Devin Royal posted career highs of 31 points and 15 rebounds as Ohio State pulled away from Valparaiso for a 95-73 victory on Tuesday in Columbus, Ohio.
Royal, a 6-foot-6 sophomore guard from the Columbus suburb of Pickerington, easily topped his previous best of 22 points, set against Rutgers on Dec. 7. He had 12 rebounds against Evansville on Nov. 19.
The Buckeyes (7-4) got a much-needed victory after losing three of their previous four games, including a 91-53 defeat against No. 2 Auburn on Saturday.
Evan Mahaffey scored 15 for Ohio State while Micah Parrish added 14, as did team leading scorer Bruce Thornton (14.9 per game) after he had just three points against Auburn.
Valparaiso (5-5) was led by freshman All Wright. He scored 20 of his 22 points in the second half. Cooper Schwieger and Jefferson De La Cruz Monegro chipped each had 16 for the Beacons, who have lost three of four.
The Buckeyes continue to be short-handed with Meechie Johnson Jr. the latest to be unavailable. The program announced prior to the game that the senior guard is taking a leave of absence for personal reasons with no timetable for his return.
Johnson averages 9.1 points, and he had started every game before Tuesday.
Meanwhile, forward Aaron Bradshaw missed his seventh straight game. He was allowed to return to team activities last week after an investigation into an alleged off-campus incident, but he has not been cleared to play.
Also, guard Ques Glover (ankle) and forward Colin White (ankle) missed their eighth and fifth consecutive games, respectively.
Valparaiso expected the Buckeyes to start strong after the debacle vs. Auburn, but the Beacons led 16-14 until missing 12 consecutive shots to fall behind 26-16 with six minutes left in the half.
It was 38-30 for the Buckeyes when Royal made a layup with 17 seconds left. Parrish then stole the inbounds pass and made the lay-in and subsequent free throw when fouled for a 41-30 halftime lead.
Valparaiso got within eight points early in the second half before Ohio State pulled away with a 7-0 run. The Beacons never were within single digits again.
