If it seems weird Ohio State and Wisconsin haven't played yet this season, it is. It's March 8 and two of the perennial powers in the Big Ten have yet to lock up on the court. That doesn't happen very often.
But with the newly-formed 14-team league this year, that's exactly the case. The Buckeyes and Badgers meet today for the very first time.
| WHO | WHERE | WHEN | TV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wisconsin (27-3, 15-2) | Schottenstein Center | 4:30 p.m. | CBS |
Wisconsin has already won the league title. It returned four starters from a team which made the Final Four last season and was the unanimous preseason selection to win the conference. The Badgers have achieved just about everything they set out to do up until this point in the season.
Ohio State, however, has had a bit more of an up-and-down road. The Buckeyes struggled at the beginning of the Big Ten season, but then picked it up. It seemed as if Ohio State had found its footing again, then lost back-to-back road games in February. It's been a roller coaster of a year for Thad Matta's bunch filled with almost exclusively seniors and freshmen.
But right now, both teams are playing well. The Badgers have continued to roll and the Buckeyes have won three straight. As a fan of Big Ten basketball, there's probably not a better game you could have to close out the regular season.
Opponent Breakdown
Like it was predicted in the preseason, the Badgers have been the Big Ten's most consistent team this year. They've only lost three teams and just once at full strength.
The obvious leader for Wisconsin has been its Big Ten and National Player of the Year candidate, Frank Kaminsky. The 7-foot senior averages 18.4 points, 8.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.6 blocks per game. He's a do-everything player for the Badgers and one of the best in all of college basketball.
There's no question, limiting Kaminsky will be a huge key to this game.
"He’s so unique. He leads them in assists, leads them in points, rebounds. He’s just such a unique player for his size; I love his game," Matta said. "He can get you a lot of different ways, a lot of different areas on the floor. Just watch from where he was when he started to where he is now, just what an incredible job he’s done.”
This isn't your typical Wisconsin team, though. It has multiple guys who can put the ball in the basket.
Sam Dekker is a potential first-team all-Big Ten selection and Nigel Hayes also gives the Badgers one of the best frontcourts in the country. Josh Gasser is one of the better defenders in the Big Ten and a solid 3-point shooter and Bronson Koenig has done a more-than-admirable job filling in for the injured Traevon Jackson at point guard.
If Wisconsin lacks anything, it's depth. The Badgers' starting five is very strong, but after that there isn't much else coming off the bench. Still, it's a very difficult matchup for any team.
“They’re very talented. They don’t make a lot of mistakes, obviously. I think they lead the NCAA in (fewest) turnovers," Ohio State point guard Shannon Scott said. "They’re a team that we have to be patient with. We can’t try to force anything, we can’t make any careless plays because they will take advantage of it. We have to take care of the ball.”
Buckeye Breakdown
After losing back-to-back games — a stretch which included a disappointing performance at Michigan — the Buckeyes have rebounded quite nicely, winning three straight.
Its last time out, Ohio State trailed a lowly Penn State team by one at halftime, but rallied to dominate the second half behind freshman guard D'Angelo Russell, who scored 19 of his game-high 28 points in the final 20 minutes.
Today will be a true test of where the Buckeyes are, though. They haven't faced a team as good as Wisconsin all season.
When Ohio State plays its best basketball, it's a really difficult team to beat. The Buckeyes usually play well at home, too. The biggest problem Ohio State has had this season, though, has been consistency. They have trouble putting together two good halves of basketball.
“I think it’s definitely a mental thing. It’s about making little plays as well. Not boxing out here and there or making a careless pass and turning the ball over early in the game, those things can cost us later on down the line," senior center Amir Williams said. "Just stuff like that, just careless things that we can easily fix is going to be huge part of the game as well that we need to be aware of.”
How It'll Play Out
This is a game that means much more for the Buckeyes than the Badgers just from a mental standpoint.
Both teams are locked into their Big Ten tournament seeds regardless of outcome — Ohio State will be the No. 6 seed and Wisconsin will be the top seed. But the Buckeyes are trying to improve their seed in the NCAA tournament. The Badgers still have a shot at earning a No. 1 seed in the Big Dance, but that's likely the furthest thing from their minds.
Ohio State will be having its Senior Day festivities where it will honor Scott, Williams, Sam Thompson, Trey McDonald, Anthony Lee and Jake Lorbach. It's also likely going to be the last time Russell will play at the Schottenstein Center. There will be a ton of energy and emotion in the building.
Still, there's a basketball game to play and Wisconsin is one of the best teams in the country. For the Buckeyes to have a shot, they must contain Kaminsky and cannot have a lapse in effort, which they've been known to do at points this season. A double-digit deficit against Wisconsin would be a terrible situation for Ohio State.
If the Buckeyes can find a way to avoid that slow start and at least neutralize Kaminsky, they've got a real shot at pulling out a win. It's easier said than done, of course, but Ohio State is a much better team at home.
“Obviously Wisconsin is a great team and we’ve had a lot of great memories in this building and we want to finish it out with Senior Night," Thompson said. "March 8, no matter who we are playing, we have to play our best basketball. We want to play our best basketball. It’s that time of year. It’s the time of year when a mistake can end your season and in our case end our career. So we just want to be playing our best basketball and put ourselves in the best position we can to make a run.”
