Ohio State’s last road win came at Northwestern on Jan. 1, 2023. The Buckeyes didn’t come close to duplicating that victory on Saturday.
Three hundred ninety-one days after earning a 73-57 win over Northwestern in Welsh-Ryan Arena, the Buckeyes suffered their 14th road loss in a row, 83-58, on Saturday in Evanston.
In their most decisive loss of the season yet, the Buckeyes fell behind by double digits before halftime and never recovered as Northwestern pulled away for a blowout win.
| TEAM | 1 | 2 | FINAL |
|---|---|---|---|
| OHIO STATE | 30 | 28 | 58 |
| NORTHWESTERN | 41 | 42 | 83 |
The loss dropped Ohio State’s record to 2-5 in January and 13-7 for the season as a whole, pushing the Buckeyes further away from the NCAA Tournament bubble.
First half
Roddy Gayle Jr. scored the first two points of the game, and Jamison Battle gave the Buckeyes a 4-2 lead with a pair of free throws on Ohio State’s next possession. But those would be the only leads the Buckeyes would have for the entire game.
The Wildcats started to take control of the game with a 7-0 run that gave Northwestern a 20-12 lead with 8:57 left to play in the first half. Bowen Hardman, making a rare first-half appearance off an 11-point game at Nebraska, ended that jaunt with a nasty stepback three.
An 8-3 Ohio State run from there would cut Northwestern’s lead to three points, but that would be as close as the Buckeyes would get to retaking an advantage. The Wildcats would finish the first half with a 41-30 lead as they shot 53.6% from the field before halftime compared to just 35% in the first 20 minutes for the Buckeyes.
Ryan Langborg led the Wildcats with 14 first-half points, including four of Northwestern’s seven first-half 3-pointers. Gayle and Bruce Thornton led the Buckeyes with nine points each in the first half.
Second half
| NORTHWESTERN | STAT | OHIO STATE |
|---|---|---|
| 83 | POINTS | 58 |
| 30-52 (58%) | FGM-FGA (PCT.) | 14-41 (34%) |
| 10-19 (53%) | 3PM-3PA (PCT.) | 5-21 (24%) |
| 13-17 (76%) | FTM-FTA (PCT.) | 25-33 (76%) |
| 7 | TURNOVERS | 11 |
| 30 | TOTAL REBOUNDS | 28 |
| 4 | OFFENSIVE REBOUNDS | 8 |
| 26 | DEFENSIVE REBOUNDS | 20 |
| 25 | BENCH POINTS | 13 |
| 2 | BLOCKS | 4 |
| 4 | STEALS | 5 |
| 16 | ASSISTS | 9 |
Northwestern promptly extended its lead to 16 points by scoring the first five points of the second half on a Matthew Nicholson layup and a Ty Berry three. After a trio of free throws from Gayle and Felix Okpara, Boo Buie would go on a 6-0 run by himself to extend Northwestern’s lead to 19.
The lead ballooned from there as a run of 11 straight points by Brooks Barnhizer and Nick Martinelli gave Northwestern a 66-39 lead before the 10-minute mark. Northwestern outscored Ohio State 30-10 in the first 12 minutes of the second half to build a 31-point edge, allowing the home team to coast to victory from there.
What's next
Ohio State welcomes a top-10 opponent to Value City Arena in No. 10 Illinois. The Fighting Illini are 15-5 on the season after defeating Indiana 70-62 on Saturday. Tipoff is at 7 p.m., with the game set to be streamed by Peacock.
Game notes
- Bowen Hardman’s six first-half minutes were the most he’s played all season. He scored three points and notched one rebound before halftime.
- Ohio State is now 2-5 in its first seven games of January for the second year in a row.
- It’s the second game in a row that the Buckeyes suffered their most lopsided loss of the season to date. Ohio State’s 14-point loss at Nebraska on Tuesday was its highest margin of defeat this season before Saturday.
