On the same day Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith gave Thad Matta a vote of confidence, the Buckeyes arguably suffered the worst loss of his 13-year tenure, a 66-57 defeat at the hands of Rutgers in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament.
The 11th-seeded Buckeyes and 14th-seeded Scarlet Knights played a back-and-forth affair for most of the night, but the underdogs grabbed a six-point lead with six minutes remaining and never relinquished the lead.
Nigel Johnson scored 21 points off the bench to lead Rutgers, while Deshawn Freeman added 10 points and grabbed eight rebounds to give the Scarlet Knights their first-ever Big Ten Tournament victory.
Ohio State, led by Jae'Sean Tate's 18 points, failed to connect on a field goal over the final six minutes. The Buckeyes now await their postseason fate.
Check out photos from the game above.
