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In its first game under interim coach Jake Diebler, Ohio State staged the upset of the weekend in college basketball with a 73-69 stunner over No. 2 Purdue on Sunday in Columbus, Ohio. Just four days after firing coach Chris Holtmann, the Buckeyes led for the majority of the game and held off a furious late push from the Boilermakers (23-3, 12-3 Big Ten) behind huge performances from Jamison Battle and Bruce Thornton, who combined for 41 points in the win.
Battle was held to 11 scoreless minutes in the first half before blossoming into a difference-maker in the final 20 minutes when he scored all 17 of his points to help Ohio State to the win. As he heated up, Thornton kept Ohio State in the mix early with 14 of his 22 points coming in the first half.
How Ohio State (15-11, 5-10) pulled off the win was less about its offense and more about its defensive performance, as it limited reigning player of the year Zach Edey to 22 points and 13 rebounds in 33 minutes. Edey struggled with the Buckeyes’ extra attention in the post and committed six turnovers, matching his career-high in a single game. Purdue as a team committed 14 turnovers and only forced six, and Ohio State converted 14 of those turnovers forced into 22 points.
The supporting cast around Edey all season has been much improved from a season ago but on Sunday the firepower beyond him was scarce to find. Non-Edey Purdue players shot 16 of 42 from the field and committed a meager 10 assists to eight turnovers.
The win gave Ohio State just its fourth win of the 2024 calendar year and second in its last eight outings. It entered the day 2-9 in its last 11 games, including an OT loss to Maryland mid-week that led to Holtmann’s ouster.
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