Ohio withdrew from a two-game crash with an 80-69 victory over Michigan

The Buckeyes were looking for answers after missing consecutive games against opponents in the Big Ten in their last two games.

They received a strong blow early against Michigan State, scoring 13 unanswered points before the Spartans boarded. With a scorching hot offensive on Thursday, the 23rd Ohio State stopped its worst miss of the season in two games, recovering from a series of disappointing defeats to beat Tom Izzo and company, 80-69, at home.

After Zed Ki and Kyle Young were removed, Indiana transfer center Joey Brank got his third start as Buckeye and made the most of it. Brunk played the most minutes of the season and scored a record 18 points of the season to help the Buckeyes win.

Four Bucks finished in double, as EJ Liddell, 19, and Malaki Branham, 22, also had big games, and Jamari Wheeler, 16, gave Ohio a big advantage as another option to score points at night.

The first half

Consecutive 3 points in the first two Ohio possessions helped the Buckeyes start 13-0 before Michigan State boarded, and Liddell had eight of Ohio’s first 11 points during that period.

Bucky hit seven of his first nine shots and four of his first five three-pointers to get started, and Joey Brank’s Skyhawk put Ohio State 18-4 at 15:22. Michigan responded with a jump from the other side, but the Buckeyes still had a 12-point lead in the first media timeout.

The Spartans then began to reduce Ohio’s lead, with a 7-1 run of six points at 11:33, and a 3-pointer from Michigan reduced Buckeye’s lead to four points two minutes later. The Spartans hit 6 of 8 shots in the same period, including four three-pointers, to make the match 27-25 with 8:09 to go.

But immediately after that shot, the Buckeyes embarked on a 9-0 run to come back with a double-digit 3-pointer by Jamari Wheeler. With three more just 1:08 later, Wheeler gave Ohio the lead by 12 points with 4:01 by the end of the half.

Ohio took the lead at halftime with a 10-point lead, 43-33, with Bucky shooting 59.3 percent of the floor and 61.5 percent of 3 points. Wheeler and Brunk combined 22 points, while Liddell added 12 of his own.

The second half

Five minutes after the final period, Ohio State increased the lead by 15 points, scoring 12 of the first 19 points of the half. Brunk scored six of Buckeyes’ first 17 points to open the half, and a rising and lower-than-sixth center kept Ohio State ahead 60-45 with 13:27 to go.

The state of Michigan began to break through in the middle of the half, scoring seven of their first 12 shots at the start of the period, but the Buckeyes managed to keep the Spartans at a distance with a 13-point lead in the last eight minutes.

But Michigan State continued to strike late and reduced Buckeye’s lead to just 10 points with less than six minutes to go after knocking down three straight shots.

With Buckeyes up 11 at 4:31, Liddell received a tough, contested mid-range jumper to fall in contact and hit the subsequent free throw to put Ohio ahead by 13 points. Branham increased their lead by another point 40 seconds later with a left-handed shot over two Spartan defenders.

Branham’s stabbing was the dagger for all intents and purposes, but Brunk’s two-handed stabbing in the last two minutes put a bow for the Buckeyes.

What next

Ohio remains at home to close the regular season schedule in the rematch against Michigan at 12:30 on Sunday.

Notes on the game

• Zed Ki missed his second game in Ohio due to an ankle injury sustained in the loss to Maryland last Sunday.

• Kyle Young, who started at Key’s place against Nebraska before leaving the game early due to an undisclosed illness, was also unavailable for Ohio on Thursday.

• After Key and Young left, Joey Brank made his third start in a Buckeye uniform.

• Ohio split two games with the Spartans in the 2020-21 season, winning the first game by 17 before losing by four in a match in late February.