ATLANTA - Maybe Greg Oden's foul problems have nothing to do with the officiating or his inability to avoid contact at either end of a basketball court. Maybe it's just part of the Ohio State game plan.

You can almost imagine Ohio State coach Thad Matta's final pregame instructions to his All-American center: "You know what to do, Greg. Pick up a couple of quick fouls, sit out most of the first half and we'll take it from there."

For the fourth consecutive NCAA tournament game, Oden found himself in foul trouble. And for the fourth consecutive game, Ohio State's opponent found itself in more trouble.

Never mind that Oden played only three minutes of the first half after drawing his second foul. Or that his first-half stat line included no points, no rebounds and two turnovers.

The Buckeyes have spent the tournament proving they can play without their precocious 7-foot freshman. They proved it again in a 67-60 victory against Georgetown in the first Final Four semifinal game Saturday at the Georgia Dome.

Oden fouled out of Ohio State's victory over Xavier and played only 18 minutes against Tennessee and 24 against Memphis because of early fouls. But against Georgetown, Oden's loss was somewhat balanced by the absence of Hoyas 7-2 center, Roy Hibbert, who sat out the last 9:48 of the first half after drawing his second foul.

When Oden went to the bench, Hibbert quickly asserted himself inside. He had eight points on 4-for-5 shooting in the first 10 minutes, with all but two of those points coming when Oden was out of the game.

Ohio State point guard Mike Conley Jr. picked up the slack for Oden, scoring 11 first-half points. But the Hoyas struggled mightily without Hibbert inside. His teammates made only five of 15 first-half, field-goal attempts.

"Once again, our guys did a tremendous job of stepping up, Matta said. "I told Greg at halftime he ought to be well rested."

He played like it in the second half.

"I was out for 17 minutes," Oden said. "I wanted to get out there and just tear the rim down."

He settled for making three quick baskets early in the second half before he was assessed his third foul with 11:50 to play. He returned to the bench, but only for three minutes.

Ohio State's next critical moment came at the 2:36 mark when Oden drew his fourth foul on a questionable call with the Buckeyes leading by four points.

Undeterred, Oden scored over Hibbert on Ohio State's next possession, then stopped Hibbert's scoring try seconds later. Oden snatched the rebound and ignited a Buckeyes fast break, which ended with a three-point play by David Lightly.

By then, the Buckeyes had a nine-point lead with 1:41 to play. They had no need for Oden's last-second dramatics.

Oden's blocked shot at the buzzer saved the Buckeyes in a one-point victory over UT in the Sweet 16. This time, his 13-point, nine-rebound second half was all Ohio Stated needed.

The Buckeyes advanced to Monday night's championship with a 22-game winning streak and a well rested All-American center.

Sports editor John Adams may be reached at 865-342-6284 or adamsj@knews.com.