Ohio State Fans Storm The Court After Beating Purdue, And They Had Every Right To Do So

Finally, we have a court-storming situation in college basketball that makes sense.

No. 2 Purdue and pitiful Ohio State matched up in Columbus today, and everyone thought the Boilermakers would win. They were favored by 8.5 points heading into the game, and given how the past week has gone for the Buckeyes, I’m surprised that line wasn’t bigger.

Jake Diebler was emotional after watching his team beat Purdue in his first game as interim head coach. (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images)

In a shock move, Ohio State fired head coach Chris Holtman after seven years at the helm. He had a sterling reputation in Columbus and nationally, but was fired after back-to-back disappointing seasons.

As such, Jake Diebler stepped in as interim head coach. His reward? Finding a way to knock off the second-ranked team in the country with a team that sat 14-11 heading into today. What could possibly go wrong?

Actually, now that you mention it, everything went right.

Against all odds, the Buckeyes rode 22 points from Bruce Thornton to defeat Purdue 73-9 in front of a packed house. And of course, the fans rushed the court as soon as the final buzzer sounded.

Of course, there have been countless situations where fans have abused this privilege in instances that don’t make sense. But for once, court-storming was absolutely appropriate in this situation.

The subpar state of the season and the tumultuous events leading up to this game could have easily forced the players to mentally check out of this game. Their record is barely above average, they just lost their head coach, and had to find a way to stay motivated against the second-best team in America.

Somehow, the team put all of that aside to earn a signature win. Fans were unequivocally within their right to storm the court for this momentous occasion.

I would say I’m happy for the Buckeyes, but I can’t. The best I can do is not obnoxiously yell "Go Blue." Even Ohio State deserves to have their moments of joy untainted by a rival.