Ohio State basketball learns opponent and world-famous venue for this year’s CBS Sports Classic

Ohio State hoops knows its opponent and venue for this year’s CBS Sports Classic.

The CBS Sports Classic is still going strong. After missing out on last year’s event because of a rise in COVID-19 cases, Ohio State will play North Carolina in this year’s event. And this time, it’ll be in the world’s most famous arena, Madison Square Garden on December 17. Stadium’s Jeff Goodman first reported the news.

The CBS Sports Classic has been in place since 2014. It pits Ohio State, UCLA, North Carolina, and Kentucky in a four-team event with teams rotating around to play one game against another each year.

The Buckeyes were set to play the Wildcats last season but both that game and the North Carolina vs. UCLA game were shelved because of pandemic issues within the OSU and UCLA programs. Kentucky ended up facing North Carolina in a quick shell game to allow at least one game.

The Buckeyes are 4-3 all-time in the event and hold a 0-2 record against the Tar Heels in the four-team format. Ohio State is just 2-11 against North Carolina all time but won the last matchup between the two programs 74-49 in Chapel Hill back in 2019.

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Ohio State basketball to play in CBS Sports Classic at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas

Is this a tempting venue and city to go to? Who’s planning on going for this matchup between Ohio State and one of the blue-bloods of the sport?

Ohio State basketball’s 2021-2022 schedule continues to come more into focus. We know what the Big Ten opponent breakdown will be (we just need dates and times), and we’ve also gotten a peek at the complete nonconference schedule lately, and it’s a doozy.

One of those early nonconference tests comes by way of the CBS Sports Classic, an event Ohio State has been a part of since its inception in 2014. It involves not only the Buckeyes, but blue-bloods Kentucky, North Carolina, and UCLA. And if you think OSU doesn’t belong in that crowd, we’re here to remind you that the Buckeyes have the second-best record among the four in the event, going 4-3, just a game behind Carolina’s 5-2 record.

And while we already knew OSU would be taking on Kentucky as a part of all the fun this season, we were waiting for a venue. Wait no longer my friends. According to a release Tuesday, the game will take place in Las Vegas at the T-Mobile Arena after the conclusion of North Carolina vs. UCLA at 3 p.m EST.

It’ll be another chance for Ohio State to get a quality win next season. The Buckeyes are expected to be a top ten squad again next year, even with the announcement by Duane Washington to remain in the 2021 NBA draft.

Kentucky is coming off of a very uncharacteristic  9-16 campaign that saw it miss the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the 2012-2013 season. It was the Wildcats’ first losing season since 1988-1989. However, head coach John Calipari made significant coaching and roster changes that have most believing Big Blue will be back among some of the best teams in college basketball this season.

The game has the potential to be a top-ten matchup, and fans interested in purchasing tickets can register to receive direct email alerts regarding ticket availability by logging on to cbssportsclassic.com/tickets. Tickets are set to go on sale next Wednesday, July 28, so set your alarms, mark your calendars, and make it happen.

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Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes and opinion.

Ohio State basketball to play in CBS Sports Classic at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas

Is this a tempting venue and city to go to? Who’s planning on going for this matchup between Ohio State and one of the blue-bloods of the sport?

Ohio State basketball’s 2021-2022 schedule continues to come more into focus. We know what the Big Ten opponent breakdown will be (we just need dates and times), and we’ve also gotten a peek at the complete nonconference schedule lately, and it’s a doozy.

One of those early nonconference tests comes by way of the CBS Sports Classic, an event Ohio State has been a part of since its inception in 2014. It involves not only the Buckeyes, but blue-bloods Kentucky, North Carolina, and UCLA. And if you think OSU doesn’t belong in that crowd, we’re here to remind you that the Buckeyes have the second-best record among the four in the event, going 4-3, just a game behind Carolina’s 5-2 record.

And while we already knew OSU would be taking on Kentucky as a part of all the fun this season, we were waiting for a venue. Wait no longer my friends. According to a release Tuesday, the game will take place in Las Vegas at the T-Mobile Arena after the conclusion of North Carolina vs. UCLA at 3 p.m EST.

It’ll be another chance for Ohio State to get a quality win next season. The Buckeyes are expected to be a top ten squad again next year, even with the announcement by Duane Washington to remain in the 2021 NBA draft.

Kentucky is coming off of a very uncharacteristic  9-16 campaign that saw it miss the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the 2012-2013 season. It was the Wildcats’ first losing season since 1988-1989. However, head coach John Calipari made significant coaching and roster changes that have most believing Big Blue will be back among some of the best teams in college basketball this season.

The game has the potential to be a top-ten matchup, and fans interested in purchasing tickets can register to receive direct email alerts regarding ticket availability by logging on to cbssportsclassic.com/tickets. Tickets are set to go on sale next Wednesday, July 28, so set your alarms, mark your calendars, and make it happen.

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Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes and opinion.

Three things we learned from Ohio State basketball’s win over UCLA

Ohio State basketball got a big win against UCLA in the CBS Sports Classic. Here are three things we learned watching the game.

It was a double-dip Saturday on Ohio State’s two revenue-producing sports. First, the football team took care of business against the Northwestern Wildcats, winning its fourth-straight Big Ten championship. After that though, the basketball team took to the hardcourt to take on UCLA in the CBS Sports Classic.

Much like the game on the gridiron in football, it too was a bruising, Donnybrook that the Buckeyes were able to tough out and win. Unlike what we saw in Indianapolis, the hoops team was not rescued by Trey Sermon.

It was a good bounce back after the loss at Purdue on Wednesday, and there are definitely some things to take from the victory. Here are three things we observed from the 77-70 win by Ohio State.

NEXT … Time to believe in Zed Key

Ohio State to now play UCLA instead of North Carolina in CBS Sports Classic

Ohio State basketball’s opponent in the CBS Sports Classic has changed. The Buckeyes will now play UCLA instead of North Carolina.

If you were like me and looking forward to another Ohio State basketball matchup with North Carolina, you’ll have to adjust your anticipation just a bit. That’s because the folks running the CBS Sports Classic has announced a change in matchups. Rather than OSU facing the Tar Heels, it will now match up with UCLA. Carolina will now face Kentucky.

The time of the Buckeyes’ hoops game against the Bruins will remain at the same tip the game against UNC was set for, 4:15 p.m. That will still give Ohio State fans the ability to watch the Big Ten Championship Game on the gridiron between Northwestern, then change channels and watch the scarlet and gray work magic on the court.

Though there wasn’t a lot of detail provided on the rationale for the change, the event organizers announced that “the revised schedule was created to more closely align COVID-19 testing protocols between the competing programs and their respective conferences.”

We’ll just leave that there and look for a fantastic matchup against a little different shade of blue, albeit very similar on Saturday.

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Ohio State basketball game vs. North Carolina rescheduled to later time slot

The Ohio State – North Carolina basketball game has been moved to a later time slot to accommodate OSU football’s Big Ten Championship Game.

If you read the headline, you probably thought it was another coronavirus cancellation. We’re sorry about that, but we can confirm that’s not the case — the exact opposite rather.

Now that we know the Ohio State football team will be playing in Indianapolis Saturday against Northwestern in the Big Ten Championship game, a quick look at the calendar tells you there was a potential conflict. Not only is the big one in Indy happening on December 19, but so too is the Ohio State basketball game against the North Carolina Tar Heels.

We know the Big Ten Championship is slotted for Noon EST, and the CBS Sports Classic game OSU hoops was to play in was scheduled for 2:00 p.m. EST. Say what? That’s bad news to have to choose between the two.

Don’t worry, you no longer have to. That’s because per an announcement by the folks that are in charge of these things, the OSU vs. UNC basketball game has now been moved to 4:15 p.m EST, which should give all you Buckeye fans the ability to watch both.

Whew!

Hopefully, it’s a twin victory for the two biggest revenue sports and we can all go to bed happy and forward-looking towards Christmas less than a week later.

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Ohio State basketball matchups for CBS Sports Classic extension announced

The four-team CBS Sports Classic will be extended with Ohio State basketball continuing to participate. It’ll play North Carolina in 2020.

If you’ve been following college basketball over the last few years, you are keenly aware that the CBS Sports Classic has pitted Ohio State, North Carolina, Kentucky, and UCLA against each other in rotating years. The format first appeared in 2014, and was extended through this past season after the 2017 matchups.

We now know that the CBS Sports Classic will again be extended according to a report from CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein. There are no dates or venues scheduled yet, but we do know that Ohio State will face North Carolina this coming season, then UCLA in 2021, and Kentucky in 2022.

This is great news for college basketball fans, especially for the four teams that take part in the annual event.

And remember, many singled out Ohio State as the program that didn’t fit in this matchup. Of the four, those that don’t know much about the history of college basketball railed on a Buckeye program getting invited to this party.

The Buckeyes have equated themselves fine enough thank you very much, going 3-3 overall. The only team with a winning record in the Classic is North Carolina at 4-2. Kentucky is 3-3, and UCLA has finished just 2-4.

As we know more about dates and venues, we’ll be sure to pass on further information.

After six years, Ohio State basketball held its own in the CBS Sports Classic

The Ohio State basketball program held its own against other blue-bloods of college basketball during the history of the CBS Sports Classic

When the CBS Sports Classic was first announced as a three-year run from 2014 through 2016, many asked which of these things don’t belong. The deal with the whole event was to pit some of the most dominant programs in college basketball history against one another in a round robin, three-year tournament.

But many asked why Ohio State was put among blue bloods Kentucky, UCLA, and North Carolina. I mean, the Buckeyes are a football school right, and lack the pedigree of those three dominant programs?

Well, yes, and no.

We’ve said it before, and we’ll continue to say it until we’re blue (but not Carolina or Kentucky blue) in the face. If it weren’t for football, Ohio State might be known as a basketball school.

The Buckeyes only have one national title to their credit, but they have as many Big Ten championships as any team in the conference when adding together regular season and Big Ten Tournament titles. Ohio Sate is also tied for sixth in Final Fours in the history of the sport, and have a slew of NCAA appearances and wins — even some national players of the year to boast about.

So, it should be no surprise then that Ohio State backed up that history with a respectable showing against those three other schools after the CBS Sports Classic was extended to six years, the last of which just ended this past weekend.

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It was an up and down affair to be sure over that time, but with the win over Kentucky on Saturday, OSU finished with a 3-3 record, second only to North Carolina who went 4-2. The Wildcats tied Ohio State with a 3-3 record, while UCLA had the worst showing of the four schools with a 2-4 record over the six years.

Here’s how the Buckeyes fared against each:

Kentucky: OSU went 2-0 (wins in 2015 and 2019)
UCLA: OSU went 1-1 (lost in 2016, won in 2018)
North Carolina: OSU went 0-2 (lost in 2014 and 2017)

And what about Chris Holtmann? He’s done well for himself going 2-1, with the lone loss coming to North Carolina in 2017.

There’s been no news about extending the event for another three years, but it sure was a fun tournament to showcase Ohio State over the last six years. We’ll have to see if CBS liked it enough, and if the four programs believe it fits into their scheduling philosophy going forward.

Not bad for a football school eh?

Ohio State basketball’s win over Kentucky in stunning photos

Ohio State added another quality win to its resume with a 71-65 win over the Kentucky Wildcats. Re-live the victory in stunning photos.

Nothing says a big win like high-resolution images that capture big moments. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and there’s plenty to say after the Ohio State basketball team added another win to an already impressive resume.

So, take some time to scroll through some game images from the action on the court between Ohio State and Kentucky in the CBS Sports Classic out in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Buckeyes were able to extend its modest one point lead at halftime out to a couple of buckets in the second half and never looked back in a 71-65 triumph.

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Watch what Kentucky head coach John Calipari said about Ohio State postgame

Kentucky head coach John Calipari met with the media after his team lost to Ohio State in the CBS Sports Classic. Watch everything he said.

Ohio State toughed one out against a top-ten Kentucky team and continued to build upon its impressive resume.

Wildcat head coach John Calipari met with the media after his team’s loss to talk about his team, the game, and field questions from reporters. If you know anything about Calipari, he’s a talker, but he’s brutally honest to his players, assistant coaches, and the media.

He had plenty to say after the game, and he was very complimentary and impressed with Ohio State and had no problem heaping praise on the Buckeyes.

If you didn’t catch any of his comments, you can get his entire press conference here thanks to the YouTube Channel of Kentucky Wildcats TV. Just click on the below and listen.

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