Buckeyes battle back but can't complete the comeback against No. 24 Wisconsin

COLUMBUS – After trailing by 17 at the halftime, Ohio State cut the Wisconsin lead to as little as one point in the second half but the Buckeyes comeback attempt once again fell short. The Badgers held on to beat the Buckeyes 70-68 in Madison on Tuesday night.

Ohio State point guard Bruce Thornton led the team with 21 points and three assists. Forward Devin Royal was the only other starter for the Buckeyes to finish with double-digits. He finished with 12 points and six rebounds. Guards John Mobley Jr. and Micah Parrish finished with eight and seven points, respectively.

The Buckeyes also got some solid contributions off the bench. Forward Evan Mahaffey had six points and two steals while forward Aaron Bradshaw finished with five points. Freshman forward Ivan Njegovan also had a career-high five points to go along with five offensive rebounds.

In the end, however, Wisconsin’s offense proved to be too much to overcome. Forward John Tonje led the Badgers with 17 points including going 10-for-10 from the free throw line. Guard John Blackwell Jr. finished with 15 points while forward Steven Crowl had 14.

Full Big Ten hoops slate for Ohio State

Here’s the lineup of conference games Ohio State will play this winter:

Dec. 4 at Maryland (L, 83-59)
Dec. 7 vs. Rutgers (W, 80-66)
Jan. 3 vs. Michigan State (L, 69-62)
Jan. 6 at Minnesota (W, 89-88)
Jan. 9 vs. Oregon (L, 73-71)
Jan. 14 at Wisconsin (L, 70-68)
Jan. 17 vs. Indiana
Jan. 21 at Purdue
Jan. 27 vs. Iowa
Jan. 30 at Penn State
Feb. 2 at Illinois
Feb. 6 vs. Maryland
Feb. 9 at Nebraska
Feb. 12 vs. Washington
Feb. 16 vs. Michigan
Feb. 20 vs. Northwestern
Feb. 23 at UCLA
Feb. 26 at USC
March 4 vs. Nebraska
March 8 at Indiana
March 12-16 Big Ten Tournament (Indianapolis)