Ohio State (21-12, 12-8) made it tough on them, but ultimately the Michigan Wolverines (29-2, 19-1) held on to win 71-67 in the Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinals matchup at the United Center in Chicago, Ill. Michigan will advance to play the winner of Wisconsin and Illinois and Ohio State will now wait to see where they are heading for the 2026 NCAA Tournament.
No. 8 seed Ohio State defeated No. 9 seed Iowa 72-69 on Thursday afternoon behind 24 points from all-time leading scorer Bruce Thornton to earn
a spot in the quarterfinals, while No. 1 seed Michigan had a triple bye.
Michigan came into the contest with the upper hand on Ohio State, as they were 2-0 against the Buckeyes in the regular season.
The Wolverines started off shooting the ball well, scoring the first seven points and ultimately taking a 13-5 lead on 5-for-8 shooting from the field at the under 16 media timeout. Ohio State Freshman forward Amare Bynum, who had a strong game against Iowa in the Buckeyes first game, picked up two fouls in the first five minutes.
However, every Michigan run was answered by Ohio State and the Buckeyes fought back from multiple runs by Michigan to only by down 39-35 heading into the halftime break after a Bruce Thornton jumper.
Brandon Noel entered the game for Bynum, his first game action since Jan. 5. He played nine minutes in the first half.
In the opening half, Thornton led all scorers with 13 points on 5-for-7 shooting rom the field. He added three rebounds and an assist. John Mobley Jr. and Devin Royal added seven points each and Royal added four rebounds.
Trey McKenney led Michigan with ten points off the bench. Elliot Cadeau and Morez Johnson Jr. added seven and six points, respectively.
Ohio State actually outrebounded Michigan 19 to 14 in the first half, but the Buckeyes had eight turnovers, including three from Thornton. The Wolverines had 15 points off the Buckeye turnovers. Big Ten Player of the Year Yaxel Lendeborg was held to three first half points on 1-for-3 shooting.
Michigan finished the half 0-for-4 from three-point range after starting 4-for-4.
To open the second half, Mobley rattled off seven straight points and had an nice assist to Christoph Tilly to tie the game at 44 with 16 minutes remaining in the game. However, the Buckeyes went scoreless for four minutes and the Wolverines went on a 7-0 run to take a 51-44 lead.
Gabe Cupps went on a solo 5-0 run for Ohio State to cut into the lead. A Thornton three-pointer cut the Michigan lead to just three points at 55-52. Four quick Michigan points made the score 59-52.
The two teams went back and forth for the final six minutes of the game and Michigan led 68-64 with 30 seconds left. Devin Royal split a pair of free throws and Ohio State fouled Cadeau, who also split the free throws. Royal made a jumper with seven seconds left to cut the Michigan lead to two points.
Lendeborg was fouled and he hit both free throws and Michigan held on to win 71-67.
I know it is March and there are no moral victories in March, but here are some positive takeaways as we head into the Big Dance.
Brandon Noel returns
The Buckeyes have had some health issues over the past month, with multiple important guys missing extended time. No one has missed more time than Brandon Noel, who returned today and played his first game action since Jan. 5 and is a solid depth piece and a physical frontcourt player.
Bruce Thornton’s big first half
Thornton has struggled against Michigan this season due to the matchup problems they present with Yaxel Lendeborg being able to guard him in man defense, but he was 5-for-7 from the field with 13 points and kept the Buckeyes in the game in the first half, feeding off the momentum from his big second half against Iowa the day before.
John Mobley Jr. starts second half strong
Mobley came out of the locker room from halftime and scored the first seven points and had a nice assist to account for the Buckeyes first nine points. Bruce Thornton is the main scorer for the Buckeyes, but they level up as a team when Mobley is a consistent second scorer at the guard position.
Gabe Cupps makes his presence known
Cupps has not been known for his offensive output this season, but he had five straight points for Ohio State to end a five minute scoring drought. If he can provide some scoring off the bench, that will be huge for Ohio State to add to his solid defense.
The Buckeyes are off the bubble
This is more of a positive takeaway in general, but Ohio State will not have to sweat on Selection Sunday. They will hear their name called for the first time in four years and will be participating in the NCAA tournament. It is an expectation, but nice to see regardless.
