COLUMBUS (AP) - Matt Terwilliger, a 6-foot-9, 220-pound forward from Troy, has decided to play basketball at Ohio State.

Terwilliger is the first player to commit to Ohio State's class of 2004. The school has three scholarships remaining.

He told Ohio State on Friday that he had chosen the Buckeyes over Cincinnati and Notre Dame.

He said Ohio State was ''the best school for me, really, for both academics and athletics."

Coaches have told him they project him as a power forward with the potential to play inside or outside.