COLUMBUS — Looking to land an upset, a spirited effort by Ohio State ultimately fell short as Max Klesmit’s spectacular second-half shooting propelled the No. 15 Wisconsin Badgers to a 71-60 win in Value City Arena on Wednesday.
Entering the game averaging 7.2 points per game, Klesmit led all Wisconsin scorers with 18 points, including a pair of threes. All his points came in the final 16 minutes of the game, and he finished 5-9 from the field and a perfect 6-6 from the free throw line.
Jamison Battle tied Klesmit for the game-high with 18 points to lead Ohio State, and he added eight rebounds. Bruce Thornton chipped in with 13 points and six assists.
Ohio State jumped out to an 11-8 lead at the first media timeout thanks to six early points from Thornton and five from Battle. The red-hot shooting from Battle continued midway through the half as he connected on a pair of three-pointers to increase Ohio State’s lead to 25-17, the largest of the half, entering the under-eight media timeout.
Wisconsin (12-3, 4-0) began to chip away at its deficit thanks to consecutive baskets from A.J. Storr, part of his 15-point effort in the first half, and Connor Essegian’s three-pointer with 46 seconds left sent the Badgers into halftime with a 35-33 lead.
Battle and Thornton combined for 25 points on 10-16 shooting to lead Ohio State in the first half, while the rest of the team managed just three field goals.
Wisconsin built its lead to 48-42 eight minutes into the second half following a three-point play from Steven Crowl, but Ohio State quickly answered with an 8-0 run to regain the lead.
Battle started the run with a jumper, and Felix Okpara ignited the Schottenstein Center crowd with a three-point play followed by a block on the defensive end that led to a Scotty Middleton three and a 50-48 Buckeye lead midway through the second half.
It was all downhill from there for Ohio State, though, as the well dried up offensively, and Wisconsin delivered a flurry of haymakers to take full control of the game down the final stretch.
Klesmit connected on four consecutive free throws to level the score at 52, and after Ohio State reclaimed a 56-52 lead, he took over the game for good. A pair of free throws from Tyler Wahl cut the Ohio State lead to two points, and following a Thornton miss on the ensuing possession, Klesmit drilled a three to push Wisconsin ahead for good at 57-56 with five minutes to play.
Klesmit added a layup and another three on Wisconsin’s next two possessions as part of an 8-0 personal run to increase the lead to 62-56, and Ohio State’s prolonged offensive struggles continued as Battle and Thornton were unable to keep up their first half pace and the Buckeyes never could find secondary scoring.
Roddy Gayle Jr.’s pair of layups, the only field goals for Ohio State over the final five minutes, momentarily kept the Buckeyes within striking distance as the clock ticked below two minutes. However, Chucky Hepburn’s layup with 1:12 to play stretched Wisconsin’s lead to 66-60, and a missed free throw by Thornton on the front end of a one-and-one effectively ended the game.
Ohio State finished the game just 4-10 from the free throw line, further highlighting its scoring deficiencies on a frustrating night.
“We didn’t make shots, for one,” Ohio State head coach Chris Holtmann said following the game when asked where his team fell short in the second half. “We missed a couple of free throws, and I thought those were critical. I thought some of our looks were really good, to be honest with you. And then we had probably two defensive breakdowns. But I just think we gotta be able to make some of those clean, easy looks.”
Ohio State has now lost consecutive games for the first time this season, falling to 12-4 overall and 2-3 in Big Ten play. Asked how he and his team aim to avoid allowing the season to spiral, Holtmann expressed the utmost confidence they will be able to get back on track.
“I have a high level of belief in this team, I really do,” he said. “I’m being completely honest. I have a high level of belief in this team and what we’re doing and the fact that we’re going to grow. Last year is last year. This is a different group. The leadership is different, and it’s early in the season.
“I think the challenge for us right now is to take this and learn from it and grow. We have to be tougher in certain areas, and we have to be able to finish plays, but I have a high level of belief in this group. I can’t emphasize that enough. It doesn’t mean we’re not going to have some struggles.”
Ohio State returns to action on Monday afternoon when it travels to take on Michigan (6-9, 1-3). Tipoff is scheduled for noon, and the game will be televised on FOX.
Reach Dillon Davis at 740-413-0904. Follow him on Twitter @DillonDavis56.
