Before every Ohio State men’s basketball game, Connor Lemons gets you ready for that day’s action with key stats, players to know, and prevalent storylines for that day’s game on the “Good Hoops Morning” podcast.
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Ohio State Buckeyes (-4.5) vs. UCLA Bruins| over/under 148.5
Game Date/Time: Saturday, January 17 at 1:00 p.m. ET
Location: Columbus, Ohio
TV: CBS
Radio: 97.1 FM/ 971thefan.com
Ohio State (11-5, 3-3) needs to
pick up some wins at home over the coming weeks as January comes to a close, because February is going to be a gauntlet for the Buckeyes. That all starts on Saturday, as Jake Diebler’s Buckeyes welcome Mick Cronin’s UCLA Bruins (12-5, 4-2) to Columbus.
Both Ohio State and UCLA have feasted on the bottom of the Big Ten so far this year, with neither team beating a fellow Big Ten team that’s in the top half of the conference standings. For Ohio State, Saturday’s game is a Quad-2 opportunity, for UCLA, it’s a Quad-1 game.
Ohio State will be without senior forward Brandon Noel, while senior center Christoph Tilly will likely be listed as questionable after being treated for a head injury suffered last weekend at Washington. Ohio State’s newest player, former Penn State forward Puff Johnson, may be on the bench Saturday, but is not expected to suit up one day after being ruled eligible by a court in Franklin County.
Following Saturday’s game, Ohio state will face Minnesota at home, Michigan on the road, and Penn State at home.
UCLA will likely be without guard Skyy Clark, who averages 13.5 points per game and is sooting 48.6% from three this season, as he recovers from a hamstring injury.
Connor’s prediction: UCLA 74, Ohio State 70
Connect with Connor:
Twitter: @lemons_connor
