Ohio State Basketball: 2019-20 keys for road matchup at Penn State
By Jason Belt
Ohio State Basketball had lost four straight contests before defeating Nebraska at home on Tuesday night. Things won’t get easier, as they travel to Penn State on Saturday for an important Big-Ten matchup.
Prior to their home victory over Nebraska, Ohio State Basketball (12-5, 2-4) were reeling, having lost four straight games to finish 2019 and begin 2020. Granite, all four of these losses were away from their home stadium and to top 50 KenPom teams, but it showed that they were not the juggernaut that we all began the season thinking they were.
Penn State (12-5, 2-4) has cooled off a bit after their hot start to the season.
The Nittany Lions surged into the top-25 in late December, after a home upset over (at the time) #4 Maryland, followed by a two-point victory over a pesky Alabama team in State College.
Since then, they have fallen out of the rankings and are looking for another key win over a top-25 opponent.
The theme of the 2019-20 Big Ten season so far is that winning on the road is very hard to come by, as teams are a combined 6-36 (16%) on the road in conference play.
For Ohio State to improve on that number, these three things will need to happen this Saturday afternoon in State College.