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Buckeyes fall short to No. 20 Michigan in rivalry showdown

Spencer-Holbrookby:Spencer Holbrook•02/16/25•

SpencerHolbrook

Roddy
Ohio State's John Mobley Jr. and Devin Royal defend former Buckeyes guard Roddy Gayle Jr. (© Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images)

COLUMBUS — Ohio State continued to do just enough to keep Michigan within a shot’s length. At various points in the second half, the Buckeyes even had the lead over their rival and the top team in the Big Ten.

LOSS: But Ohio State could not seem to find the one stop it needed, the one basket it needed, the one push it truly needed to get over the hump, even with a nearly sold-out Schottenstein Center fully behind the Buckeyes. And Michigan used its size to overpower Ohio State one too many times.

Final score: No. 20 Michigan 86, Ohio State 83. Bruce Thornton had a look at a game-tying shot in the final seconds, but it found nothing but air. Michigan hit its free throws to put the game on ice.

The Buckeyes were dominated on the glass, especially when it mattered. Michigan clung to a two-point lead with a little more than a minute remaining and missed a shot, but corralled two offensive rebounds and eventually found the bottom of the net that gave the Wolverines a two-possession lead. From there, Ohio State put needed pressure on Michigan, but the Wolverines won in the end.

The final rebounding total was the difference; Michigan out-rebounded Ohio State 46-31 thanks to its pair of 7-footers on the interior in Danny Wolf and Vladislav Goldin.

Ohio State has just five more regular season games before the Big Ten Tournament, and just two of them are at home. The Buckeyes host Northwestern on Thursday night and then are home again for the final time against Nebraska on March 4. With two home games and three road games, all against decent competition, the Buckeyes must win at least three to keep pace in their bid for an NCAA Tournament at-large berth in Jake Diebler’s first season in charge.

Ohio State remaining basketball schedule

Feb. 20 vs. Northwestern
Feb. 23 at UCLA
Feb. 26 at USC
March 4 vs. Nebraska
March 8 at Indiana
March 12-16 Big Ten Tournament (Indianapolis)

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