The Ohio State basketball team came into Saturday afternoon's matchup against Wisconsin squarely on the bubble. After surviving what would have been a death blow against Penn State, a win against the Badgers would have put them in a much better position to make the NCAA Tournament.
According to ESPN's Joe Lunardi, the Buckeyes were one of the last four byes in his latest bracketology prediction. Wisconsin was also in that group. Beating the Badgers on the road would have given Ohio State a quality win to put on its resume.
After an early 15-4 lead, Ohio State just stopped playing defense. They allowed Wisconsin to shoot 57% from the field in the first half. Quite frankly, they just allowed the Badgers to get whatever they wanted in the paint, and that led to a 92-82 loss for the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Ohio State basketball team put in a precarious position after loss to Wisconsin
This loss brings the Buckeyes down to 14-7 overall and 6-5 in the Big Ten. There's a chance that Ohio State's bubble may have popped with this loss. At the very least, it puts a ton of pressure on them the rest of the way. Ohio State plays four more ranked teams, including Virginia at a neutral site.
If Jake Diebler wants to put his team into the NCAA Tournament, the Buckeyes have to get at least one of those ranked matchups, in addition to beating the bad teams left on their schedule. In order to do that, the defense has to be better. Wisconsin kiled Ohio State in the paint.
Frustration for Ohio State basketball fans continues to build with Diebler, especially with the knowledge that John Calipari wanted to coach the Buckeyes when Diebler was hired. Instead of having a coach who won a national championship, Ross Bjork chose a first-time head coach.
The month of February will be pressure-packed for Ohio State.