’s Ohio State victory came in the second season of new coach Bob Huggins. The first year with Huggins brought plenty of success, as the team finished ranked No. 17, but in the second year the Mountaineers found themselves unranked with two losses before playing the Buckeyes.
The nationally televised game on CBS was the Mountaineers’ plea for that ranked status, as, led by Ruoff’s 17 points and zero turnovers, the Mountaineers dominated Ohio State 76-48.
WVU led 35-28 at halftime before taking off for a 41-20 advantage in the second half. No OSU player scored more than 11 points, something three West Virginia starters outdid.
The biggest factor in the 2008 win, just like the Rocket Mortgage victory, was the disparity in efficiency. West Virginia forced a 18/58 finish from the field and 2/18 shooting from three from the Buckeyes, all while the Mountaineers shot 31/65 despite 4/20 three-point shooting.
As Ruoff and the team gear up for Saturday night’s matchup, he will be doing everything he can to let the new-look Mountaineers repeat his personal history.
Photo by Wesley Shoemaker, Blue Gold Sports
