COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -Kosta Koufos scored 21 points including nine in a 16-0 first-half run, to lead Ohio State past Presbyterian 87-43 on Saturday.
Jamar Butler had 16 points and eight assists and Othello Hunter added 13 points for Ohio State (6-3), which shot 71 percent from the field after making just 36 percent of its shots over its last three games.
Pat Kiscaden scored 18 points - all on 3-pointers - for the Blue Hose (1-11), a Division II team in the first of a four-year transition to NCAA Division I status.
The Blue Hose have won their last eight home games, but have played only once at their arena in Clinton, S.C., so far and play 25 of their 30 games this season on the road. The game at Ohio State's Value City Arena - played before a sparse crowd because of a heavy snowstorm that hit an hour before the opening tip - was their third stop in a season-long 11-game road trip.
In 20 minutes, Koufos hit all but one of his nine shots from the field, his only 3-point attempt, four of five free throws and had three rebounds.
Koufos, a 7-foot freshman, had been benched for the final 13 minutes of in a 47-39 win over Coppin State on Monday night because he did not have a rebound despite a five-inch height advantage on the tallest opponent.
Just like in that game, the Buckeyes got off to an extremely slow start before awakening against the Blue Hose.
This time Presbyterian, which trailed 11-5 at one point, reeled off nine points in a row to go ahead 14-11 on Kiscaden's 3-pointer from the left corner at the 11:23 mark.
Not long after that, Ohio State came out of a timeout and took over the game.
Over the next 6 minutes, the Buckeyes went on a 16-0 tear while the Blue Hose missed seven shots in a row and Ohio State scored on seven consecutive possessions.
Koufos started and ended the streak with baskets, with point guard P.J. Hill adding a 3-pointer and Butler and Othello Hunter each adding buckets.
Outrebounded 8-4 at the start of that span, the Buckeyes started limiting the Blue Hose to one shot and grabbed eight of the next 10 rebounds. The Buckeyes would finish with a 31-14 edge on the boards.
The Buckeyes led 40-20 at halftime, with Koufos scoring the final five points, including a 3-pointer from the right wing at the buzzer.
Picking up points off its press, Ohio State then scored the first 12 points of the second half.
Presbyterian's only scoring over a span of almost 16 1/2 minutes was three 3-pointers by Kiscaden.
