NCAA Basketball: Best games from 2019-20 season – Ohio State vs. Kentucky

A pair of top NCAA Basketball teams faced off in Las Vegas, as Kentucky and Ohio State fought hard at the CBS Sports Classics, let’s dive into what happened.

The college basketball world was devastated when the national pandemic canceled the NCAA Tournament and much of the postseason. Still, there were plenty of great moments to celebrate and remember from the games we did get to see. We continue our series looking at the top 40 games from the last season, turning our attention to a top 10 matchup on the West Coast.

36. #5 Ohio State 71, #6 Kentucky 65 (CBS Sports Classic)

December 21, 2019, T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada

For the sixth straight year, four of college basketball’s great programs headed to Las Vegas to compete in the annual CBS Sports Classic. The event has produced both exciting showdowns and underwhelming matchups in recent years, but the calendar was favorable this season. Ohio State and Kentucky entered the game both ranked in the top 6 in the nation and playing great basketball.

Ohio State arrived in Vegas with a solid 10-1 record, with their only blemish coming a week earlier at Minnesota in an early Big Ten matchup. The Buckeyes had already impressed on the national stage, winning by 25 points against both #10 Villanova and at #7 North Carolina. They were looking to put that loss to the Golden Gophers in the rearview mirror, and a date with Kentucky seemed the perfect remedy.

Kentucky needed the win a bit more than Ohio State, having lost three days ago to Utah. They had begun the season with their thrilling win over #1 Michigan State, but the early-season loss at home to Evansville had really dulled their momentum. There was plenty of talent on this Wildcats team, but they were desperate to get back on track and really show it off.

The Buckeyes got off to the lead, though Tyrese Maxey scored the Wildcats’ first six points to keep them right there. The entire first half was a back-and-forth affair, with neither team holding a lead larger than 4 points. An 11-point half from Nate Sestina helped keep the Wildcats within 1 point at the half, with both Wesson’s playing solid in the first twenty minutes.

The second half started slowly, though Sestina’s fourth 3-pointer of the game ended a long scoring drought for the Wildcats. By the 11-minute mark, Ohio State had built their lead up to 7-points, but the Wildcats would clawback. Unfortunately for Kentucky, they could never quite make it over the hump or reclaim the lead. They were still within 5 points in the final minute of the game, but a clutch 3-pointer from CJ Walker with 28 seconds was the dagger.

In securing another victory, Ohio State fought hard and responded to every punch Kentucky had for them. The Buckeyes shot 50% from the field, outrebounded the Wildcats, and got 7 blocks. DJ Carton had 15 points of the bench, with most of them coming in the second half. Before fouling out, Kaleb Wesson added 10 points and 8 rebounds.

The Wildcats were thrown their second straight loss. Sestina wound up with 17 points, but Kentucky made just 7 of 23 from long distance in a game where they needed one or two more shots late in the game. Ashton Hagans had 14 points and 9 assists in a great effort, but both Maxey and Immanuel Quickley struggled from the field.

While Kentucky did drop their second straight game, they turned things around just a week later when they upended rival Louisville in overtime. The Wildcats would win the SEC regular-season title by three games and would have been set up well for the NCAA Tournament had the pandemic not gotten in the way. Quickley and Maxey and the other Kentucky players really emerged as the season progressed, putting those losses to Evansville and Utah way behind them.

On the other side, Ohio State faced a much tougher time moving forward. The Buckeyes would lose six of their next seven games, though they’d eventually bounce back and finish 7th in a very deep and talented Big Ten. Just before the postseason would’ve begun, the Buckeyes won three of their last four games against ranked opponents and would certainly have been set up well moving forward.

An exciting matchup between the #5 and #6 teams delivered, as Ohio State steadily paced their way to another great early season win. With how both teams were playing at the season’s conclusion, it’s certainly possible that this could have been a matchup we had seen again on the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Either way, these are two very solid programs that will be ready to contend in 2021.