The Ohio State Buckeyes lost in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to the No. 2 seed, Villanova Wildcats, 71-61. It was a valiant effort by Ohio State as they trimmed a 15-point Villanova lead down to two points before the Wildcats took the game back over and finished strong down the stretch.
The Wildcats are moving onto the Sweet 16 and will see another Big Ten opponent in the No. 11 seed, Michigan Wolverines. That contest will tip-off on Thursday.
Malaki Branham was the star of the show for the Buckeyes, as he scored 23 points with 15 occurred in the second half. E.J. Lidell was the second leading Ohio State scorer with 17 points in his last game in a scarlet and gray uniform.
Despite the loss, it was an effort that showed heart, grit, and determination against a team that has enough of the same traits to make a deep run to the Final Four. Villanova’s Collin Gillespie went on a tear in the first half to lead the Wildcats to an eleven-point lead in the first half and into the locker room they never relinquished.
Ohio State was outdueled in the paint with physicality and one-on-one-isolation it could never quite figure out. Despite it all, the Buckeyes made a serious run at an upset bid in the second half when it began to get stops and slowly work its way back into the game, eventually getting as close as 60-58 with under five minutes to play.
Fought to the end#Team123 pic.twitter.com/Mjxh2o9ofd
— Ohio State Hoops (@OhioStateHoops) March 20, 2022
But it was all too much to overcome as Villanova found itself at the end of the game and went on a mini-run to take control and fend off an OSU team that never quite found itself this season. Now, it’ll be time to figure out what this offseason holds with several key question marks heading into next season.
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