Ohio State basketball survives scare from Penn State

The Ohio State basketball team has struggled in the month of January. That’s something that seems to be a trend under Chris Holtmann. They struggled offensively for a large chunk of today’s game against Penn State as well but were able to pull away to get the victory.

Ohio State once again didn’t score a lot of points, scoring just 61. It was enough though, as they won 61-56. It was an ugly game to watch offensively from the Buckeyes, especially from behind the three-point line. They shot it poorly again from back there, only going 3-12.

E.J. Liddell was able to carry the team despite the team only shooting 39% from the field. Liddell finished with 19 points on 6-11 shooting. He added 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks. The one thing he didn’t do well was shoot free throws, hitting only 6-12.

Zed Key was the only other Buckeye in double figures, finishing the game with 10. It was ugly shooting from the Buckeyes yet again. It’s starting to become concerning. You can’t keep scoring under 65 points and expect to win games in this conference. It’s just too tough.

A win is a win though, no matter how it comes. It’s always good to protect home court. They will be at home again in their next game on Tuesday when IUPUI comes to town. It will give the Ohio State basketball team a quick reprieve from the grind of the Big Ten.

We’ll see if the Buckeyes can correct their offensive woes on Tuesday. That would be a good game to do it before they take on Nebraska on Saturday. Ohio State had some issues against Nebraska in the first matchup, having to go to overtime to beat them.

We’ll see what Holtmann can come up with to get his team to score more points.