With the unbalanced schedule in the Big Ten, the chance to avenge an early-season conference loss isn't always an option. It's even more rare to have an opportunity to get revenge right away.
But that's not the case for Ohio State when it comes to Iowa. The Buckeyes have their shot today.
| WHO | WHERE | WHEN | TV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iowa (12-5, 3-1) | Carver-Hawkeye Arena | 2 p.m. | ESPN |
Just two short weeks ago the Hawkeyes marched into the Schottenstein Center in what was the Big Ten opener for both teams and controlled Ohio State from start to finish in a 71-65 win. It was an Iowa win that opened some eyes around the conference and further cemented the "Who is the second-best team in the Big Ten" debate.
The Buckeyes, though, aren't seeking revenge this early. They simply want to win consecutive Big Ten games.
“We feel like we had a good opportunity to win the first game with them so our chances are pretty good going into their house," Ohio State sophomore forward Marc Loving said Friday. "We’ve just got to go in with our minds ready to play and hopefully we’ll play our best game.”
Opponent Breakdown
Like most of the teams in the Big Ten, the Hawkeyes find themselves right in the thick of the conference race just a fourth of the way through. There are no unbeaten teams in league play and Iowa — along with four other teams — has one loss in the conference.
The Hawkeyes' lone defeat in the Big Ten came last week on the road at Michigan State, but they rebounded nicely from that loss with a two-point win at Minnesota on Tuesday night.
The last time Ohio State and Iowa met, the Hawkeyes used a fast start — they led 17-5 to begin the game — and a sizable advantage on the glass (37-29) to defeat the Buckeyes.
“They send three or four guys to the offensive glass just about every time they shoot the ball so we know how important it is to rebound the basketball and get our transition game going," Ohio State senior center Amir Williams said. "The past couple games we’ve been up and down in terms of rebounding, but I think our main focus is just hitting somebody and going to get the ball.”
Ohio State had a difficult time slowing down Iowa's 1-2 punch of Aaron White and Jarrod Uthoff in the first game between these two teams. Each went for 18 points, while White pulled down nine rebounds and Uthoff had seven. They were a combined 11 for 21 from the field and 4 of 8 from 3-point range.
Buckeye Breakdown
After suffering a rough loss on the road to Indiana, Ohio State bounced back with one of its better all-around efforts on the season in a 71-52 win over Michigan on Tuesday.
Again, the Buckeyes were led by freshman guard D'Angelo Russell, who scored a game-high 21 points, grabbed six rebounds, dished out four assists and nabbed four steals. He's been Ohio State's best player for the majority of the season, but when he's struggled, so has the team.
In the first matchup with Iowa, Russell went just 4 for 16 from the field and was 1 for 8 from 3-point range. It wasn't his finest game during what's been an impressive freshman season.
“D’Angelo, to this point, has had a tremendous freshman season. He’s had a few games where he’s struggled and ironically we lost them," Ohio State head coach Thad Matta said. "We need him to play well. I think that one of the great things I’ve seen with D’Angelo is his explosiveness to score the basketball, but also make other guys around him better.”
The Buckeyes need to also develop more of a consistency as a team. They seem to play well for certain stretches of games, but very poorly in others. Putting together two complete halves is something that hasn't really happened yet for Ohio State against a quality opponent.
“We have to continue to find our identity as a team and we have to be able to put 40 minutes of good basketball together," Williams said. "I believe as long as we do so we’ll continue to win games throughout the Big Ten season. Our main focus right now is just finding our identity and playing 40 minutes of good basketball.”
How It'll Play Out
The biggest difference from the first time these two teams played to now is Ohio State's defense.
In the first meeting, the Buckeyes were primarily in their zone, but now they seem to be a strictly man-to-man half-court defensive team. It's a change that has allowed them to be more active on the defensive end and use some of the athleticism of guys like Shannon Scott and Sam Thompson to create offense at the other end.
Playing on the road in the Big Ten is never easy, and with the Buckeyes playing an entirely different defense this time around, there's really no way to predict how this one will go.
Every game in the Big Ten is important, but in a year where there is no clear-cut No. 2 team in the conference, "stealing" wins on the road can go a long way at the end of the season.
“I don’t know the ins and outs of who plays who, when they play and all that stuff, but if you look at the Big Ten standings I think that these early games are important in terms of late-season games," Matta said. "There’s a team every year that wins a couple that they’re ‘not supposed to win’ and then all of a sudden, down the stretch, there they are in the thick of things, in the hunt of things and hopefully that’s who we are, but that’s a lot easier said than done.”
