The Buckeyes head home to Columbus looking to bounce back from their first loss of the season.
Ohio State (2-1) kicks off a four-game homestand and looks to bounce back from their first loss of the season when they face Evansville (1-3) in Columbus tonight.
After upsetting No. 19 Texas and defeating Youngstown State, the Buckeyes return home after falling, 78-64, on the road at No. 23 Texas A&M. Evansville bounced back from their season-opening loss to North Texas with a massive win over (NAIA) Brescia, but they’ve dropped their last two (to Middle Tennessee and most recently, Radford). They’re 0-2 on the road this season.
It is the first meeting of the two programs since 1976, and only their fifth all-time matchup. The Buckeyes have won all four of their meetings to-date.
Preview
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Through their first two games, the Buckeyes looked pretty consistent in terms of scoring, though they came out of the gate much slower in their loss against the Aggies.
Still, where the offense struggled to get going, the Buckeyes compensated with strong first half defense. Both teams looked shaky to start offensively, and the Buckeyes managed to force seven turnovers, holding the Aggies to under 24 percent shooting before the break. It was this defensive effort that allowed the Buckeyes to stay in the game in spite of themselves.
They fared much differently in the second half— the Aggies banged out six points in the first 90 seconds of the third quarter to extend their lead to 15, and the Buckeyes never managed to quite get themselves back in it, falling, 78-64.
Foul trouble was a problem for both teams, with a collective total of 45 fouls, but the disparity at the line was costly: While the Aggies went 32-for-40 on free throws, the Buckeyes were just 16-of-22 comparatively.
Bruce Thornton led the Buckeyes in scoring with 15 points–all but three of which came in the second half–and four assists. The 6-foot-2 junior guard currently leads the team with an average of 15.7 points and four assists per game.
Freshman John Mobley Jr. has been astonishing and sits just behind Thornton with 14.3 points per game and a team-leading ten three-pointers. His average of 3.3 threes per game is third-best in the country among freshmen. Senior guard Micah Parrish is also averaging double digits, with 10.3 points and 4.7 rebounds per game.
The Buckeyes have six players averaging 7.3 points per game or more on their roster. Collectively, the team is shooting better than 40 percent from three-point range.
For Evansville, Gabriel Pozzato—a 6-foot-7 freshman forward out of Italy—leads the way through their first four. He’s averaging 19.3 points, 3 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game.
Junior guard Cam Haffner, who put up a career-high 23 points (and six threes) in the Purple Aces’ loss to Radford, is averaging 14.8 points, 2.5 rebounds and 2 assists per game. The Buckeyes last saw Haffner in 2022, when he played for Eastern Illinois. The Buckeyes won, 65-43.
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Pozzato and Haffner each have 11-made three-pointers this year.
Rounding out their double-digit scorers, junior guard Tayshawn Comer is averaging 11.3 points, 3 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game. Senior guard Tanner Cuff leads in rebounds, assists and steals, averaging 7.5 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.5 steals per game.
The Purple Aces were favored in their last game against Radford and, at one point, led by 22 points. Unlike the Buckeyes against A&M, they started strong and carried an 18-point lead into halftime. Things didn’t go south until after the break, when Radford came out of the gate hitting seven of their first nine, while the Purple Aces missed each of their first five shots and tacked on three turnovers to their struggles.
Head coach David Ragland has gone with the same starting five in each of the Purple Aces’ first four games, with sophomore forward Joshua Hughes joining Pozzato, Haffner, Comer and Cuff. Hughes, for his part, is averaging 8.5 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.
Prediction
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The Buckeyes’ struggles against A&M started early, with both teams combining for just eight points in the first five minutes of the matchup. Thornton kicked things off for Ohio State with a three-pointer, but there was radio silence from the Scarlet and Gray for over six minutes after that.
Ohio State doesn’t want to take that long to get going against any opponent, as it opens the door for trouble. Still, the Buckeyes should have a little more breathing room in this matchup.
After an extremely physical battle against the Aggies, the Purple Aces’ willingness to shoot from long-range might be a welcome break for the Buckeyes, allowing them to execute on defense without the physical toll.
Though Ohio State is expected to win this one easily, they can’t let themselves become complacent. Ragland is looking at this game as a way to prepare his team for Missouri Valley Conference play, but if opportunity knocks, his Aces won’t have any problem answering.
That means the Buckeyes need to stay out of foul trouble, execute better than they did against the Aggies, and establish their offense early.
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Even if the game is close in the first half, the Buckeyes should be able to maintain control and pull away in the second half for a comfortable win.
ESPN BPI: Ohio State 98.5%
Time: 7:00 p.m. ET
TV: B1G+ (Big Ten Plus)
LGHL score prediction: Ohio State 81, Evansville 65