Ohio State ensured its fans packed their heart medication into the Schottenstein Center on Tuesday.
It wasn't always pretty. It took overtime. There were heart-clenching moments. But Ohio State (13-5, 5-3 Big Ten) ground out an 82-74 win over Minnesota (10-9, 3-5).
| TEAM | 1 | 2 | OT | FINAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MINNESOTA | 28 | 39 | 7 | 74 |
| OHIO STATE | 31 | 36 | 15 | 82 |
For the second straight game, John Mobley Jr. led the way for Ohio State, racking up 26 points and shooting 5-of-11 from 3-point range. Bruce Thornton followed with 23 points and Devin Royal tacked on 16.
Forward Jaylen Crocker-Johnson paced Minnesota with 26 points and eight rebounds. Star forward Cade Tyson followed with 15 points.
First Half
Ohio State had one of the best starts a basketball team could hope for. Mobley canned a 3-pointer on the squad's first possession and the Buckeyes' zone defense smothered Minnesota, which found nothing but contested looks ahead of the first media timeout. All told, it was a 10-0 OSU run to start the game.
Whatever those first four minutes were, the next four minutes were the opposite. Ohio State missed four shots in a row, and Minnesota launched a 16-2 run to jump out to a 16-12 lead. Mobley stopped the bleeding with a left-corner 3-pointer.
Beyond that, the first half became a bit of a slog. Mobley hit another jumper and Gabe Cupps tacked on a layup to place Ohio State ahead 22-18. Both teams slowly traded 3-pointers, Thornton with one for the Buckeyes and forward Bobby Durkin with one for the Gophers.
A Thornton layup put OSU up 29-28 with 4:17 to play in the half, then neither team scored for the next 4:02. The two sides combined to shoot 0-for-11 during the stretch before Thornton finally drove to the rack to finish a floater and close the first half with a 31-28 Ohio State edge.
Minnesota shot a meager 28% from the field in the opening 20 minutes, thanks in part to stretches of strong defense from Ohio State, but also some missed open looks. A 10-of-11 half from the free-throw line kept the Gophers within a score.
Second Half
| MINNESOTA | STAT | OHIO STATE |
|---|---|---|
| 74 | POINTS | 82 |
| 23-58 (40%) | FGM-FGA (PCT.) | 31-65 (48%) |
| 8-28 (29%) | 3PM-3PA (PCT.) | 7-24 (29%) |
| 20-25 (80%) | FTM-FTA (PCT.) | 13-18 (72%) |
| 9 | TURNOVERS | 10 |
| 31 | TOTAL REBOUNDS | 42 |
| 9 | OFFENSIVE REBOUNDS | 13 |
| 22 | DEFENSIVE REBOUNDS | 29 |
| 3 | BENCH POINTS | 6 |
| 4 | BLOCKS | 2 |
| 6 | STEALS | 6 |
| 13 | ASSISTS | 10 |
Ohio State came out for the second period on a similar tear to what opened the first. Thornton and Mobley executed deadly dribble moves for double-clutch layups, then Christoph Tilly cashed in a floater through a foul to cap a 7-0 half-opening run. A later Thornton layup pushed the lead to 41-30.
Also like the first half, however, Minnesota surged back. Guard Isaac Asuma and Tyson each hit a triple. Ohio State went 6:09 without scoring a single point. The Gophers' run finished at 10-0 before a Mobley 3-pointer again calmed the momentum – for the moment. A string of turnovers handed a fastbreak bucket to guard Langston Reynolds, and a corner 3-pointer by Asuma made it 50-46 Gophers after what became a 17-3 run.
Tilly continued scoring, but also continued picking up fouls, which led to extended minutes for backup center Ivan Njegovan. Tilly finished +12 for the game and Njegovan -1, though Njegovan did grab nine rebounds.
But the Buckeyes' stars battled. Mobley nailed a corner 3-pointer to tie the game at 51, Thornton hit a layup through a foul and Royal finally got going again after a 2-of-9 shooting start to place Ohio State ahead 55-53. Crocker-Johnson finished a layup through a foul to give the Gophers a 56-55 lead as the under-four media timeout hit.
Back and forth the teams went as the clock dwindled. A Royal flush and Tilly layup were answered by two Tyson free throws and another strong finish by Crocker-Johnson. Mobley knocked down a floater, Crocker-Johnson again overpowered Tilly at the rim.
Mobley continued trying to drag a defense that couldn't get stops down the stretch to the finish line, hitting a top-of-the-key three, only for Tilly to foul out as Tyson finished a layup on the other end. Mobley missed a 3-pointer as the clock wound under one minute, but small forward Colin White hustled for a rebound, the ball got swung to Thornton and he finished a layup through a foul to make it 67-65 Ohio State with 55 seconds on the clock.
Again, Crocker-Johnson finished at the rack to knot the contest at 67. Mobley missed a midrange jumper and no one stopped Reynolds as he drove toward the basket in the final seconds for a wide-open game-winning layup – but Amare Bynum flew from behind to block the shot at the last moment. A missed prayer by Tyson off the offensive rebound sent the game to overtime.
Overtime
Royal stuck back a miss to open the scoring in the extra period, but once more Crocker-Johnson answered for Minnesota. The trades of baskets continued with a Royal and-one and a rebound stuck back by Gopher forward Grayson Grove, then a classic rise-and-fire by Thorngon.
Then, to the surprise of the powers everywhere, Ohio State's bench struck. More specifically, White. White swiped a ball from Reynolds and weaved through two Gopher defenders to go coast-for-coast for a layup that finally put the Buckeyes back up multiple scores, 76-71, with 1:49 to play.
THAT'S BIG COLIN
— Ohio State Hoops (@OhioStateHoops) January 21, 2026
: @BigTenNetwork pic.twitter.com/uI2X6R4VwQ
Thornton re-extended that lead to 78-73 on a fadeaway jumper, and Ohio State held from there for an 82-74 victory.
What's Next?
Ohio State faces its toughest task yet this season: A road game against rival Michigan, the No. 3 team in the country. Tipoff is at 8 p.m. Friday on FOX.
Game Notes
- Jake Diebler is now 2-of-2 on challenges this season after winning an out-of-bounds call against Minnesota.
- Ohio State improves to 93-62 all-time against Minnesota.
- Bruce Thornton tied Curtis Wilson for fifth all-time in assists at Ohio State, with 475 for his career.
