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. Jordan Retro 5 For Sale Cheap . The 26-year-old Ireland striker, who has four goals this season, has signed a three-and-a-half year contract with his new club. Cheap Air Jordan 5 . Barcelona also left injured defenders Carles Puyol, Javier Mascherano and Jordi Alba out of its squad for the trip to Glasgow. That means that Marc Bartra will probably start again in the centre of the defence alongside Gerard Pique. http://www.cheapairjordan5.com/ .C. -- Kemba Walker and the Charlotte Bobcats got off to a fast start, and the Sacramento Kings were never quite able to catch up. Wholesale Air Jordan 5 . Cote was eligible to become a free agent Feb. 15. Cote helped running back Jon Cornish run for a league-high 1,813 rushing yards en route to being named the leagues most outstanding player. Retro 5 Air Jordans For Sale . That left plenty of energy for pitching books and swatting away free agency questions. Anthony had 24 points and nine rebounds, and the Knicks avenged an embarrassing home loss with a rout of their own, beating the Boston Celtics 114-88 on Wednesday night for their third straight victory. Australia batsman Usman Khawaja has said transitioning to red-ball cricket after a long break from Tests will be his sides biggest challenge in their upcoming series against Sri Lanka. Australia last played a Test in February this year, against New Zealand.We havent played red-ball cricket for a while, Khawaja said. Weird seeing the red ball coming down the first time when it did [in an intra-squad practice game]. We were out in the field all day yesterday and you forget how tough being out on the field is. Going to have to do five days of it. Test matches is the hardest form, I reckon, mentally and physically. Going five days, especially in heat like this... If it goes that far, its going to be pretty tough. It gets easier the more you do it.In a way its nice we have got three formats of the game. It can be a lot sometimes but I really enjoyed playing white-ball cricket. Now enjoying coming back for some Test stuff, doing something different.Since the Tessts against New Zealand, Australia have played T20s in South Africa, the World T20 and the ODI tri-series in the West Indies.dddddddddddd Khawaja, who announced yesterday that he had got engaged following the tri-series, suggested Sri Lankas heat could also be an obstacle once the Tests start.The weather is a big challenge. Very hot and humid. The conditions are different, similar to what you get in West Indies and India. 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