it." Jennings beat out an infield hit in the first and scor

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- JaeSean Tate scored 21 points and pulled down 10 rebounds as Ohio State overcame cold shooting and some ugly play to beat North Carolina Central 69-63 Monday night.Ohio State (2-0) struggled for much of the game and let the Eagles hang around. The Buckeyes shot just 46.4 percent from the floor and were lucky to get away with the victory over the less-talented Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference team.We just didnt come out ready to play today, Tate said.Fortunately for the Buckeyes, North Carolina Central (0-2) was sloppier, committing 20 turnovers and losing two players to fouls, including point guard Dajuan Graf.Patrick Cole carried the load for the NCCU with 26 points. Ron Trapps added 12 points and a team-high seven rebounds.Freshman center Micah Potter added 11 points on 3-for-4 shooting from the 3-point line for the Buckeyes, and Keita Bates-Diop had nine.I didnt like a whole lot of what I saw tonight, Ohio State coach Thad Matta said.Ohio State led 31-29 after a slow start by both teams in the first half. The Buckeyes had a 12-0 run and led by as much as 21-11 with 9:17 left in the first, but allowed North Carolina Central to slowly climb back. The Eagles briefly had a lead until Tate hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to end the half. They cut the lead to five with 40 seconds left.Hats off to Ohio State. They made some significant plays at significant time, NCCU coach LeVelle Moton said. I thought we did enough to win the basketball game.North Carolina Central led 32-31 with 18:46 to go in the game, but the Buckeyes slowly pulled away.Weve got Providence next, and if we come out like that its not going to be pretty, Tate said . We know from last year that these early games count. We cant just be lackadaisical. We have to come out there and be the first team to punch the other in the mouth.Ohio State starting forward Marc Loving sat much of the first half after picking up two fouls in the first 1:15 of the game. He finished with three points.BIG PICTURENorth Carolina Central: If theres such thing as a moral victory, the Eagles got one by staying with the Buckeyes for most of the game. In the end, the best the Eagles got from the trip to Columbus was a chance to hone their game against a more-talented team. They nearly pulled off the upset.Ohio State: The Buckeyes were put on notice that this years version still needs a lot of work. Fortunately there are more tune-up games before conference play begins after Christmas.QUOTABLEWe werent physically and mentally very tough, Matta said. Obviously, we have to get that corrected.LYLE STRUGGLINGStarting point guard JaQuan Lyle sat most the second half Monday in favor of C.J. Jackson. He finished with five points. Lyle also sat most of the second half of last weeks win over Navy.UP NEXTNorth Carolina Central plays Wednesday at Western Carolina.Ohio State stays home to play Providence Thursday night. Nike Air Max Wholesale Australia . At a Manhattan federal court hearing, attorney Jordan Siev said his law office has gotten more evidence nearly every day to support its lawsuit accusing MLB and Selig of going on a "witch hunt" to ruin Rodriguezs reputation and career. He said the defendants went "way over the line. Wholesale Air Max Australia .com) - Richie Incognito has reportedly been admitted to a psychiatric care unit in Arizona. http://www.wholesaleaustraliaairmax.com/ . -- The boos poured down on Tom Brady and the New England Patriots at the end of a horrible first half. Cheap Nike Air Max Australia .875,000, avoiding arbitration. Clippards deal Monday means all eight Nationals players who filed for arbitration wound up settling before a hearing. Nike Air Max Clearance Australia . Once again Jordan Cieciwa (@FitCityJordan) and I (@LynchOnSports) go head to head in our picks. Last weekend at UFC Fight Night 32 my #TeamLynch got the best of #TeamJC by a score of 9-6. Let us know which side youre on for UFC 167 use the hashtag #TeamLynch or #TeamJC on Twitter. ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Chris Archer had no trouble ranking his first complete game in the major among his list of baseball accomplishments. Archer pitched a five-hitter in his 13th big league start, pitching the Tampa Bay Rays past the Houston Astros 5-0 on Sunday. "The best game Ive ever pitched in my life," Archer said. Archer (4-3) struck out eight and walked none. He has nine starts this season after making his major league debut last year. "The past couple games, I felt strong enough to continue to pitch deep into the ballgame, but really Ive never pitched into the eighth inning before -- minor league, major league, little league, whatever," Archer said. "But they had faith in me to go deep. We scored enough runs so that there was no question. We played tremendous defence which saved me pitches, and I was able to execute." Desmond Jennings homered as the Rays won for the 14th time in 16 games. Tampa Bay completed its most successful three-series homestand at 9-1, and went into the All-Star break in second place in the AL East. Houston headed into the break with a 17-inning scoreless streak. The Astros have lost 12 of 15 and have the worst record in the majors at 33-61 during their first season in the American League. Between Saturdays third inning and the fourth inning Sunday, the Astros went 11 straight innings without scoring or leaving a runner on base. Only four runners reached base in those 11 innings -- two were doubled up and two were picked off. Jennings hit his 11th homer, connecting in the sixth off Paul Clemens after Kelly Johnsons third straight single. Jennings also preserved the shutout by running down Jason Castros 400-foot line drive to centre field for the final out with a runner on base. "Archy deserved it," Jennings said. "He threw as well as he has all year. He deserved to finish that game. I thought from the fourth or fifth inning he was going to pitch thee whole game, just by the way he was throwing every pitch where he wanted.dddddddddddd That was fun to watch." Archer turned in Tampa Bays 15th consecutive quality start and went a second straight start without walking a batter. The Rays have won his last five starts. "I think good can be an understatement," Houston manager Bo Porter said. "He was excellent today. It was more about him that it was about anything else." Rays manager Joe Maddon agreed, and will have to determine whether Archer stays in the rotation when Alex Cobb comes off the disabled list. "Archys been on a roll, but to pitch a complete game shutout is different," Maddon said. "To go six innings and leave and get a win is a nice thing, but the complete-game shutout, when you teach yourself that lesson, the sky is the limit." Jennings beat out an infield hit in the first and scored the first run on Evan Longorias double. The Rays added two more runs in the fourth with the help of a throwing error by Erik Bedard (3-6). Bedard gave up eight hits and struck out six in five innings. Notes: Cobb pitched off the Tropicana Field mound for the first time since being struck on the head by a line drive on June 15. Cobb called it "a relief" to be back on the mound and said he hopes to pitch in another game within a couple of weeks of the All-Star break. ... Longoria passed B.J. Upton and moved into second place on the Rays career list for extra-base hits. Longoria has 341. Carl Crawford is the leader with 424. ... Rays SS Yunel Escobar left in the ninth inning with a mild hamstring strain. ... OF Chris Carter was out of the Astros lineup for a second straight day due to a sore ankle. ... Astros LHP Brett Oberholtzer was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City after the game. ... Porter announced that Bud Norris will start the Astros first game after the break Friday against Seattle. ' ' '