It’s one the Ohio State basketball team should have put away and notched in the win column. Leading by as much as 18 points at one time, the Buckeyes let Penn State back in the game in the second half and eventually fell late by a score of 83-80 on Saturday night.
It started off great for the OSU, controlling most of the first half and grabbing some breathing room before heading to the break up 41-29.
It would be more of the same to start the second half, with the Buckeyes going up by 18 when Jamison Battle hit a three-point bucket to put OSU up 55-37 at the 15:31 mark left in the game. But the Nittany Lions began to make big shots and play with more purpose and effort than the young Ohio State team, slowly closing the deficit and eventually, finally, grabbing a 79-76 lead with :32 seconds left when Ace Baldwin Jr. made a step back three pointer.
From there, OSU tried to make some magic happen, but the Nittany Lions held on for the victory.
It was turnovers that doomed the Buckeyes. For the game, they had 16 charitable contributions to just eight by Penn State. The rebounding that was dominant by the guys in scarlet and gray in the first half went towards the Nittany Lions in a considerable fashion, as did loose balls and a desire to win. It’s the type of loss that can derail a season or be filed away as a learning lesson for a young team still looking to improve and be a factor in the league.
Final
OSU: 80
PSU: 83The Buckeyes are back in action Saturday, December 16 taking on UCLA at 3 PM in Atlanta, GA for the CBS Sports Classic🏀 pic.twitter.com/deokLFG9mF
— Ohio State Hoops 🌰 (@OhioStateHoops) December 10, 2023
Bruce Thornton led the Buckeyes with 17 points on 4-of-11 shooting. Jamison Battle (13 points), Zed Key (12 points), and Roddy Gayle Jr. (11 points), also scored in double figures, but it wasn’t enough.
The loss drops Ohio State’s record to 8-2 overall and 1-1 in the conference. OSU will next take on UCLA on Saturday in the CBS Sports Classic.
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