Ohio State head coach Chris Holtmann praises team for hot start vs Wisconsin

Ohio State has a long shot at making this year’s NCAA Men’s Championship Tournament, which means they need to finish off this year’s Big Ten tournament as champions — a feat that would be daunting for most. But the Buckeyes are off to a hot start in their first game against Wisconsin.

Ohio State entered halftime with a dominating 36-18 lead. And as the Buckeyes headed into the locker room, head coach Chris Holtmann gave his thoughts on their impressive first-half performance.

“Well, we gotta execute better at the end of the half there,” said Holtmann. “We just watched the play there. But yeah, our guys have made plays. Listen, this is a really good veteran Wisconsin team. It’ll be a full 40-minute game. They’re really good, but I love the confidence. Like I said, we’ve been playing really well here the last few weeks.”

The Buckeyes stars have been doing an impressive job led by guard Bruce Thornton. Thornton currently leads all scorers in the game with 13 points. But it was another guard’s performance in the first half that has caught the attention of those enjoying this first-round match. Senior shooting guard Sean McNeil has had himself a first half, adding 10 points from off the bench. And Holtmann credits the early rhythm McNeil has found for his early success.

“I think he’s just gotten in a really good rhythm. But we have 20 minutes. We gotta do it with our defense here first.”

There are another 20 minutes remaining for Ohio State. But if the Buckeyes can continue this stellar play in the second half, they will be well on their way to the second round of the Big Ten Tournament. And next for Ohio State would be a showdown with the Iowa Hawkeyes Thursday afternoon for more action.