Ohio State vs. Villanova: 2019-20 college basketball game preview, TV schedule
By Neil Adler
Top-20 outfits Ohio State and Villanova will square off in an enticing duel on Wednesday evening as part of the 2019 Gavitt Tipoff Games.
TV schedule: Wednesday, November 13, 7:00 pm ET. FS1.
Arena: Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio.
Nationally rated Ohio State and Villanova, each with aspirations to capture their leagues’ regular-stanza trophies during the 2019-20 campaign, will do battle on Wednesday night, one of the key highlights of the 2019 Gavitt Tipoff Games. This fifth-annual event, featuring eight contests between members of the Big Ten and Big East Conferences, is named in honor of collegiate-hoops genius Dave Gavitt, who founded the Big East.
The No. 16 Buckeyes (2-0) are greeting the No. 10 Wildcats (1-0) at Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio, and whichever crew comes away with a conquest will certainly bolster its non-conference resume in preparation for March Madness down the line.
In Villanova’s sole affair to date in the 2019-20 term, the Wildcats blew past Army, 97-54, at home on Nov. 5, with freshman forward Jeremiah Robinson-Earl collecting 24 points and 13 rebounds in the rout.
Ohio State’s perfect record at this juncture is the result of two successes on its own turf, 64-56 against fellow in-state group Cincinnati on Nov. 6, and 76-56 versus UMass Lowell on Nov. 10.
After winning the NCAA Tournament in both 2016 and 2018, Villanova lost in the Big Dance’s second round last spring, finishing at 26-10 in 2018-19. The Wildcats got slotted at No. 2 in the Big East preseason poll, behind Seton Hall. Villanova, for 2019-20, has returned three starters, including junior guard Collin Gillespie and junior forward Jermaine Samuels, and brought in a top-five recruiting class, led by the five-star Robinson-Earl and five-star shooting guard Bryan Antoine.
As it pertains to preseason accolades in their conference, Robinson-Earl is the league’s Freshman of the Year, and the All-Big East second unit boasts Gillespie and Samuels.
Like the Wildcats, the Buckeyes got bounced in the second round of the 2019 NCAA tourney, with Ohio State compiling a final mark of 20–15 in the most recent campaign. The Buckeyes, placed at No. 3 in the Big Ten preseason ballot for 2019-20, are guided by junior forward Kaleb Wesson, who is on the conference’s preseason All-Big Ten first team. Additionally, Ohio State possesses a top-15 class in the 2019 cycle, with the Buckeyes landing three top-50 prospects.
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The history among these two schools is relatively brief, as Ohio State holds a 2-1 series advantage. For this match-up, ESPN’s Basketball Power Index is forecasting that Villanova has a 54.1 percent chance to prevail. Despite suiting up in a hostile environment, I believe that the Wildcats will get the job done on the road.
Prediction: Villanova 76 – Ohio State 73