The Matchup: No. 24 Ohio State (16-5, 3-5 B1G) at No. 15 Wisconsin (17-4, 4-4 B1G)
When: Saturday, Feb. 1 at 11am CT
Where: Kohl Center in Madison, WI
TV: ESPN
Radio: Badger Radio Network
All-Time Series: 85-67 OSU leads
Last Meeting: 76-49 UW won, Big Ten Tournament – 3/17/13
The Opposition:
If there is a team that is in a worse free-fall than Wisconsin it is Ohio State. The Buckeyes come in to the Kohl Center having lost five of their last six games, including a loss on Wednesday at home to Penn State in overtime. Make no mistake, this team comes and goes as Aaron Craft does.
That's been a problem, as Craft isn't even in the top 30 of scoring in Big Ten play, averaging just 8.8ppg. Instead, the top scorers on this team are LaQuinton Ross and Lenzelle Smith, who are averaging 16.3 and 10.4ppg respectively.
Opponents are also having a field day against OSU's defense, shooting 45.1 percent from the field in conference play, which ranks them 11th in the Big Ten. If Wisconsin gets open looks and they go down, OSU could be in some serious trouble.
What could be very telling for this team is just how bad of a matchup UW has been for the Buckeyes in the past. There isn't a single OSU player who has averaged double figures against the Badgers over their career. Guard Aaron Craft has the highest scoring average at 7.7ppg over seven games, and he's one of just two players to average over 4ppg against UW on this roster.
Key Matchup:
Aaron Craft versus Traevon Jackson – it will all come down to this matchup. The pair of point guards will have a major influence on this game, and we all know how good Craft is on both ends of the floor. It's a scary matchup for Jackson, especially when you consider his assist to turnover ratio in conference play is just 1.1 (26 assists, 24 turnovers). Craft is third in B1G play, averaging 2.5 steals a game.
What will be most important is that Jackson doesn't do what he tends to do too often, stand around dribbling in hopes of breaking down his defensive opponent for a drive or pull up jumper. Craft will eat him alive if that happens. Jackson's best role on Saturday will be that of a facilitator for his teammates.
If Jackson is struggling with turnovers, look for a quick hook in favor of Bronson Koenig off the bench. He has just 9 turnovers, compared to 23 assists off the bench this year.
Prediction: Wisconsin 78, Ohio State 72
These two teams are in desperate need of a win in this game and it will be interesting to see if the words spoken by both Gasser and Dekker over the past week are put in to action. I don't expect the Badgers to put up a great defensive performance, because outside of the games at Northwestern and Virginia they really haven't done so all season long. That said, I also don't expect UW will be as cold as ice on offense for a second game in a row either. If this becomes a scoring matchup, the Badgers are well equipped to win that battle and I like the depth of scoring options for UW more than OSU, so I'll go with the home team in a close game—especially since the Badgers are 9-1 at home against OSU under Bo Ryan.
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