Ohio State Set for Non-Conference Battles with Alabama & Merrimack Next Season

The Ohio State Buckeyes now know two more of the opponents they'll be facing in non-conference play.

The Ohio State Buckeyes will have some tough opponents to worry about once non-conference play and the 2022-23 season tips off later this year.

CBS Sports college basketball insider Jon Rothstein reported that Ohio State has picked up two matchups on its non-conference slate, as the Buckeyes will have their hands full against the Alabama Crimson Tide and Merrimack Warriors next season.

Ohio State will host Merrimack on Wednesday, Nov. 15 at the Schottenstein Center in what will be one of the Buckeyes' first games of the season. It will mark the first-ever meeting between the two teams.

Merrimack is one of the more interesting stories in college basketball. The Warriors won the Northeastern Conference Tournament this past season, an incredible accomplishment that would've punched their tickets to the NCAA Tournament. However, since the program was still in its four-year transition from Division II, Merrimack was unable to play in March Madness.

The Buckeyes will then face the Tide, who once again project to be a highly-ranked team to start the campaign, at the 2023 Emerald Coast Classic in Destin, Fla. on Nov. 24 and 25. The eight-team field also includes Oregon, Mercer, Santa Clara, Western Michigan, Tennessee State, and Southeastern Louisiana.

Alabama and Ohio State have met six times in history, with the series currently tied at 3-3. In the last meeting in Nov. 2002, the Buckeyes took the No. 4 Tide to the brink in Columbus but fell 54-48.

Set to play on neutral ground, the Buckeyes will now look for the upset over 20 years later when they take on Alabama this upcoming season.

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You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7

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