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Ohio State Basketball: Buckeyes vs. Orange in Big Ten-ACC Challenge

By Jeremy Stevens

NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 02: Head coach Chris Holtmann of the Ohio State Buckeyes reacts in the first half against the Penn State Nittany Lions during quarterfinals of the Big Ten Basketball Tournament at Madison Square Garden on March 2, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 02: Head coach Chris Holtmann of the Ohio State Buckeyes reacts in the first half against the Penn State Nittany Lions during quarterfinals of the Big Ten Basketball Tournament at Madison Square Garden on March 2, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images) /
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The Ohio State basketball team is on a roll with a 6-0 record but will face a stiff test against the Syracuse Orange in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge.

Coming into tonight’s Ohio State-Syracuse matchup at The Schottenstein Center the Big Ten-ACC challenge is all tied up 4-4. The ACC to many people is the best conference in the country and the Big Ten was not going to be good at all. So far, the Big Ten has held its own coming into tonight with the last games of the challenge on tap.

Ohio State will have a huge test against Syracuse who has not seemed to play to their potential yet. The Orange came into the season ranked the #14 team in the country, with a couple of college basketball analysts picking them to go to the Final Four this year. It is still early in the season but Syracuse has a lot of work to do.

Ohio State will be recognizing Coach Matta and his family for his accomplishments so The Schottenstein Center will be rocking tonight. With Ohio State being ranked #1 in the country according to Net Rankings (yes, I’m only halfway joking), I want to see what this team is really built for.

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Syracuse is coming into tonight’s game ranked #210 in the offensive ratings scoring just under 74 points a game. Ohio State’s defensive ranking coming into tonight’s game is tied at #16 in the country only allowing about 58 points a game.

So look for those two factors to come into play tonight. The defense will be key so that these young guys can get out and run against Syracuse. That will keep the Orange from setting up in their 2-3 defense that has been so deadly over the years.

Look for C.J. Jackson to have the ball in his hands most of the night, making the decisions for the Buckeye offense as well as getting out and running on the fast break. Playing an inside out game with Kaleb Wesson who has been playing well as of late.

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Once again it will be a test for Ohio State, but a good test early in the season as the #16 ranked team in the country.

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