IS IT CHRISTMAS?
Ohio State lands three transfer commitments in two hours: CJ Donaldson Jr., Logan George and Max Klare.
For the first time all season, Ohio State has lost back-to-back games.
It fell 92-87 to Michigan on Sunday, and it failed to rebound from the defeat on Thursday. The No. 4 Buckeyes fell, 71-67, to Michigan State in East Lansing, dropping to 18-6 overall and 12-6 within Big Ten play.
| Team | 1 | 2 | FINAL |
|---|---|---|---|
| #4 OHIO STATE | 38 | 29 | 67 |
| MICHIGAN STATE | 33 | 38 | 71 |
A quartet of free throws from Aaron Henry and Malik Hall put Michigan State up 64-63 with 2:32 remaining, and Henry's jumper put Michigan State up by three. Free throws from E.J. Liddell with 48 seconds left chopped the deficit to a single point. Joshua Langford's pull-up jumper gave the Spartans a three-point edge with 30 seconds left. Washington came down the court and was short on a 3-pointer and CJ Walker subsequently got the rebound and missed another triple, but a foul on Langford led to Liddell going back to the foul line where he knocked down a pair to make it 68-67 with 14 seconds remaining.
Joey Hauser missed the first of two free throws but made the second to make it a 69-67 Michigan State lead with 12.8 seconds to go. Washington came up too short on a potential late-game layup.
Chris Holtmann, fed up with the idea of his team not getting calls, was issued a technical foul with 16:45 remaining in the game. Liddell had just missed a shot in the paint, and the head coach thought there should have been a whistle. Then, after a Hail Mary pass to Liddell went long, he got thrown out due to a second technical.
| OHIO STATE | STAT | MICHIGAN STATE |
|---|---|---|
| 67 | POINTS | 71 |
| 23-52 (44.2%) | FGM-FGA (PCT.) | 24-50 (48.0%) |
| 4-14 (28.6%) | 3PM-3PA (PCT.) | 4-15 (26.7%) |
| 17-23 (73.9%) | FTM-FTA (PCT.) | 19-25 (76.0%) |
| 12 | TURNOVERS | 15 |
| 27 | TOTAL REBOUNDS | 34 |
| 7 | OFFENSIVE REBOUNDS | 8 |
| 20 | DEFENSIVE REBOUNDS | 26 |
| 22 | BENCH POINTS | 25 |
| 2 | BLOCKS | 5 |
| 9 | STEALS | 4 |
| 14 | ASSISTS | 19 |
Four Buckeyes finished in double figures. Washington scored a team-high 18 points to power Ohio State.
Washington's ability to get to the rack and hit tough shots kept Ohio State in it early.
Michigan State, clearly the more physical team at the outset, got out to a 15-13 lead within a little more than six minutes by getting out on the break for four of its first six buckets. Washington refused to let the Buckeyes get behind, though, scoring nine of his team's 13 points with a triple and trio of layups. A Zed Key make in the paint followed by CJ Walker's first made 3 of the night put the Buckeyes on top eight minutes into the game, and they maintained the advantage the rest of the half.
The Spartans tied it up twice in a foul-laden first half, but Ohio State went into halftime up, 38-33.
These two teams combined to commit a remarkable 19 personal fouls in the first half. That, of course, didn't include a 3-pointer from Washington getting waved off due to a questionable shot-clock violation and Michigan State getting two points on a seemingly phantom goaltending call. Those incensed fans and teams alike.
Next up: Ohio State goes back to Columbus for its last two games in the regular season. The Buckeyes play host to No. 9 Iowa at 4 p.m. Sunday in the Schottenstein Center.
Other Notes
- Without Kyle Young (concussion) available, Holtmann turned to Musa Jallow – who was a game-time decision with a sprained ankle – as his fifth starter. The wing joined Washington, Justin Ahrens, Justice Sueing and Liddell in the starting five.
- Ibrahima Diallo (sprained MCL) went through warmups and was on the bench. However, he did not play. Jimmy Sotos is out for the season with a separated shoulder.
- Holtmann entered the day with a 1-3 record against Michigan State while Ohio State's head coach. He had lost his prior three games versus the Spartans spanning the past two seasons. He has never won in East Lansing as Ohio State's coach.
