{"id":185195,"date":"2023-01-13T02:57:20","date_gmt":"2023-01-13T02:57:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/ohio-state-drops-third-game-in-a-row-second-straight-at-home-in-70-67-loss-to-minnesota\/"},"modified":"2023-01-13T02:57:20","modified_gmt":"2023-01-13T02:57:20","slug":"ohio-state-drops-third-game-in-a-row-second-straight-at-home-in-70-67-loss-to-minnesota","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/ohio-state-drops-third-game-in-a-row-second-straight-at-home-in-70-67-loss-to-minnesota\/","title":{"rendered":"Ohio State Drops Third Game in A Row, Second Straight at Home in 70-67 Loss to Minnesota"},"content":{"rendered":"

The slide continues. <\/p>\n

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\tOhio State has now dropped three games in a row after suffering its worst loss of the season, a 70-67 defeat to a Minnesota team that entered the day as the only Big Ten program without a conference win. The Buckeyes started 7-0 at home but have now lost back-to-back games at the Schottenstein Center for the first time in two seasons.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
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\t\t\t\tteam\n\t\t\t<\/th>\n

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\t\t\t\tFINAL\n\t\t\t<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n

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\t\t\t\tOHIO STATE\n\t\t\t<\/td>\n

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\n\t\t\t\tMINNESOTA<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/td>\n\n\t\t\t\t37<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/td>\n\n\t\t\t\t33<\/b>\n\t\t\t<\/td>\n\n\t\t\t\t70<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

\tOhio State’s effort was uninspired early as Minnesota led for nearly the entire first half and went to the locker room up two points. But the Buckeyes battled through a sluggish opening frame to retake a lead on the Gophers in the second half. It didn’t last long, though, as Minnesota took control shortly thereafter, eventually opening up a double-digit lead.\n<\/p>\n

\tThe Buckeyes tied it up with 8.6 seconds to go behind multiple clutch plays from Brice Sensabaugh, but ultimately couldn’t complete the comeback. A controversial foul call on a Bruce Thornton block allowed the Gophers to hit the game-winning free throw with less than two seconds remaining on the clock.\n<\/p>\n

\tZed Key returned to action after missing most of the past two games with a shoulder injury, and despite not starting the game, the Buckeyes’ starting center wound up logging 30 minutes and putting up 10 points before all was said and done. But even with Key on the floor, 6-foot-11 Gopher forward Dawson Garcia caused problems for the Buckeye defense all evening. Garcia dropped 12 points in the first half alone and finished with 28 for the game.\n<\/p>\n

\tDespite possessing one of the nation’s elite offenses in terms of adjusted efficiency, the Buckeyes turned in their second straight flat performance in a losing effort. Ohio State shot just 37.5% from the field on Thursday to turn in its worst shooting night of the year.\n<\/p>\n

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\tFirst Half
\n<\/h3>\n

\tIt was a slow start for the Buckeyes, who hit just two of their first 10 shots while Minnesota got out to a two-possession lead in the early going. Chris Holtmann called his first timeout before six minutes passed in an attempt to jumpstart his squad, but the Gophers just kept hitting shots. By the 12-minute mark, they’d mounted a 19-10 lead.\n<\/p>\n

\tOhio State scored eight of the next 10 points after that, but just as it seemed the Buckeyes had found their groove, they allowed Garcia to get going on the other end. The Gopher big man caught fire to score 12 straight Minnesota points in a little over three minutes of game time, keeping the Buckeyes at bay in the process.\n<\/p>\n

\tSeason scoring leaders Brice Sensabaugh and Justice Sueing both struggled from the floor as Ohio State shot a combined 35.3% from the field in the first half. Minnesota, which entered the game with the lowest-scoring offense in the conference, knocked down 55.6% of its shots.\n<\/p>\n

\tBut Ohio State hung around to stay within striking distance and a quick 6-0 run by Sean McNeil tied things up in the final minute.\n<\/p>\n

\tMinnesota responded with the final make of the half to enter halftime up 37-35 in hostile territory. The Gophers had a lead for 16:33 of the first 20 minutes.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
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\t\t\t\tOHIO STATE\n\t\t\t<\/th>\n

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\t\t\t\t24-64 (37.5%)\n\t\t\t<\/td>\n

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\t\t\t\t27-54 (50%)\n\t\t\t<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

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\t\t\t\t6-13 (46.2%)\n\t\t\t<\/td>\n

\n\t\t\t\t3PM-3PA (PCT.)<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/td>\n\n

\t\t\t\t7-22 (31.8%)\n\t\t\t<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

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\t\t\t\t13-15 (86.7%)\n\t\t\t<\/td>\n

\n\t\t\t\tFTM-FTA (PCT.)<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/td>\n\n

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\t\t\t\t9\n\t\t\t<\/td>\n

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\n

\tSecond Half
\n<\/h3>\n

\tTwo early threes from Bruce Thornton provided an early spark for the Buckeye offense, and even as Garcia and the Gophers kept knocking down shots, Ohio State managed to tie the game up at 15:38 and 14:21.\n<\/p>\n

\tSensabaugh didn’t start the second half for Ohio State, but 22 seconds after entering the game for the first time in the period, he collected his own rebound and converted an and-one. The free throw put the Buckeyes up 51-50 a little under seven minutes into the half and Minnesota called a timeout. The lead was Ohio State’s first since its opening shot of the game.\n<\/p>\n

\tThe Gophers quickly swiped that momentum away from the scarlet and gray over the next few minutes, though, as they embarked on a 7-0 run to take a two-possession edge as the half reached the midway mark. While the Buckeyes missed seven out of eight shots during that stretch, Minnesota pushed it to 10 points unanswered en route to a nine-point advantage with 7:40 to play.\n<\/p>\n

\tBy the 5:15 mark, Minnesota had scored 14 of the past 16 points in the ballgame to open up a double-digit lead for the first time all game. Ohio State threw a full-court press at the Gophers to try and generate extra possessions, but still had significant ground to make up late.\n<\/p>\n

\tOhio State cut the Gopher lead to four points on a McNeil runner with 2:21 to go, and a Sensabaugh 3-pointer with 31 seconds to go made it a two-point game. Minnesota missed the front end of a one-and-one at the other end, and Sensabaugh got fouled on the next Buckeye possession to tie the game at the free-throw line.\n<\/p>\n

\tBut after Thornton was called for a foul on what appeared to be a clean block with 1.7 left, Minnesota hit one of two free throws and the Buckeyes threw the ball out of bounds on a full-court inbounds pass that effectively ended the game.\n<\/p>\n

\n

\tGame Notes
\n<\/h3>\n