Ohio State basketball is losing steam. After kicking the season off against the Texas Longhorns, who were then ranked No. 19, and coming out on top, things were looking bright for the Buckeyes.
Even a road loss to Texas A&M felt competitive early in the season, and the Aggies are now a top-ten side. With many analysts still having the Buckeyes as a double-digit seed, that might change as they suffered their third-straight loss on Sunday.
Ohio State lost at home to Michigan on February 16, an understandable loss as Michigan was 12-2 in Big Ten action at the time. However, losing to a then-.500 Northwestern team at home by 21 following that rivalry defeat was an atrocious loss that will sting its resume.
That’s where the Buckeyes kicked off their Sunday at, and on the road against the UCLA Bruins, they at least put up a fight.
Ohio State ended up losing 69-61, scoring 37 in the second half. Bruce Thornton led the way with 21 points on 7-for-17 shooting. Micah Parrish with his 12 points was the long other Buckeyes player in double figures.
Ohio State doesn’t look like an NCAA Tournament team, but showing some fight against the Bruins, who are now 20-8, was at least a positive to some degree.
If Ohio State can win its remaining games, against USC, Nebraska and Indiana, it could sneak in with an at-large bid, but that’s still not a surefire answer to if this team has what is takes to make the NCAA Tournament.
Now with three straight losses, the Buckeyes have officially shot themselves in the foot, and with two of their last three on the road, it might not get any easier.
This article originally appeared on Buckeyes Wire: Ohio State basketball lost on the road to UCLA but did put up a fight
