Why the Ohio State basketball team is finally winning games

The Ohio State basketball team won their second game in a row on Wednesday night after they beat Maryland 73-62. It was the first time in 2023 that they won two games in a row. Before Wednesday, they had lost nine-straight games and 14 of their last 15.

So what’s changed? Why are the Buckeyes actually winning games against teams that are better than them now? What’s the biggest difference? Having watched them play all year, I think it’s a multitude of reasons why they are finally playing better basketball.

The first thing that jumps out is that they are only playing healthy guys. Zed Key hurt his shoulder early in the season in Maui. Since then, he’s tried to gut it out and play until he was finally shut down for the year. Frankly, he should have been shut down sooner.

Key was not effective when he was playing hurt because he was tentative. I don’t blame him for trying to be tough and play through the pain, but the Ohio State basketball team was forced to essentially play four-on-five when he was on the court, especially offensively.

Now that they have Okpara out there, things have become a bit easier. Another reason why the Buckeyes have begun to play better is that their defense has become better. They aren’t allowing teams to score in transition as much and they’ve made both Illinois and Maryland make tough shots.

Perhaps the biggest reason why the Buckeyes have won back-to-back games is that they are playing freer than they have all year. This team plays like it has nothing to lose, which they don’t. Unless they somehow win the Big Ten Tourney, their season will end next week.

When that’s the case, why not play with reckless abandon? No one expects you to win anyway. It makes sense that the Buckeyes are able to go out there and try some new things. Hopefully, they can keep this up for the rest of the year.