The Buckeyes look to be headed for an 8, 9, 10, or 11-seed at the moment, if they make it.
Inch by inch, the Ohio State men’s basketball team (15-10, 7-7) is getting closer to an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Their 24-point win over the Washington Huskies on Wednesday night didn’t improve their resume much, but in the very least they didn’t lose the Quad-3 landmine game at home.
The Buckeyes have six games remaining on the schedule — three at home, three on the road. Mathematically, Ohio State could get to the 20-win mark before the Big Ten Tournament. Realistically, though, they probably need to get to 18 wins to feel comfortable about their spot in the big dance.
Last week, Connor and Justin debated how Ohio State would fare over the final eight games of the season. Since they ran that poll, the Buckeyes lost on the road at Nebraska and beat Washington at home, so they’re 1-1. Connor said that Ohio State would win at least six of the last eight, while Justin said they’d win four.
54% of the readers sided with Connor, although last week’s loss to Nebraska means the Buckeyes will need to 5-1 over the final six to actually prove him right.
After 191 weeks:
Connor- 86
Justin- 80
Other- 19
(There have been six ties)
The Buckeyes could still stumble to the finish line, blow it, and not make the NCAA Tournament. But just winning every other game should get them to the dance, and hopefully 3-3 would also help them avoid the Dayton play-in games.
Some folks think that an 8 or 9-seed is a brutal draw because your second game will be against a 1-seed. That train of thought would prefer your team gets a 10 or 11-seed, so that your hypothetical second game isn’t against a top seed. Others just want the highest seed possible to have a more favorable first game.
This week’s question: Would you prefer Ohio State get an 8, 9, 10, or 11 seed?
Connor: 8
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
I think Ohio State should just win as many games as they can and shoot for the highest seed as possible, which right now looks like it would probably be an 8-seed. As of Thursday night, Ohio State is a 10-seed according to Bracket Matrix. If they caught fire down the stretch they could possibly elevate to an 8-seed, or maybe higher if they also burn right through the Big Ten Tournament — but that’s quite the hypothetical.
If Ohio State was an 8-seed, they’d face a 9-seed team, and then in the second round they’d go up against one of the four 1-seeds. There is a very high likelihood that Ohio State would get squashed by an Auburn, Duke, or Alabama — in fact, we’ve already seen them get squashed by one of them.
However, for a program that hasn’t been to the NCAA Tournament in three years and has a first-time head coach managing a very flawed roster (that was his own creation), winning one game in the NCAA Tournament would be massive. The Buckeyes were an NIT team last season, and weren’t even good enough for the NIT the year before that. To get to the NCAA Tournament and win one game this year would be a solid start for Diebler.
Even though getting a 10 or 11 would set you up to not have to face a juggernaut in the second round, it also makes it tougher to win the first game. Just get the highest seed possible and try to win a tournament game.
Justin: 11
Regarding March Madness and the NCAA Tournament, two things matter: Getting into the tournament and matchups. So, for Ohio State, I don’t think it matters what seed they are; I want them to have the best matchup possible.
Obviously, they have to make the tournament first, and that comes with winning games. The Buckeyes have done a good job of winning games that get you into the tournament (Kentucky, Purdue, Maryland, and Texas) and avoiding losses that keep you out (Q3 and Q4 losses).
This is why I prefer if Ohio State falls to a 10 or 11 seed, as the matchups are lighter. As an 8 or 9 seed, you may win the first game, but then you have to take on a one seed in the second round, and you lose that game.
If you are an 11 seed, the six seed in the first round may be a little tougher than the eight seed, but the second-round matchup is much easier against a three seed versus a one seed. I would rather the Buckeyes have an easier path to the Sweet 16 than the second round.
In the grand scheme of things, I just want to see Ohio State in the NCAA Tournament again, but I do think an 11 seed would not be the worst thing ever.