Buckeyes Upset No. 5/6 Badgers, Advance to B1G Semifinals

Sunday, March 10

Madison, WI

6:00 PM ET

Ohio State

14-19-4

University of Wisconsin

26-11-2

Ohio St.

Wisconsin

Buckeyes Upset No. 5/6 Badgers, Advance to B1G Semifinals

3/10/2024 9:07:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey

Box Score PDF Box Score

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State men's hockey team is moving on in the Big Ten Tournament, as the Buckeyes downed No. 5/6 Wisconsin, 3-1, Sunday in game three of their quarterfinal series in Madison, Wis. The No. 7 seed Buckeyes won the series vs. the No. 2 seed Badgers, two games to one, with 3-1 wins Friday and Sunday.

The Buckeyes (14-18-4) will take on No. 1 seed Michigan State in a one-game semifinal at 6:30 p.m. Saturday in East Lansing, Mich. The game will be televised by BTN and on Ohio State Radio. No. 3 seed Minnesota will host No. 4 Michigan in the other semifinal game. The highest remaining seed after the semifinals will host the championship game.

The Short Story
Davis Burnside opened the scoring less than seven minutes into the game, converting on the Buckeyes' first power play chance of the night. Scooter Brickey moved the lead to 2-0 midway through the second with his team-best 13th goal of the season. Wisconsin pulled its goalie with nearly five minutes left and Burnside helped seal the win with an empty net goal at 16:57. A Badger goal with the extra attacker at 18:07 broke up the shutout. Stephen Halliday had two assists for the Buckeyes.

Ohio State was outshot, 30-22, with Logan Terness making 29 saves in 59:53. Ohio State was 1-for-3 with the man advantage and did not face a Badger power play opportunity.

Quoting head coach Steve Rohlik
"I'm really excited for and proud of the guys. We've come a long way. It's the first time a seven seed won a series, and it's because of their hard work and belief. We get to live to fight another day together. We'll enjoy this and then start preparing to take on the league's top team next week."

Quoting Buckeye co-captain Scooter Brickey
"The brotherhood came together and we were prepared to do whatever it took to win. We plan on doing that again against Michigan State."

How it Happened

On the first power play of the game, Davis Burnside put in the rebound of a Stephen Halliday shot to open the scoring at 6:16. Theo Wallberg also assisted on the goal, Burnside's eighth of the year.
At 10:04 of the second Scooter Brickey doubled the lead, as his shot from below the goal line banked off the goalie and in. Halliday and Damien Carfagna had the helpers on the Brickey tally, his team-best 13th of the year.
After shots were 8-5 in favor of Ohio State in the first period, Wisconsin outshot the Buckeyes 11-4 in the second.
With nearly five minutes remaining, the Badgers pulled their goalie for the extra attacker. A Badger fumbled the puck near the blueline and Burnside was able to gather and skate in alone on the empty net for a goal at 16:57.
Sawyer Scholl broke up the shutout, as he scored with the extra attacker on the ice at 18:07, but Wisconsin could get no closer.
The teams combined for 24 shots in the third period, with UW ahead, 14-10.
Logan Terness played 59:53 in the Buckeye net, making 29 saves, including 24 in the last two periods. Ohio State was outshot, 30-22.
The Buckeyes blocked 12 shots. Michael Gildon had a team-best three, with Brent Johnson and Carfagna each blocking two.
Ohio State had the game's only three power play chances, with one in each period.
Patrick Guzzo won 15-of-19 faceoffs in the game.

Buckeye This and That

The victory was win No. 1,000 in program history.
Ohio State is the first No. 7 seed to win a Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal series and was the first No. 7 seed to win a quarterfinal game with its 3-1 victory Friday.
The Buckeyes faced a quarterfinal game three for the third year in a row, with a 2022 loss to Penn State and 2023 victory over the Nittany Lions, with both of those series in Columbus.
Ohio State was 4-3 vs. the Badgers this season, going 4-1 in the last five matchups.
In the regular season, Ohio State was 1-3 vs. Michigan State. The Spartans posted a sweep in Columbus Nov. 3-4 (6-0, 6-4) before a split in East Lansing Feb. 23-24 (OSU 6-2, MSU 5-2).
The Buckeyes are 4-0 vs. Michigan State in the Big Ten Tournament, with quarterfinal wins in 2014 and 2016 when the tournament was single-elimination at neutral sites and a quarterfinal series sweep in 2018 in Columbus.
Ohio State is making its eighth appearance in the B1G Tournament semifinals, with a 2-5 record. Last year Ohio State fell at Michigan, 7-3, in the semis.
Ohio State is 15-12 all-time in the Big Ten Tournament, including 13-5 in the quarterfinals.
Halliday is first in Buckeye history in career assists in the Big Ten Tournament with eight and is second all-time with nine points.
Brickey ranks eighth in program history for single-season goals by a defenseman with 13.
Burnside had his fourth career two-goal game and his second of the season.
Halliday leads the Buckeyes with 26 assists and 36 points. It was his 12th career multiple-assist game.
Burnside and Brickey are tied for second on the team with 26 points each. Wallberg, who is second with 19 assists, is fourth with 21 points.