What the Ohio State basketball team needs to do to beat Illinois

The Ohio State basketball team is just one game away from being squarely on the bubble. Their once far-fetched NCAA Tournament drives are now just one win away. They take on Illinois today at 6:30 pm. If they can get that win, they have a real shot to make it after a solid Quad-1 neutral site win.

In the first matchup, the Buckeyes lost 87-75 at home in the Schott. It was the game that was smack dab in the middle of their four-game losing streak under Chris Holtmann. In that game, they were outrebounded by eight and couldn’t stop fouling. Illinois went to the free throw line 20 times and made 18 of those shots.

What does the Ohio State basketball team need to do to beat Illinois in the rematch?

Ohio State shot it well in that first game, making 50% of their shots. Their three-point shooting wasn’t great, but it wasn’t horrendous. So what does this team need to do in order to win the rematch and keep their March Madness hopes alive? Quite simply, they just need to do what they’ve been doing.

That loss came while Chris Holtmann was leading the team. The Buckeyes have been on fire under Jake Diebler. They play faster, guard the three-point line better, and score more in transition. All of those are things that can be used to be the Illini. Illinois only has eight losses all year and most of their losses were to ranked teams too.

Ohio State’s depth is going to be key again today. Their bench scored 37 points yesterday against Iowa. They’re going to need something similar to take down an Illini team that is better and could be a top-four seed in the NCAA Tournament. Taking care of the ball is going to be critical too.

The Ohio State basketball team needs to keep their turnovers in the single digits. They had 11 against the Hawkeyes. Illinois can better leverage turnovers into points though.

If the Ohio State Buckeyes can do those things, they can get the win they need to get on the bubble.