January has arrived.
With it comes the start of full-time Big Ten play for the Buckeyes, a place where seasons have lost momentum in previous years.
In 2021-22, Ohio State was ranked in the top 20 as late as Feb. 14 before losing three of its last four regular-season games and falling in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament to a 13-16 Penn State team. The Buckeyes made the NCAA Tournament as a No. 7 seed, won an ugly 54-41 game over Loyola Chicago and were handled by second-seeded Villanova 71-61 in the second round.
In 2022-23, the Buckeyes won their first game of full-time conference play on Jan. 1 against Northwestern to put their record at 10-3 before losing 15 of their next 16 contests, ultimately closing the season 16-19 without an NCAA or even an NIT bid.
Ohio State’s first two Big Ten games are in the books with starkly different results. The Buckeyes welcomed Minnesota to Value City Arena on Dec. 3, separated from the Gophers early and held on late for an 84-74 win.
Six days later, however, the Scarlet and Gray saw an 18-point second-half lead vanish at Penn State en route to falling 83-80.
The Buckeyes have responded with a three-game winning streak, even if a couple of those victories came in close scrapes against UCLA and West Virginia, the latter contest reaching overtime.
Now, Ohio State is scheduled to play 18 more regular-season games against Big Ten opponents starting with Wednesday’s game against Rutgers at the Schottenstein Center.
With that in mind, we take a look at five of those games that could prove pivotal in whether the Buckeyes can be one of the top teams in the conference. (Note: Ohio State’s Jan. 30 home game against No. 9 Illinois was excluded due to the uncertainty surrounding the Illini after star guard Terrence Shannon Jr. was charged with rape on Friday.)
At Indiana (Jan. 6, 8 p.m. on FOX)
Penn State stands as the only true road game for Ohio State thus far this year, with four of its nonconference contests being played at neutral sites and the other seven at home in Value City Arena.
For that reason, OSU’s trip to Indiana could be a key tone-setter for the squad in hostile environments. It doesn’t get much more raucous than Assembly Hall, and the Buckeyes will be fresh off a home clash with Rutgers three days prior.
Indiana is no slouch of a team either, off to a 10-3 start to the season with wins over Maryland, Michigan and Louisville. Only No. 25 Auburn, No. 4 UConn and No. 2 Kansas have beaten the Hoosiers.
Seven-foot center Kel’el Ware, a transfer from Oregon, could present a matchup problem as well given that the Buckeyes surrendered 36 points to Minnesota forward Dawson Garcia in December. Ware is averaging 14.9 points, 8.9 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per contest, the latter two numbers team-highs.
He and forward Malik Reneau, who averages a team-high 16.2 points per game, make up a dangerous frontcourt combination. Felix Okpara and company will have to be on their game inside.
If the Buckeyes can return from Bloomington with a win, they’ll have proven that this year’s group can get it done on the road.
At Northwestern (Jan. 27, 8:30 p.m. on BTN)
Ohio State’s trip to Evanston, Illinois will be the first contest of a three-game gauntlet the Buckeyes play in seven days from Jan. 27 through Feb. 2 that features two teams from The Prairie State.
Welsh-Ryan Arena proved to be an unfriendly confine for No. 1 Purdue already this year with the Wildcats capturing a 92-88 overtime win over the Boilermakers on Dec. 1. Star guard Boo Buie dropped 31 points for Northwestern.
The Wildcats fell to Chicago State at home on Dec. 13, so they aren’t invulnerable in their own building. But their record stands at 10-2 on the year.
The matchup between Ohio State’s star backcourt of Bruce Thornton and Roddy Gayle Jr. and Buie, who is averaging 17.9 points and 4.9 assists per game, will be an intriguing one. Northwestern has been able to slow teams down this season, ranking 22nd in points allowed per game despite placing just 90th in points allowed per 100 possessions.
With a 1-0 start to conference play and a tie for second place in the Big Ten regular season standings a year ago, Northwestern should serve as a litmus test for the Buckeyes’ place in the league as the third month of the campaign nears its close.
At No. 21 Wisconsin (Feb. 13, 9 p.m. on Peacock)
The third of four road games on this list, Wisconsin has surged into the AP Top 25 by winning eight of its last nine, the lone defeat coming at the hands of No. 10 Arizona. The Badgers are 9-3 overall.
Their signature win came on Nov. 22 when they upset then-No. 3 Marquette in Madison 75-64.
Wisconsin joins Purdue and Illinois as the only three teams currently ranked in the Big Ten.
Guard AJ Storr leads the charge for the Badgers with a team-high 15 points per game. Seven-foot forward Steven Crowl is the main threat inside, picking up 12.8 points and a team-high 7.3 rebounds per contest. He can extend his range when necessary, too, hitting 32 of his 47 3-point attempts (64.3%) thus far this year.
No. 1 Purdue (Feb. 18, 1 p.m. on CBS)
A lot will be known about the Big Ten viability of the 2023-24 Ohio State Buckeyes by the time they face the top dog in the conference.
The Buckeyes will have played 14 league games and 25 contests in total by the time the two sides meet in Value City Arena. But Purdue will be the ultimate test of where Ohio State stands.
Unanimous 2022-23 national player of the year Zach Edey hasn’t missed a beat after averaging 22.3 points, 12.9 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game last year. Two of those numbers have climbed in his senior season as he’s putting up 23.2 points, 10.2 boards and 2.4 blocks per contest.
The 7-foot-4 behemoth gets help from his backcourt in the form of three players averaging double-figures: Braden Smith (12.8 points per game), Fletcher Loyer (11.5) and Lance Jones (10.8). Smith is also second in the Big Ten for assists with 6.8 per game.
Purdue is 14th nationally in points per 100 possessions and 46th in points allowed per 100, shooting the nation’s 22nd-best percentage from outside at 38.4%. The Buckeyes will need to be at their sharpest to earn a victory.
At Rutgers (March 10, 2 p.m. on BTN)
Ohio State’s final game before the Big Ten Tournament, the Buckeyes will hope to close out their regular season strong and improve their postseason positioning in Jersey Mike’s Arena on March 10.
Still ironing out some issues at 8-4 on the season, the Scarlet Knights just missed out on a third straight NCAA Tournament appearance last year with a 19-15 record. The first two appearances in that span broke a 30-year drought of tourney bids for Rutgers dating back to 1991, and the program rewarded head coach Steve Pikiell with an eight-year, $29.5 million contract in 2022, which was re-upped to an eight-year, $30.8 million deal in 2023.
Rutgers has played some of the nation’s stingiest defense, ranked 13th in points allowed per 100 possessions. The Scarlet Knights have played some of the nation’s most lackluster offense as well, ranking 304th in points scored per 100 trips down the floor.
The top source of production when the Scarlet Knights do convert on the offensive end is their frontcourt, with forward Aundre Hyatt and center Clifford Omoruyi averaging 12.3 and 11.4 points per game, respectively.
Ohio State gets its first look at Rutgers as it plays its first game of 2024 on Wednesday at 7 p.m. in Columbus. BTN will broadcast the game.
