No. 22 Ohio State survives road test, defeats Northwestern 71-65

Ohio State hangs on to stay undefeated in the Big Ten.

Survival is the key to college basketball; it’s a method that works both ways. For a ranked team like Ohio State, it’s about taking care of business against teams like Northwestern, who came in 11-8. For a team on upset alert, it’s about staying alive. Tonight displayed college basketball’s survival methods at their finest.

The most frustrating part of watching the Buckeyes this season has been the first ten minutes of the game. Once again, Ohio State played poorly, allowing Northwestern to force them into bad shots.

However, the Buckeyes have been able to survive these odd, early, feeling-out minutes with the proper defensive formula. Quickly, the narrative switched, with Ohio State beginning to find their shot as the half progressed.

Keita Bates-Diop, the conference leader in scoring, had one of his toughest offensive nights. The forward went 4-of-12 and 0-of-3 from three, scoring just 10. Despite lacking on the offensive end, Bates-Diop grabbed 8 boards with a steal and a block, playing terrific defense along the way.

Throughout the game, Ohio State kept Northwestern at arm’s length. While they couldn’t quite be put away, an effort by Micah Potter off of the bench gave the Buckeyes life. Potter scored a season-high 13 points, going 5-of-5 from the field.

It seemed the Buckeyes weren’t willing to give the Wildcats any chance to awaken.

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Late in the game, Northwestern rode an 11-2 run to cut the Buckeyes’ lead to 68-65 with just 0:45 left on the clock. For a moment, it seemed Northwestern had a capable upset bid. Scottie Lindsay hit his first three of the game at the end of the streak, which seemed like he had some magic left for an upset bid. Lindsay would finish with 13.

Chris Holtmann grabbed a timeout to gather his team; things had suddenly become very out of hand. Things began to seem dire for the newly-ranked Buckeyes. 

Instead, Ohio State who turned the ball over 12 times took care of the basketball late in the game. After CJ Jackson cashed 3-of-4 free throws down the stretch, Ohio State took home a well-deserved victory.

Next: Ohio State Football: Grading the defensive coaches

The win evens Ohio State with Purdue atop the Big Ten, both with a 7-0 start to conference play. Additionally, it’s the Buckeyes 16th victory of the season and sixth consecutive. They’ll put the streak on the line this weekend, facing Minnesota at the neutral site of Madison Square Garden.