Winners of three games in as many days, No. 13 seed Ohio State came up short against No. 1 seed Purdue in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals.
The second half of Saturday afternoon's Big Ten Tournament semifinal game was about to get underway, and No. 13 seed Ohio State was leaking oil, if not already out of gas. An unprecedented run in the tournament had come at a cost, and although the Buckeyes had led No. 1 seed Purdue for much of the first half, the writing looked to be on the wall.
True to late-season form, the Buckeyes kept coming. With 5:43 remaining, Felix Okpara drew the first foul of the game on Purdue's Zach Edey, hit one of two free throws and pulled the Buckeyes within 61-55. And when Edey missed at the other end, Ohio State had a chance to pull even closer only to have Bruce Thornton's jumper from the left elbow hit the rim and bounce out.
The 19 losses are the most for Ohio State since the 1997-98 Buckeyes went 8-22 overall and 1-15 in the Big Ten. Decisions could also be coming for end-of-the-bench players Tanner Holden, Kalen Etzler and Bowen Hardman, all three of whom were lightly used as the season progressed.
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