The Ohio State basketball team looked like they were going to break their NCAA Tournament drought this season. After wins over Kentucky, Purdue, and Maryland, they looked like they had the juice. At one point, the Buckeyes were 14-9 and looking like they were solidly in the field of 64.
That has flipped on its head. The Ohio State Buckeyes have now lost three straight games and four of their last five. They are playing their worst basketball at a time when they need to be playing their best. They lost to UCLA 69-61 on Sunday it what could be the nail in their coffin.
Had the Buckeyes been able to win that game, they would have had a chance to get themselves off the bubble. UCLA is a solid team, and winning on the road would have given them a Quad I win. Instead, they are likely to be on the outside looking in once again.
The Ohio State basketball team loses another game
Bruce Thornton did everything he could to keep the Buckeyes in it. He had 21 points against the Bruins and was their only consistent source of offense. For the second straight game, they scored just 24 points in the second half. This team can't run good half-court offense.
Jake Diebler seems to have run out of answers. Ohio State can't find easy buckets. Every single shot they take is heavily contested. When that happens, it's hard to win games. They now have just three games left in the regular season to improve their tournament resume.
Ohio State has to play at USC, home against Nebraska, and at Indiana to finish things out. They have to win all of those games and at least a couple of games in the Big Ten Tournament to put themselves back on the bubble. They have to win three games in the Big Ten Tournament to put themselves back in the NCAA Tournament.
It's a shame that the season has finished this way. The team hasn't been able to beat the teams they should. Right now, they don't look like they deserve to make the NCAA Tournament.