Less than 24 hours removed from a heart-pounding win against Iowa, Ohio State set its sights on top-seeded Michigan who was fresh off a triple bye and an emotional win over Michigan State.

From the start of player intros, it was very evident that the arena was filled with maize and blue faithful who came to support top-seeded Wolverines. The underdog mentality was preached to the Buckeyes non-stop since the conclusion of the Iowa game and if so, the crowd only reinforced this. Michigan would jump to a quick 7-0 lead early as Ohio State struggled to keep possession or come down with rebounds.

Bruce Thornton would break seal for Buckeyes with a teardrop jumper and the rebounding would begin to recover for Ohio State as the lead would be cut to 8-5 after three minutes elapsed. Jake Diebler would call a timeout soon after as the Buckeyes were 2-7 from floor and trying to find their footing on defense. The lead for the Wolverines swelled to 15-5 just under 15:00 mark as rebounding became an issue again for Ohio State, forcing Diebler to shuffle up his rotation.

For the first time since January 5th against Nebraska, Brandon Noel would enter the game for the Buckeyes, followed by Gabe Cupps who would also see a chunk of minutes in the first half. The spark off the bench was needed as throughout the next 12 minutes of play OSU would scrap its way back into the game, making it just a 35-33 lead for UM with 1:30 remaining in the half. This was aided by Bruce Thornton tuning up the aggressive play and sinking a series of contested shots as the half progressed. Thornton would also head into the locker room leading OSU with 13 points and the score being a 39-35 Michigan lead.

Ohio State sustained momentum to begin the second half as John Mobley Jr made a couple of quick buckets and the Buckeyes tie the contest at 44 at the 17:22 mark. OSU continued to hold their own in the paint as well against a Michigan team that held a clear size advantage start to finish. Rebounding remained even as well, with Ohio State even holding an advantage on the offensive boards. Cupps played arguably his best game of the season off the bench, scoring five points and playing lockdown defense en route to a +4 performance, the highest of any Buckeye.

The Buckeyes and Wolverines traded haymakers all throughout the half and fans from around the Big Ten began to fill The United Center to get in on the action. Devin Royal sunk a triple to give Ohio State a 61-60 lead at the 5:08 mark, their first (and only) lead of the game. Ohio State would be skating on thin ice, however, as Bruce Thornton picked up this fourth foul with just under four minutes to go. Down the stretch, Ohio State had trouble hitting the clutch shot needed to put pressure on Michigan.

With just under 2 minutes to go and trailing 67-64, Diebler called a timeout to compose his team as play was becoming erratic on both sides. At the 1:00 mark, Thornton had the ball with a chance to things back up for Ohio State, but his turnaround fadeaway jumper fell short and into the hands of the Wolverines. From that point on, Ohio State was in scramble mode and Michigan managed to make just enough of their free throws to come out with the win, 71-67.

Ohio State (21-12) now awaits its fate with where the NCAA Tournament committee will decide to seed them after a strong finish to a roller-coaster season.