The Big Ten’s two big bubble teams, the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Indiana Hoosiers, were both in action Wednesday night. Ohio State entered the day in ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi’s First Four Byes, where Indiana was projected as one of the First Four Out. However, a wild day of hoops has definitely changed the fortunes of both teams.
Indiana Hoosiers Defend Home Court and Push Past Penn State
The Indiana Hoosiers have a lot of talent on their squad, enough that many thought they would not have to be sweating out results late into February to secure a spot in the NCAA Tournament. Yet here they are, with head coach Mike Woodson already declaring that he will leave the program after this year, and work to do to make sure his final season ends with a trip to the Big Dance.
In mid-February, things did not look good for Hoosier fans. After 5 straight defeats, they traveled to East Lansing to face a tough Michigan State team. However, since they managed to upset Tom Izzo’s crew, they’ve also secured a massive rivalry win against #13 Purdue. Wednesday night, they added a tense win over the Penn State Nittany Lions to their ledger.
After being down for large stretches, Indiana took the lead with around five minutes left, and although Penn State remained within one or two possessions for the rest of the contest, they gutted out a 83-78 win. Center Oumar Ballo had 20 points, 12 rebounds, and 5 assists, while Trey Galloway, despite 6 turnovers, tallied 16 points. Myles Rice came off the bench to add 13 points, 11 of which came in the second half.
20 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals 🔥
Oumar Ballo went off in the Hoosiers’ win over Penn State 😤#B1GMBBall x @IndianaMBB pic.twitter.com/uuagB7lYv3
— Big Ten Men’s Basketball (@B1GMBBall) February 27, 2025
Indiana cannot afford a slip-up at this point in the season. They have three games remaining before the Big Ten Tournament, with a critical Pacific Northwest road trip next week. Although the Washington Huskies are currently last in the conference, they have beaten the likes of Maryland on their home floor, where Illinois also needed some late heroics to escape with a win. After that, they face a quality Oregon team that will give them an opportunity for a coveted Quad 1 win.
Ohio State Needed Late Dramatics in Southern California to Secure Quad 1 Win
Ohio State faced USC on Wednesday, with an opportunity to add another Quad 1 win to their list of accomplishments this season. State was up 17 approaching halftime, but in the second half, the Trojans were taking the fight to the Buckeyes.
Despite the 14-point halftime lead, the Buckeyes had massive struggles on offense in the second half. With 10 minutes to play, the lead was down to 3, and Ohio State found themselves in a dogfight. Nothing was easy on offense, with even the likes of Bruce Thorton and Devin Royal struggling to find openings. Ohio State made only 1 field goal over the final 9 minutes of the game, but still managed to hang on due to making 13 free throws. The 87-82 road victory is a massive step forward for Jake Diebler’s squad.
Thorton and Micah Parrish once again led the team, contributing 20 points each. Despite the bench contributing just 8 points, and USC shooting 60% from the field as a team, Ohio State’s dominant first half bought them enough leeway to escape Galen Center with a victory.
Ohio State’s remaining two games are against two other bubble teams – next up is a home date with the Nebraska Cornhuskers, who currently are right behind Ohio State in Lunardi’s projections. They then close their season against Indiana, in what might turn out to be a must-win game for both teams.
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