Big Ten basketball season is finally here.
Ohio State will open its conference schedule 7 p.m. Wednesday when it welcomes Minnesota to the Schottenstein Center. The Buckeyes are riding a four-game winning streak while the Gophers have stumbled out of the gate to a 6-6 record to start the season.
| WHO | WHERE | WHEN | TV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota (6-6) | Schottenstein Center | 7 p.m. | BTN |
But as the old cliché goes, once conference play begins, every team is given a fresh start to the season.
"It's one of 18 and how we've always done it, we just try to get these guys to understand that you take it one game at a time," Buckeyes head coach Thad Matta told reporters Tuesday. "You hope in the end that you're left standing and it's not, 'Well, we need this to help us' or whatever it is. You hope we've taken care of our own selves in terms of what we can control. I think that's hard to grasp for young guys and we've talked about it, but now we've got to go out and do it."
Opponent Breakdown
It's been a rough start to the season for Richard Pitino's team; Minnesota has lost four of its last five games entering Wednesday's contest with Ohio State.
The Gophers' lone top-100 win came over KenPom's 97th-ranked team, Clemson, back on Nov. 30. Since that victory over the Tigers, however, Minnesota has been on its current skid.
Senior forward Joey King leads the way in the scoring department, averaging a team-high 13.8 points per game. Nate Mason (12.5 ppg.), Carlos Morris (11.4 ppg.) and Jordan Murphy (10.8 ppg.) are all also averaging in double-figures for the Golden Gophers. Murphy's 8.8 rebounds per game ranks second in the Big Ten entering conference play.
Minnesota ranks just 150th in KenPom's advanced statistical ratings despite playing just the 258th-ranked schedule in the country. The Gophers were selected to finish near the bottom of the conference during the preseason.
Buckeye Breakdown
In the midst of a four-game winning streak that includes a victory over Kentucky, Ohio State seems to be playing its best basketball of the season as Big Ten play is set to get underway. The hope now for the Buckeyes, obviously, is that things continue to get better going forward.
Sophomore forward Keita Bates-Diop was huge for Ohio State in its latest victory, a 73-57 victory over South Carolina State on Sunday. Bates-Diop scored a career-high 24 points on 8-of-14 shooting. He connected on 5-of-9 attempts from behind the 3-point line.
The Buckeyes would certainly like to get more from Marc Loving, however, as Big Ten play begins. Ohio State's leading scorer at 13.9 points per game, Loving is averaging just 7.5 points per game during this current four-game winning streak. If Loving can get back to playing at the level he was at the beginning of the season, Bates-Diop and several of the Buckeyes' freshmen continue their upward trends, Ohio State could be in good shape going forward.
How It Plays Out
For this young Ohio State team, there may not be a better opponent to face in a conference opener than Minnesota. The Gophers are expected to be one of the Big Ten's bottom-feeders and the game is being played in Columbus.
There's always the worry the inexperienced Buckeyes could let the moment get the best of them as many players will be experiencing their first collegiate conference game. But that's where Ohio State needs to lean on its more experienced players like Loving, Bates-Diop and Jae'Sean Tate.
In the end, the Buckeyes' talent level should be too much for the Gophers to overcome. Ohio State is an 11-point favorite in this one and is expected to move to 1-0 in Big Ten play.
Tim's prediction: Ohio State 71, Minnesota 64
