Ohio State basketball prepares to face elite backcourt in Big Ten Quarterfinals

The Ohio State basketball team advanced in the Big Ten Tournament after they beat Iowa last night 90-78 to move on. Tonight, the Buckeyes will get a chance at avenging another loss from earlier in the season when they face Illinois in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament.

Ohio State last faced Illinois back at the end of January, and Illinois took that meeting in Columbus 87-75. In that game, Illinois' lead guards, Terrence Shannon Jr. and Marcus Domask, dominated with 23 points each. In order for the Buckeyes to pull off the upset tonight, they will need to find a way to contain those two.

In Ohio State's run of winning six of their last seven games, they have built a strong interior defense. Felix Okpara gets at least one block each game, and the Buckeyes simply just turn up the physicality when opposing teams come inside the three-point line.

Unfortunately for the Buckeyes, their strong interior defense works better for the Fighting Illini as they thrive on the perimeter. Illinois has one of the best offenses in the conference averaging 83.9 points per game, which ranks second in the Big Ten. They also rank third in the Big Ten in both three-point attempts and made threes per game.

Ohio State may be excellent at defending inside the arc, but tonight they will need to extend that same pressure outside of the three-point line. Terrence Shannon Jr is a blur in the open floor and very difficult to stop with a full head of steam. Domask on the other hand, likes to use his size to back down smaller defenders in the post. Both are tremendous shooters as well.

I would expect to see Roddy Gayle Jr. starting on Shannon Jr. defensively to match his speed and length. I would like to see Bruce Thornton starting on Marcus Domask. There might be a major height difference, but Thornton has the size and frame to battle, and make it difficult for Domask in the post.

If the Buckeyes want to keep their season alive they must win tonight's game against Illinois. If they can slow down Illinois' two best players they will have a greater chance at securing an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.

The Ohio State basketball team will need to have their best performance defensively on the perimeter tonight to contain the Fighting Illini's best players. Tip-off is set for 6:30pm from the Target Center in Minneapolis on the Big Ten Network.