Scarlet Sunrise: Ohio State set for 'redemption game' versus No. 15 Wisconsin

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Ohio State set for ‘redemption game’ versus No. 15 Wisconsin

It’s been a while since Ohio State turned the page from last season when it lost 13-of-14 games during a gut-wrenching January-February stretch. But the Buckeyes haven’t forgotten what that stretch felt like.

Individual games from that two-month span still stand out, including a 65-60 loss to Wisconsin in the Schottenstein Center, even though Ohio State later beat the Badgers in the Big Ten Tournament. The five-point defeat back on Feb. 2 featured the ejection of head coach Chris Holtmann late in the first half after he argued an offensive foul call on veteran forward Justice Sueing. That game also resulted in the Buckeyes’ first February loss after they posted a 2-7 January record.

Ohio State is 1-1 in January so far this season, and the Buckeyes have a chance to get over .500 for the month Wednesday night against the No. 15 Badgers, who are off to a 3-0 start in Big Ten play.

“It’s gonna be a really good game,” Ohio State center Felix Okpara said Tuesday. “They’re pretty much the No. 1 team in the Big Ten. They’re undefeated. And they also beat us here last year.

“So we kind of want this game to be like a redemption game, getting our payback. And they’re a really good team. I just feel like the key to success in that game is gonna be on the defensive side, just trying to guard the post man good and also the guards.”

A redemption game, there it is.

Ohio State is using last year’s setbacks to fuel the 2023-24 squad — to a certain degree, of course. In this case, it’s fitting considering that Wisconsin’s lineup is almost a carbon copy of what it was last year. The Badgers, after all, returned 71.6% of their minutes from last season, ranking eighth nationally in minutes continuity according to KenPom.

Emphasis on “almost.”

Head coach Greg Gard’s team brought in former St. John’s guard AJ Storr from the transfer portal, and he currently leads the Badgers with 14.7 points per game.

“He’s a terrific offensive player,” Holtmann said of the 6-foot-7 standout. “So I think it will be a number of guys [defending him throughout the game]. But they have other really good players as we all know. Terrific point guard. Great size, great interior scorer. [Tyler] Wahl’s always been one of my favorite players to watch with his toughness and aggressiveness and ability to impact winning in so many ways.”

The point guard Holtmann referenced is Chucky Hepburn, a junior who is averaging 8.9 points, 4.0 assists and 1.8 steals per game. And that “great interior scorer” is 7-foot center Steven Crowl, who has finished in double figures in all but four games this season while registering three double-doubles along the way and shooting a blistering 12-of-18 from deep.

Holtmann remarked that Wisconsin is getting better and better. To this point, the Badgers are the best team Ohio State has faced this season, according to the seventh-year Buckeyes coach.

“I think it’s probably as deep and as talented of a Wisconsin team as we’ve seen,” Holtmann said. “We say it every year with Wisconsin, but they’re so old.”

The Badgers are deep, no doubt. They have 11 players who have played at least 11 games and have all averaged north of five minutes per contest across those outings.

And, as Holtmann said, Wisconsin is old. In fact, it’s 52nd in experience nationally with the average Badgers player having 2.49 years under his belt, according to KenPom.

That said, they have a first-year impact player in freshman guard John Blackwell. The former three-star prospect is putting up 9.2 points and 3.9 rebounds per game. Plus, he’s second on the team with a 46.4% clip from beyond the arc.

Although Ohio State will have its hands full, the Buckeyes have all the motivation they need — not just from last year’s regular season game versus Wisconsin but also from last weekend’s game at Indiana, where they led for more than 20 minutes and outrebounded the Hoosiers by 22 but still lost.

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Breaking down where Buckeyes land in too-early 2024 top-25 rankings

Ohio State finished 10th in the final AP Top 25 for the 2023 season. That’s the Buckeyes’ worst final ranking in the poll since 2013 when they closed the year No. 12.

Don’t like the sound of that? Well, too-early 2024 top-25 rankings are already out. And Lettermen Row rounded them up to chart where Ohio State is expected to start next season.

Check it out here.

What addition of former Ole Miss RB Quinshon Judkins means for Ohio State

Ohio State made a splash in the transfer portal when it reeled in former Ole Miss running back Quinshon Judkins Monday night.

Judkins led the SEC in rushing touchdowns each of the past two seasons.

The Pike Road, Alabama, native eclipsed the 1,000-yard rushing mark both of those years, and he’s added a combined 37 receptions and three receiving touchdowns in the process.

Lettermen Row broke down what his addition means for Ohio State and its offense. Go here for that analysis.

Counting down

Buckeyes vs. Akron: 234 days
Buckeyes vs. Michigan: 325 days

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