Men’s Basketball: Ohio State Finalizes 2008-09 Men’s Basketball Schedule – Ohio State Buckeyes
9/15/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Buckeyes open season at St. John Arena Nov. 20
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Thad Matta, now in his fifth year as head coach of the Ohio State men’s basketball team, has put together a challenging non-conference schedule to go along with the 18-game Big Ten regular-season slate in 2008-09.
Every Ohio State game will appear on national television in 2008-09. CBS, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and the Big Ten Network will showcase the Buckeyes throughout the season.
The Buckeyes, winners of two of the last three regular-season outright Big Ten titles, will have a tough road to a third championship in four years. The league returned to the lengthier conference schedule in 2008 after playing a 16-game schedule from 1998-2007. The Buckeyes will take on eight league foes twice while playing Wisconsin (away) and Penn State (home) just once in 2009.
Matta said building toward competition in March is the goal when putting together the schedule each year.
“Our team will be challenged with the schedule we have for the 2008-09 season,” Matta said. “We have a young team with depth at all five positions. We have a competitive non-conference schedule that will allow us to prepare for Big Ten Conference competition. I know our team is looking forward to league play. It’s an 18-game grind in some of the most difficult arenas in the country. It will be exciting to watch our newcomers experience Big Ten basketball and to see how our veterans have improved.”
Ohio State will play at least 11 games this season vs. eight teams that played in the 2008 NCAA Tournament, which includes a Dec. 27 contest vs. West Virginia at Value City Arena. The Buckeyes and Mountaineers have not met since November of 1995, a 79-69 WVU victory in Morgantown. The Buckeyes own the series advantage 9-5.
The Big Ten/ACC Challenge will again be part of the Ohio State schedule this year. The Buckeyes travel to Miami, Fla., for a Dec. 2 game vs. the Hurricanes. A game vs. Notre Dame will be played at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis Dec. 6. That game is part of a doubleheader with Indiana and Gonzaga playing first followed by the Irish and Buckeyes.
The Butler series also resumes this year in Columbus. Matta, a 1990 Butler graduate, is 1-1 vs. his alma mater as head coach of the Buckeyes. Ohio State defeated the Bulldogs 79-69 in overtime Nov. 22, 2005 in Matta’s second season in Columbus and dropped a 65-46 decision a year ago in Indianapolis.
Matta is 28-5 vs. the Big Ten at VCA and is 35-1 vs. non-conference opponents in Columbus during his tenure. The Buckeyes posted a school-record 18-0 home record at VCA in 2006-07 and in four seasons in Columbus, Matta’s Buckeyes are 63-6 in VCA and 67-6 in Columbus. Ohio State owns three victories at St. John Arena and one at Nationwide Arena in downtown Columbus since Matta took over the program in 2004-05. Ohio State will open the regular season Dec. 20 against Delaware State at historic St. John Arena, the former home of the Buckeyes prior to the opening of Value City Arena for the 1998-99 campaign. The facility is celebrating its first 10 years of operation this year.
Ohio State will open the season with 13 scholarship players, Twelve scholarship student-athletes are eligible with one transfer sitting out in 2008-09. Junior David Lighty is the only player with two seasons of experience. All remaining scholarship players have played just one year of collegiate basketball or are in their first year.
2008-09 Ohio State Men’s Basketball Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Time | Television | Series |
| November | ||||
| 20 | 1-DELAWARE STATE | 6:30 p.m. | BTN | 1-0 |
| 24 | BOWLING GREEN | 8 p.m. | BTN | 3-2 |
| 29 | SAMFORD | Noon | BTN | 1-0 |
| December | ||||
| 2 | 2-at Miami, Fla.& | 7 p.m. | ESPN | 1-0 |
| 6 | 3-vs. Notre Dame& | 4 p.m. | ESPNU | 6-4 |
| 13 | BUTLER& | Noon | BTN | 30-9 |
| 17 | JACKSONVILLE | 9 p.m. | ESPNU | 1-0 |
| 20 | IONA | Noon | BTN | 0-1 |
| 22 | UNC ASHEVILLE% | 7 p.m. | BTN | 2-0 |
| 27 | WEST VIRGINIA& | 4 p.m. | CBS | 9-5 |
| 31 | IOWA | 4 p.m. | BTN | 63-73 |
| January | ||||
| 3 | at Minnesota% | Noon | BTN | 73-53 |
| 6 | at Michigan State& | 7 p.m. | ESPN2 | 48-56 |
| 9 | HOUSTON BAPTIST | 7 p.m. | BTN | 0-0 |
| 13 | INDAIAN& | 7 p.m. | ESPN | 68-99 |
| 17 | at Michigan | 8 p.m. | BTN | 83-70 |
| 20 | at Illinois | 7 p.m. | ESPN | 59-97 |
| 25 | MICHIGAN STATE& | 3:45 p.m. | CBS | |
| 28 | MICHIGAN | 6:30 p.m. | BTN | |
| 31 | at Indiana& | 4 p.m. | ESPN2 | |
| February | ||||
| 3 | PURDUE& | 7 p.m. | ESPN | 73-79 |
| 7 | MINNESOTA% | 8 p.m. | BTN | |
| 14 | at Wisconsin& | 9 p.m. | ESPN | 79-62 |
| 18 | at Northwestern | 9 p.m. | BTN | 105-44 |
| 21 | ILLINOIS | noon/2 p.m. | BTN/ESPN | |
| or 22 | 1 p.m. | CBS | ||
| 4 | PENN STATE | 7 p.m. | ESPN | 21-12 |
| 28 | at Purdue& | 4 p.m./8 p.m. | ESPN/BTN | |
| or 3/1 | 4 p.m. | CBS | ||
| March | ||||
| 3 | at Iowa | 7/9 p.m. | ESPN/BTN | |
| or 4 | 6:30/8:30 p.m. | BTN | ||
| or 5 | 7/9 p.m. | ESPN2/BTN | ||
| 8 | NORTHWESTERN | 4 p.m. | BTN | |
| 12-15 | 4-Big Ten Tournament | TBA | TBA |
Home games in CAPS // All Times Eastern and subject to change
1-St. John Arena, Columbus
2-Big Ten/ACC Challenge, Miami, Fla.
3-Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis
4-Indianapolis
(&) 2008 NCAA Tournament Participant
(%) 2008 (Postseason) NIT Participant
