The Ohio State Men’s Basketball team celebrates during the Ohio State-Wisconsin game Dec. 11. Ohio State won 73-55. Credit: Mackenzie Shanklin | Photo Editor
Coming off their first game in 22 days, the Buckeyes needed overtime to earn their first victory of the 2022 calendar year.
Now, No. 13 Ohio State (9-2, 3-0 Big Ten) will return to the road to play at Indiana (10-3, 1-2 Big Ten) and put its five-game winning streak on the line Thursday. Assembly Hall will play host to the two programs, a venue where the Buckeyes have won just two of their last seven meetings against the Hoosiers.
“It’s a great environment, one of the best in college basketball typically,” Holtmann said. “We’re going against a team that’s going to be incredibly hungry.”
Indiana dropped an early lead in the second half and its rally fell short in a 61-58 loss Sunday at Penn State. The Hoosiers have won four of their last seven games under first-year head coach Mike Woodson.
Junior forward Trayce Jackson-Davis leads a Hoosiers ballclub that ranks sixth in scoring among the Big Ten, just below Ohio State. A preseason First Team All-American, Jackson-Davis averages 19.3 points per game and is the conference’s returning leading scorer.
“He’s grown into adding to his game,” Holtmann said. “He’s really difficult on both blocks, but he’s tremendous getting to his left hand. He’s a tremendous athlete at his size.”
The Hoosiers also rank as the No. 1 defense in the Big Ten, holding opponents to 61.6 points per game. Jackson-Davis leads the conference with 40 blocks and is complemented by redshirt junior forward Race Thompson and junior guard Xavier Johnson, who have 17 and 14 steals, respectively.
Thompson and Johnson also average double figures while the former is the team’s assists leader. Johnson, a Pitt transfer, joined the program alongside Northwestern addition and junior forward Miller Kopp, who scored 16 or more points in two games against Ohio State last season.
“They have some older guards that they brought in that are transfers. They also are implementing some young guys to their program that have been important,” Holtmann said. “I think their front line is really good as well.”
Prior to the Buckeyes’ 22-day layoff, turnovers plagued the team night in and night out. The case was the same in their return Sunday, as Ohio State committed 16 giveaways — second-most this season.
Graduate guard Jamari Wheeler — who turned it over five times against Nebraska for just the second time this season he’d allowed more than two — said the Buckeyes must be smarter with possession, which will require them to be tougher with the ball.
“It’s not like other teams are making us turn the ball over. We turn the ball over ourselves,” Wheeler said. “Once we clean that up, it’s just going to go next level.”
The Buckeyes also shot 47.6 percent from the field Sunday, the lowest they’ve recorded in six games. Leading scorer and junior forward E.J. Liddell still posted double figures, but shot just 2-for-14 from the field.
One bright spot, however, flashed in freshman guard Malaki Branham. The first-year Buckeye scored 21 points in the first half and finished with 35 and six 3-pointers, setting the program record for points scored by a freshman in a conference game to earn Big Ten Freshman of the Week.
When clicking, Ohio State has shown it can go pound-for-pound with any team in the country, such as when it defeated No. 1 Duke at home in November. Thursday will present the team another shot at shaking off the rust to get back into a rhythm as they become firmly entrenched in conference play.
“We got so many weapons and we’re deep. Anybody could come off the bench and have a great night any game,” Wheeler said. “I feel like that just makes us more dangerous on the court. You’re going to have to worry about everybody, even the bench players.”
The Buckeyes and Hoosiers tip off at 7 p.m. Thursday on FS1.
