Big Ten Roundup (Jan. 18): Struggling Ohio State Falls at Nebraska For Fifth-Straight Loss

Ohio State has hit the skids lately, and the Buckeyes lost at Nebraska on Wednesday for its fifth-straight loss. Here is our game story, plus a preview of a busy Thursday night in our daily Big Ten roundup.

Ohio State keeps getting in its own way lately, and on Wednesday the Buckeyes lost at Nebraska 63-60 for their fifth straight loss. That's the worst losing streak in the six-year Chris Holtmann era.

Freshman Brice Sensabaugh missed his first eight shots and the Buckeyes would go 6:35 without a field goal in the second half as Nebraska (10-9, 3-5 in Big Ten) pulled away. Ohio State (10-8, 2-5 in Big Ten) couldn't close the gap down the stretch.

"We just need to have poise," said Ohio State forward and captain Zed Key, who had 11 points and 10 rebounds.. "Holtmann said it in the locker room, that we missed a couple dumb plays tonight throughout the course of the game and it hurt us in the end. Those plays, it’s a one-possession game at the end."

The Buckeyes have lost five straight since beating Northwestern on Jan. 1, by a combined total of 19 points. Their last three losses were twice by three points and once in overtime. It doesn't get any easier either, with Ohio State hosting Iowa, winners of four straight, on Saturday before hitting the road next week at Illinois and Indiana.

Sensabaugh got hot after his slow start and finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Sean McNeil had 13 points and Key also had a double-double, with 11 points and 10 boards.

Ohio State was a 6-point favorite and had won five straight games in Lincoln before Wednesday. They have losses to Maryland, Nebraska and Minnesota during this streak, and that group comprises the bottom three of the Big Ten power rankings this week.

Ohio State might be joining that group next week.

"The margin for error is small in league play and you’ve got to be able to convert when the opportunity’s there," Holtmann said. "We’ve got to coach our guys in ways that they understand that. We’ve got to play with more poise than what we did. We played with real good poise down the stretch but not enough poise throughout the course of the game."

Thursday's Big Ten schedule

• NO. 23 RUTGERS at MICHIGAN STATE, 6:30 p.m. ET: Rutgers (13-5, 5-2 in Big Ten) plays its first game as a ranked team this season when it takes on a Michigan State (12-6, 4-3 in Big Ten team still smarting from a tough home loss to No. 3 Purdue over the weekend. The Spartans lost despite 30 points from Tyson Walker. Guard Cam Spencer leads Rutgers with 13.9 points per game, and he's been a closer, hitting big shots late in wins over Purdue, Northwestern and Ohio State. TV: FOX Sports 1. Point spread: Michigan State is a 3-point favorite according to the SISportsbook.com gambling website. The over/under is 126.5.
• NO. 3 PURDUE at MINNESOTA, 7 p.m. ET: Purdue (17-1, 6-1 in Big Ten) has the conference lead, and they'll look to hang on to it on the road at cellar-dwelling Minnesota (7-9, 1-5 in Big Ten). Freshman Fletcher Loyer, who's been shooting lights out lately, was the league's player of the week. TV: ESPN2. Point spread: Purdue is a 14-point favorite according to the SISportsbook.com gambling website. The over/under is 137.5.
• MICHIGAN at MARYLAND, 7 p.m. ET: Despite a slow start to the season, Michigan (10-7, 4-2 in Big Ten) is right in the thick of the conference race and this is a good chance to get a road win against a Maryland team that's been up and down of late, losing three of four games by an average of 21 points. Michigan beat them 81-46 on Jan. 1 TV: ESPN2. Point spread: Maryland is a 2-point favorite according to the SISportsbook.com gambling website. The over/under is 142.5.
• INDIANA at ILLINOIS, 8:30 p.m. ET: Indiana (11-6, 2-4 in Big Ten) snapped a three-game losing streak on Saturday after beating Wisconsin, but now the Hoosiers run into a red-hot Illinois (13-5, 4-3 in Big Ten) team that seems to have its act together during a four-game winning streak. TV: FOX Sports 1. Point spread: Illinois is a 6.5-point favorite according to the SISportsbook.com gambling website. The over/under is 144.5.

Related stories on Big Ten basketball

• BIG TEN POWER RANKINGS: Rutgers keeps on winning and is 5-2 in the Big Ten now, moving all the way up to No. 2 in our rankings behind Purdue. Here are our Volume 4 rankings from 1-through-14 with movement in every spot from 2 through 12. CLICK HERE
• BIG TEN TOURNAMENT TICKETS ON SALE: Tickets for the 2023 Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament go on sale at Noon ET on Tuesday. The tournament takes place at the United Center in Chicago, Ill. from March 8-12. CLICK HERE
• BIG TEN ROUNDUP (Jan. 17): Wisconsin star Tyler Wahl returned from an ankle injury and Connor Essegian got his first start, and it all added up to a 63-60 win over Penn State, snapping a three-game losing streak. CLICK HERE
• BIG TEN ROUNDUP (Jan. 16): Illinois won its fourth straight game with a win at Minnesota and No. 3 Purdue got a late basket from Zach Edey to beat Michigan State. CLICK HERE