Every Ohio State fan remembers March 6, 2005.
That was the day that Matt Sylvester put the exclamation point on Thad Matta's first year at Ohio State, sinking an undefeated and top-ranked Illinois team with a three-pointer with just seconds remaining to give the Buckeyes their first signature win of the Matta era.
Nearly 13 years later, Chris Holtmann's first Ohio State squad is presented with a similar opportunity as No. 1 Michigan State rolls into Columbus on Sunday afternoon.
The situations aren't as similar as some would like to think, as Matta's victory came in the regular season finale in a year which Ohio State was banned from NCAA Tournament play due to NCAA sanctions. This year, a win over a No. 1 team at home could provide the Buckeyes with a resume boost that could mean the difference between an NCAA or NIT appearance, depending on how the rest of the season shakes out.
| DATE | OPPONENT | RESULT |
|---|---|---|
| 2/20/1965 | AT MICHIGAN | L, 100–61 |
| 3/8/1965 | MICHIGAN | W, 93–85 |
| 12/3/1965 | AT UCLA | L, 92–66 |
| 3/23/1968 | VS. HOUSTON (3rd Place Game) | W, 89–85 |
| 12/6/1968 | UCLA | L, 84–73 |
| 12/30/1971 | UCLA | L, 79–53 |
| 2/1/1975 | INDIANA | L, 72–66 |
| 3/2/1975 | AT INDIANA | L, 86–78 |
| 1/3/1976 | INDIANA | L, 66–64 |
| 3/6/1976 | AT INDIANA | L, 96–67 |
| 12/29/1978 | VS. DUKE | W, 90–84 (OT) |
| 1/8/1983 | INDIANA | W, 70–67 |
| 1/24/1987 | AT IOWA | W, 80–76 |
| 2/23/1993 | INDIANA | W, 81–77 (OT) |
| 1/5/2005 | AT ILLINOIS | L, 85–65 |
| 3/6/2005 | ILLINOIS | W, 65–64 |
| 2/25/2007 | WISCONSIN | W, 49–48 |
| 11/28/2007 | NORTH CAROLINA | L, 66–55 |
| 2/10/2013 | INDIANA | L, 81–68 |
Regardless of the magnitude of the game, Holtmann said Saturday that he is still preaching a game-by-game mentality to his team. He even added that Ohio State spent little to no time preparing for Michigan State before the Buckeyes' most recent game, a 92-81 win over Iowa.
"As much as anything as a coach, you are trying to get guys focused in on the moment and what is right in front of them," Holtmann said. "To focus too much on what this could be, feel like, or what the end result would all mean, in some ways puts undue pressure on them."
That said, Holtmann isn't ignorant to the opportunity that is in front of his team.
When Ohio State knocked off the No. 1 Illini in early March of 2005, Holtmann was an assistant coach at Gardner-Webb. He said he remembers watching the game live and that it is hard to forget the magnitude of that Ohio State win, as pictures from the game are scattered throughout the facilities at the Schottenstein Center.
"I certainly remember it. I think I watched that game live, because I knew Thad a little bit and knew (assistant coach) John Groce," Holtmann said. "I do remember seeing that and what a great moment that was for this program."
The opportunity for a signature win on Sunday isn't Ohio State's first such chance this season. The Buckeyes have already played both teams that competed for last year's national title, dropping games to both Gonzaga and North Carolina in the non-conference portion of their schedule.
In the loss to the Tar Heels, Ohio State trailed throughout the game, but managed to keep the game close on a number of occasions following runs by North Carolina.
Ohio State redshirt junior Keita Bates-Diop, who leads the Big Ten in scoring at 19.3 points per game, said Saturday that while the Buckeyes came up short against the Tar Heels, the way they played down the stretch gives them confidence going up against the top team in the nation.
"The first game (against Gonzaga) we didn't play well obviously. North Carolina, we played a little bit better," Bates-Diop said. "We talked about it in the locker room after the (UNC) game. If we put together a good 40 minutes, we are right there."
