Centre Daily Times | 01/26/2005 | PSU’s ‘bull’ will key effort vs. Ohio State:
“If you were hard-pressed to describe Penn State forward Aaron Johnson on the low block, ‘bull in a china shop’ would be more appropriate than ‘Baryshnikov.’
“The 6-foot-9, 240-pound junior spins, pivots, spins and bumps until the ball is in the basket or the goggles are off his head.
“Because Johnson’s teammates have often struggled from the perimeter this season, Big Ten opponents have taken to swarming around the Penn State big man, cutting down on much of the chaos. They’ve been hesitant to do the same with the big man the Nittany Lions will face tonight in Columbus, Ohio.
“Junior Terence Dials is having a terrific season inside for the Ohio State (12-7, 1-4 Big Ten), but the Buckeyes, which entertain Penn State (7-11, 1-4) at 8 p.m. at Value City Arena, have a healthy array of weapons from the outside as well.
“Ohio State is the Big Ten’s best 3-point shooting team, hitting nearly 40 percent from long range. Four different Buckeyes are shooting better than 43 percent, while senior guard Tony Stockman has hit 51 threes, second in the conference only to Illinois’ Luther Head (59)….”