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Ohio State basketball vs. UCLA: Preview

By Ryan Stano

Purdue forward Trevion Williams (50) goes to pass the ball between Ohio State Kyle Young (25) and Ohio State Musa Jallow (2) during the second half of an NCAA men's basketball game, Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2020 at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette.Bkc Purdue Vs Ohio State
Purdue forward Trevion Williams (50) goes to pass the ball between Ohio State Kyle Young (25) and Ohio State Musa Jallow (2) during the second half of an NCAA men's basketball game, Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2020 at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette.Bkc Purdue Vs Ohio State /
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Another Ohio State team plays today, and that is the Ohio State basketball team. The basketball Bucks play UCLA today after some opponent shuffling for the CBS Sports Classic.

The Ohio State basketball team plays today at 4:15 against UCLA in the CBS Sports Classic. They were originally supposed to play North Carolina, but COVID protocols shifted their matchup to UCLA. This is good news because UCLA is a much easier foe.

The Buckeyes are coming off their first loss of the season after they lost to Purdue 67-60 earlier this week. They struggled scoring the ball and their shooting percentage was only 38%. They didn’t have a go-to scorer that could get them a big bucket when they needed it.

E.J. Liddell is returning today, which is great news for the Buckeyes. Liddell is their best player, their leading scorer, and leading rebounder. Adding him back to the fold gives the Buckeyes a massive boost in their half-court offense, which is something they have lacked since he went out with mono.

It’s unclear what to expect from this team in this game. The Buckeyes have only played bad competition except for Notre Dame and Purdue. They beat Notre Dame in large part because of Liddell. But they were so bad against Purdue that I’m not sure one man coming back makes a difference.

Game prediction: Ohio State 75 UCLA 71

In the end, I think Liddell returning gives the Buckeyes enough of an offensive bump to win. UCLA only scored 58 points in their loss to San Deigo State earlier in the week. If Liddell can play at least 30 minutes in this game, he should give Ohio State enough points to come out victorious.

Next. Three undervalued players in the 2021 football recruiting class. dark

This is a game that the Buckeyes need to win to get back on track.

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