Ohio State Looks to Stay in Win Column at No. 20 Wisconsin

Chris Holtmann's Ohio State Buckeyes haven't won a back-to-back since December.

Now is the time.

Snapping their five-game lose streak Saturday, the Buckeyes bounced back with a 79-75 double overtime win over Maryland behind a crowd of 13,000-plus.

Although Ohio State certainly had its struggles in January, they were able to secure a major conference victory. Sophomore guard Roddy Gayle Jr. said postgame Saturday that the Big Ten has been tough this year — as it has been since he arrived.

“It was a great opportunity for us to show our toughness, especially in the Big Ten,” Gayle said. “I felt we defended the ball at an amazing level today — something I hope that we can carry over for the rest of the year.”

Despite only winning three of its 11 games of the calendar year so far, the Buckeyes did a great job defending the ball, particularly in transition. Although Ohio State gave up 80-plus points three times — and got blown out in all three — they limited six teams to scores less than their average points in 2024.

However, it’s not enough to say the Buckeyes have been unlucky. Offensive rebounds and second-chance buckets have killed Chris Holtmann’s squad, particularly down the stretch. Against Indiana twice, Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois and Iowa, Ohio State lost the game in the last four minutes despite keeping each of those games close (out of the six, their biggest loss was 12 to then-No. 10 Illinois).

Holtmann has said his team’s lack of experience was detrimental in closing out those games — but in their biggest game of the season so far, the Buckeyes came out on top. Gayle with a big smile on his face postgame Saturday, said “It meant everything.”

“Just hearing Buckeye nation going wild [was great]. It had been a while since we heard that much energy in the building,” Gayle said.

Sophomore guard Bruce Thornton added that he knows the team has to be better at closing out games but perhaps this is a turn in the script.

“[You] get to a point where you’re tired of [losing],” Thornton said. “Having that mentality and having my guys back me up that whole time [was helpful].”

Ohio State’s remaining schedule is by no means easy — they play No. 20 Wisconsin on the road at 9 p.m., No. 2 Purdue on Sunday, and go back on the road Feb. 25 against Michigan State.

The Buckeyes are capable of winning all those games because each of those teams has shown vulnerability — all of them have lost to unranked opponents or bottom-of-conference teams.

Especially in Madison tonight, the Buckeyes have to take advantage of the Badgers’ four-game losing streak. Despite sophomore guard A.J. Storr putting up 19 points per game on this streak, Wisconsin has failed to close out these games…

If Ohio State shows the same grit they did Saturday against the nation’s No. 13 scoring defense, they should be able to take care of business — especially with their stellar backcourt coming back to form.

The Buckeyes and Badgers tip-off from Kohl Center at 9 p.m., streaming on Peacock.