Ohio State Buckeyes Men's Basketball Conference Schedule Announced

Jake Diebler's Ohio State Buckeyes' squad has its work cut out in a revamped Big Ten.

Jan 20, 2024; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes guard Bruce Thornton (2) dribbles past Penn State Nittany Lions forward Qudus Wahab (22) during the NCAA men’s basketball game at Value City Arena. / Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

The wait is over, Ohio State Buckeyes' fans.

Ohio State's conference schedule was announced Thursday on Big Ten Network, with the Buckeyes' notable opponents including Michigan, Michigan State, UCLA and Rutgers.

Here is Ohio State's full list of opponents and dates for the 2024-25 season:

Home games: 12/7 vs. Rutgers, 1/3 vs. Michigan State, 1/9 vs. Oregon, 1/17 vs. Indiana, 1/27 vs. Iowa, 2/6 vs. Maryland, 2/12 vs. Washington, 2/16 vs. Michigan, 2/20 vs. Northwestern, 3/4 vs. Nebraska

Road games: 12/4 at Maryland, 1/6 at Minnesota, 1/14 at Wisconsin, 1/21 at Purdue, 1/30 at Penn State, 2/2 at Illinois, 2/9 at Nebraska, 2/23 at UCLA, 2/26 at USC, 3/8 at Indiana

Notably, Ohio State will not have to travel for either Washington or Oregon, but will have to go across the country for games at UCLA and USC within a four-day span.

The Buckeyes also get Michigan at home in a big-time rivalry matchup of two new head coaches in Diebler and Dusty May.

Ohio State's nonconference schedule opponents include Youngstown State, Texas A&M, Evansville, Campbell, Green Bay, Pittsburgh, Auburn, Valparaiso, Kentucky and Indiana State.

Michigan, Ohio State's rival, will be especially important this year for the Buckeyes — now that Roddy Gayle Jr. will be donning the maize and blue, this could entail a battle of the backcourts.

Of course, the addition of UCLA, Southern California, Washington and Oregon has been highlighted by the football team's matchups, but these historic programs can certainly gives trouble to the scarlet and gray.

Ohio State will enter the 2024-25 season coming off a hectic offseason, including bringing in and sending out multiple transfers and freshmen.

The team will certainly look different with three of five starters gone, but head coach Jake Diebler brought in players from around the country — Sean Stewart from Duke, Micah Parrish from San Diego State, Aaron Bradshaw from Kentucky and Ques Glober from Kansas State.

Not to mention the team brought back Meechie Johnson Jr. from South Carolina for a second stint in his home state.

In addition, Ohio State raked in three freshman in three-level scoring threats in John Mobley Jr., Braylen Nash and Ohio Mr. Basketball Colin White.

The Buckeyes even went over season to track down Croatian big man Ivan Njegovan, a seven-foot-one center who can likely fill the shoes of going out transfer Felix Okpara.

Ohio State was ranked No. 14 in Andy Katz's Preseason Rankings in May, thanks ot the transfers they brought in and the returners they maintained. Most notably, Diebler will welcome back junior Bruce Thornton, the team's leading scorer and facilitator last season.

Hopefully for Ohio State, they are able to live up to these high expectations — but with multiple new teams on the horizon, they have their work cut out for them.