Ohio State’s 89-88 double OT win over WVU and John Cena’s last match were oddly similar

Saturday night presented multiple viewing options for a certain subset of Ohio State fans that felt oddly similar. Not only did the Buckeyes’ men’s basketball team take on West Virginia in the Cleveland Hoops Showdown at the Gund ArenaQuicken Loans Arena Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, but at the same time, over on NBCUniversal’s streaming service Peacock, the final match of the legendary pro wrestling career of John Cena headlined “Saturday Night’s Main Event,” and I, of course, watched both.

For a large majority of the night, Jake Diebler’s squad looked lethargic and out of sorts, but was able to put things in place down the stretch and come back from 16 points down to force not one, but two overtime periods, ultimately beating to the Mountaineers 89-88 in double overtime.

Over the first three-quarters of the game, the Buckeyes just could not find their stroke from the field, at one point shooting as poorly as 33.3% from the field and 14.3% from three-point range. OSU’s prospects weren’t helped by the fact that the team’s star and leader, Bruce Thornton, had a rough first 30 minutes of action. With 11:49 remaining in regulation, the Buckeye star had only 2 points on 1-of-8 shooting and 0-of-3 from distance. But that changed down the stretch, and Thornton finished with 21 as OSU’s leading scorer.

While I don’t watch wrestling as much as I did as a teenager, I wasn’t going to miss this historic event, and I’m glad I did, because watching events unfold in the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. provided a fascinating complement to the Buckeyes’ comeback attempt. Both events featured impressive performances from younger stars and unbelievable finishes that seemed impossible at one point.

For the Buckeyes, freshman Amare Bynum and sophomore John Mobley Jr. kept the team in the game while Thornton struggled early. As noted on the telecast throughout the game, Bynum provided an energy that helped keep the game from getting out of hand early and then aided in the Buckeyes’ comeback effort.

Bynum and Mobley finished with 17 apiece. Combined with first-year Buckeye Christoph Tilley’s 14, OSU was able to count on some of the lesser-known supporting stars while Thornton was able to work through his shooting woes.

On the wrestling front, the undercard was comprised of three matches that featured established WWE talent taking on up-and-coming stars from the promotion’s developmental territory, NXT, and the independent promotion TNA. Cena — who holds the record for the most Make-a-Wish fulfillments in the history of that charitable organization— has always been known for supporting and uplifting younger talent, so it was fitting that his final card featured the next generation of superstars.

In the opening match, WWE Undisputed Champion Cody Rhodes took on NXT Champion Oba Femi. The latter is a 27-year-old former SEC shot put champion originally from Lagos, Nigeria. Though the match was ultimately ended prematurely due to outside interference from an always-bitter Drew McIntyre, Femi showed his speed and power by not only holding his own against The American Nightmare but more often than not dominating the match. The energy and excitement that Femi brought to this match was similar to how Bynum stepped up for Diebler’s squad in Cleveland.

At the same time, over on ESPNU, the Buckeyes were still running neck and neck with the ‘Neers, but it was a sloppy first 10 minutes of action for OSU. Halfway through the first period, the score was tied at 16 apiece, but OSU had already turned the ball over five times and it was clear that the team’s shooting was not where they wanted it to be. Fifth-year senior forward Brandon Noel opened the game 1-for-4 and 0-for-2 from behind the arc in six minutes of action, which led to Diebler calling on Bynum.

Similarly to how the evening’s first WWE match went, the second bout featured WWE’s first-ever Women’s Grand Slam Champion, Bayley, taking on NXT’s high-flyer Sol Ruca. The 26-year-old former University of Oregon gymnast put her agility on full display against Bayley, hitting a hand-stand hurricanrana, a backflip over the top rope, and her impressive Sol Snatcher finisher — a front-flipping aerial cutter — to get the win over the future Hall of Famer.

While that match was going on, WVU spent the next five minutes of action building up a 28-19 lead thanks to a 10-2 run that was finally snapped when Devin Royal got a put-back with 4:28 left in the first half; the OSU junior was fouled, but could not complete the old-fashioned three-point play.

West Virginia got back to their then-largest lead of the half at 32-23 with 2:33 left before intermission. However, a well-played, mid-lane bucket from Lilly cut the WVU lead to 7. From there, the ‘Neers turned the ball over and got cold from the field, but OSU’s consistently inconsistent play. In the last 9 minutes of first-half action, OSU picked up only 13 points, allowing WVU to turn a 3-point Buckeye lead into a 10-point OSU deficit.

The Mountaineers were able to keep the Buckeyes at bay, despite the fact that they didn’t hit a bucket (they did convert on six free throws) for 6:47 seconds until Chance Moore buried a corner-three with just seconds left to give West Virginia a 37-27 halftime lead.

In the first half, two OSU starters — Royal and Mobley — both picked up a pair of fouls, meaning that Diebler had to go a bit deeper in the bench. Eight of the nine Buckeyes who saw the court in the first half got into the scoring column, led by Mobley Jr.’s 8 points on two 3-pointers and a pair of free throws. Only Christoph Tilley (4 points on 1-for-5 shooting) and Royal (4 points on 1-for-3 from the field) had more than one bucket.

It was a particularly tough half for Buckeye leader Bruce Thornton had only 2 points on 1-for-6 shooting in his 19 minutes of action. In total, Ohio State shot just 31% (9-for-29) from the field and 2-for-12 (16.7%) from distance.

During the final minutes of the first half and into halftime, the WWE World Tag Team Champions A.J. Styles and Dragon Lee faced off against a pair of 21-year-olds, NXT’s Je’Von Evans and TNA’s Leon Slater. The match was filled with impressive spots, but “The Phenominal One” A.J. Styles botched a top-rope moment, but was still able to bring the match home a few seconds later.

To open the second half, WVU got a highlight-reel alley-oop from Brenen Lorient to give the Mountaineers their first 12-point lead of the game. The Buckeyes continued to have opportunities to get back in the game, but missed a number of point-blank looks at the net.

Ohio State’s continued inability to capitalize eventually led to a 16-point hole. At 14:39 left in regulation, WVU hit back-to-back triples to cap an 8-0 run as the pre-match festivities happened for the main event, featuring “The Ring General” Gunther and the Greatest of All-Time, John Cena. As nearly everyone in the WWE locker room, wrestling legends, and celebrities bid farewell to the Never Seen 17 icon, Ohio State was mounting a bit of a comeback.

Bynum got a rim-rattling dun,k and WVU missed a pair of free throws, and you could feel the momentum shifting. On the ensuing trip, Thornton got a smooth bucket to cut the lead to 55-48. Then, Tilley went up for a bunny that was blocked by WVU, but the refs called a goaltend and a foul. West Virginia’s coach Ross Hodge unsuccessfully challenged the goaltend, meaning that following the Tilley missed free throw, OSU was down just 55-50 thanks to a 15-4 run.

Feeling the momentum shift, Thornton wratcheted up the defense forcing a turnover, and then on the other side of the coutry, Royal got his own rebound and put the ball back into the bucket, and then it was suddenly a one-possession game 55-52. On the following possession, Thornton took a three-pointer and was clearly fouled, but did not get the call.

Then, during the under-8 timeout, Diebler was whistled for a technical foul for arguing the blatant no-call. Combined with a common foul, WVU went up 58-52.

Back on Peacock, Gunther took control of the match early, trying to make good on his promise to make Cena tap out for the first time in his career. However, (timed perfectly with the timeout) Cena put Gunther through the announce table with a Super Attitude Adjustment, absolutely obliterating Michael Cole and Wade Barrett’s broadcast position.

As the basketball game got to the under-4 timeout, WVU led 63-59. At the same time, Gunther was withstanding multiple AAs and the crowd routinely chanting “F**k you, Gunther.” Surely, there was no way that John Cena was going to end his Mount Rushmore career with anything other than a victory, right?

Wrong. After locking in a sleeper hold on Cena, the referee dropped Cena’s arm twice before the Peacemaker rallied before the third fall. But the brutal elbows of Gunther took away what little reserves the former champ had, and Cena tapped, ending a 20+-year career in front of a shocked (and honestly angry) crowd. But as the WWE locker room emptied to recognize Cena, a Royal jumper cut the deficit to 63-61.

However, it was short-lived as on the ensuing possession, WVU’s Honor Huff hit a triple. However, Thornton was determined to make his presence known down the stretch, despite his rocky night. Despite missing the and-one, a Thornton layup got the score to 66-63. Then, a great defensive effort forced their fourth turnover in a six-minute span, leading to a pair of Mobley free throws that made it a 1-point game with 1:48 left in regulation.

Then, with under a minute remaining, Mobley hit an absolutely sick, buzzer-beating three-pointer to give OSU its first lead since it was 17-14. However, West Virginia’s Jasper Floyd quickly tied the game at 68. Diebler then called a timeout with 24 seconds remaining. Inexplicably, Mobley took a rushed, contested 3-point attempt that was left wanting. That turned into a WVU fastbreak, but Mobley got back on defense and drew an offensive foul on Floyd. Thornton was able to get off a last-second heave, but it hit the back of the iron, taking the game to overtime.

The game was back-and-forth in the extra five minutes, but after OSU went up 76-74 on a Bynum jumper, Huff hit a cold-blooded three-pointer to go up 77-76. Then, after a royal turnover, the Mountaineers had the opportunity to put the game away, but Huff stepped out of bounds under the basket, giving the ball back to the Buckeyes with 28 seconds remaining.

Rather than looking to play for a final shot, Royal attacked the rim and was fouled, splitting his free throws to tie the game at 77. Following the rebound, West Virginia called a timeout with 15.4 seconds remaining, setting up one last shot in overtime.

Huff had all 9 WVU points in overtime, but a last-second miss on a circus layup sent the game to a second overtime period.

With 3:45 in the second period of bonus basketball, Royal picked up his fifth foul, sending him to the bench for the duration. From there, teams traded baskets until OSU got a dunk from Tilley (thanks to a great drive and dish from Mobley) and a mid-lane floater from Thornton to go up 85-83 with 52 seconds remaining.

But after a WVU timeout, Huff took the double-team and found Lorient at the top of the key to hit a three-pointer to put the Mountaineers back on top 86-85. From there, Thornton drew a foul, hitting both free throws to give the Scarlet and Gray the lead once again. But, as you would expect from a heavyweight gith, Huff hit an absolutely insane turnaround, fadeaway jumper from the corner over Thornton to put WVU up 88-87 with 12.3 remaining.

As the referees reviewed whether Huff’s bucket was a two or three (the call on the court of a two was confirmed), Diebler drew it up for Thornton to take the ball up the floor. The senior got into the lane, where he was nearly unstoppable in overtime, and he hit the bucket while being bodied to put the Buckeyes back up 89-88.

After a timeout, WVU inbounded the ball, but no Mountaineer could corral it, and Ohio State was able to complete the comeback that felt unfathomable midway through the second half.