Bruce Thornton named to Big Ten All-Tournament Team
Ohio State freshman point guard and captain Bruce Thornton was named to the Big Ten All-Tournament Team Sunday. Thornton averaged 15.5 points, 4.3 assists and only 1.0 turnover per game during the 13th-seeded Buckeyes’ four-game run to the semifinals.
Thornton is joined by Indiana forward Trayce Jackson-Davis, Penn State forward Seth Lundy, Penn State guard Jalen Pickett and, of course, Purdue center Zach Edey — the league’s player of the year and probably the sport’s national player of the year.
To say Thornton finished his first season strong would be an understatement. The 6-foot-2, 215-pound guard averaged 16.4 points per game over the Buckeyes’ final eight games, during which they posted a 5-3 record.
He also recorded 3.0 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game while committing a total of just eight turnovers. In four of those games, though, he didn’t have a single giveaway. That includes Ohio State’s last three games in the Big Ten Tournament.
In other words, Thornton went 103 minutes of playing time without one turnover in the second round, quarterfinals and semifinals — all while running the point for a resurrected Buckeyes team that ranks 10th nationally in adjusted offensive efficiency since Feb. 20, or the start of the aforementioned eight-game window, according to BartTorvik.
Thornton didn’t just take care of the ball. He got to his spots, particularly in the middle of the floor, and shot at an efficient 50% clip in that stretch, including 38.2% from downtown. The Alpharetta, Georgia, native made 13 triples in the final eight games, even knocking down three or more against Penn State and Michigan State in the regular season. Thornton showcased improvement with his catch-and-shoot ability but also remained aggressive driving to the cup.
Thornton closing the season the way he did is especially notable given he admitted he hit the “freshman wall” back in January. Thornton went from averaging 31.7 minutes, 12.6 points, 4.4 assists and 1.8 turnovers per game in December to averaging 27.5 minutes, 5.4 points, 2.1 assists and 1.0 turnover per game during the first month of 2023.
The minutes load on Thornton — the only Buckeyes player to start every game this season — temporarily took its toll, particularly after fellow ball-handling guard Isaac Likekele had to miss a good chunk of December to attend to a “family matter.”
But even when slumping, Thornton stayed steady. And, in due time, he got his legs back, was voted a captain in February and then put the league on notice the rest of the season, culminating in Sunday’s All-Tournament Team honor.
