Ohio State center Ken Johnson was entering Saturday’s game against Northwestern tied with former Penn State big man Calvin Booth for the Big Ten career record for blocked shots — and Hardy and his relatives knew he was in trouble.
“I kind of figured mine was going to be the one that broke the record,” Hardy said sheepishly after NU’s 69-57 loss, despite leading all scorers with 17 points.
And, as predicted, Johnson batted away Hardy’s floater with 12:32 left in the first half to set the conference mark.
Hardy stands only 6-foot-8, yielding 3 inches to the cat-quick Johnson, who is 6-foot-11. And when Hardy got the ball on the right block and hesitated, the shot-blocker extraordinaire had his chance.
Hardy held the ball in the post and decided to spin into the paint, lobbing a shot at the hoop. But Johnson swatted the ball with his right hand, giving him block No. 429 and sole possession of the record.
“Four years ago, I was miles away from this,” said Johnson, who ended up with six blocks and 11 points Saturday. “It was just absolutely overwhelming to go out there and get that Big Ten shot-blocking record.”
And even when Johnson wasn’t blocking shots, he was altering them. The Cats (10-18, 2-13 Big Ten) took more midrange jumpers than usual, largely because of Johnson’s menacing presence in the paint.
The senior center has long arms and is extremely fast for his size, allowing him to reach shots most centers could not affect.
But as Ohio State coach Jim O’Brien was quick to note, he’s not the first to have exceptional physical tools in the Big Ten.
“When you think about the magnitude of his accomplishment,” he said, “in view of all the really good big people who have played in this conference, for him to be the all-time shot-blocker is phenomenal.”
Johnson logged only 22 minutes but was Ohio State’s focal point when he was on the floor. On offense, the Buckeyes’ guards fed him the ball in the post, and NU did its best to avoid the low post when he was playing defense.
Johnson got a break because Dudley played one of his best games of the year, leading Ohio State (19-9, 10-5) with 14 points. Still, the Cats were able to attack the basket when Dudley was in the game, something they rarely tried with Johnson lurking underneath.
The Cats often had five players on the perimeter — Hardy attempted five three-pointers in the game because low-post scoring wasn’t an option.
“It’s really hard for me to score on him just on a low-post move,” said Hardy, who was just 6-for-18 from the floor. “There are a bunch of shots I had that were altered.”
Thankfully for the Cats, they won’t have to face Johnson again, barring a chance meeting in the Big Ten tournament. And one thing is certain: NU won’t miss the All-American candidate one bit.
“He’s a big presence for them,” NU guard Jitim Young said. “He was a monster down low.”
