Ohio State Drops Seventh Straight in 92-75 Blowout Loss to Iowa on the Road

The Buckeyes lost their seventh game in a row on Thursday, falling 92-75 to an Iowa team it defeated by 16 in Columbus on Jan. 21. That remains the most recent win on Ohio State’s résumé as the Buckeyes proved incapable of a similar performance in the rematch at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Ohio State had a far better offensive showing than it did in its last outing (41 points against Michigan State), but Iowa’s high-octane offense still mounted a double-digit halftime advantage thanks to a late 3-point barrage. Things only got worse for the Buckeyes from there, as Iowa pulled away even further at the start of the second half and continued to dominate thereafter.

The Hawkeyes thoroughly outscored Ohio State in the paint, got the better of the rebounding battle and capitalized on another turnover-laden Buckeye performance. Ohio State shot 57.1% from the field but only led for 3:11 of the contest before all was said and done.

The loss dropped Ohio State four games under .500 on the season and moves the Buckeyes’ Big Ten record to 3-12, tying Chris Holtmann’s most regular-season conference defeats as head coach of the program. And there are still five games left until the postseason begins.

It was Ohio State’s 12th loss in the past 13 games.

First Half

It was a fast-paced start on both sides as Ohio State scored more points in the first 6:29 than it had in the entire first half against Michigan State on Sunday. Iowa stayed out in front by a few possessions early with the help of four Buckeye turnovers, but Ohio State quickly closed the gap.

Sean McNeil’s second and third 3-pointers of the first eight minutes and change were part of an 8-0 run that gave the Buckeyes a 20-19 lead at the 12:26 mark. Ohio State nailed its first four 3-pointers of the night before its first miss from beyond the arc.

Iowa reclaimed a lead from 11:38 to 8:01, but the Buckeyes answered back to go back up on a Sensabaugh jumper as the clock ticked under seven minutes. Both sides traded leads again multiple times after that, but Iowa finished the half with a game-changing run to take control.

As turnovers continued to pile up for Ohio State, Iowa nailed four straight 3-pointers for a 12-0 run that put the Hawkeye up 47-36 at the half. The Buckeyes hit five of their six threes, but Iowa nailed seven and turned the ball over six fewer times than Ohio State.

The Buckeyes attempted 16 fewer shots than Iowa, which had the edge on the glass, in the paint and in second-chance points. Ohio State misfired on five of its final six shots to end the half.

Second Half

Iowa kept its foot on the gas at the start of the second half. While Zed Key picked up his third foul at the 17:07 mark, Iowa’s Ahron Ulis went to the free-throw line to give the Hawkeyes a 16-point lead.

A couple possessions later, Key went to the floor clutching the injured shoulder that’s plagued him for much of the season, and subsequently went to the locker room. Key returned to the bench a few minutes later but was ultimately ruled out for the rest of the night.

By the 13:23 mark, though, Iowa had gone up 20 points on the back of a 7-0 run. Five Hawkeyes had already scored 10 or more points before nine minutes passed in the second half. Iowa guard Tony Perkins put up just his third 20-point performance of the season as he more than doubled his season scoring average against the Buckeyes.

Ball movement proved key to the Hawkeyes’ offensive success. By the under-eight-minute media timeout, at which point Iowa had mounted an 80-53 lead, the Hawkeyes had accrued 19 assists to Ohio State’s six.

McNeil led the Buckeyes with 20 points on the night, his second-most of the season, but Ohio State needed much more than that to salvage another disappointing performance in February.

Game Notes

• Roddy Gayle made his third start of the season as the Buckeyes started three true freshmen for just the fourth time all year. Gayle left the game with an ankle injury in the second half, but returned to action shortly thereafter.
• Bruce Thornton, Brice Sensabaugh, Justice Sueing and Zed Key were the other four starters for Ohio State.
• Ohio State beat Iowa, 93-77, at the Schottenstein Center on Jan. 21 in the teams’ last meeting. Brice Sensabaugh scored a season-high 27 points to lead the Buckeyes to victory in that contest.
• The Buckeyes won their last game at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in an 89-85 victory on Feb. 4, 2021, but lost four of the previous five at Iowa before that.
• Iowa started the 2022-23 season 12-2 at home, with its last loss coming against Eastern Illinois on Dec. 21.