A late comeback attempt failed for the Ohio State Buckeyes as their chances for a second straight Big Ten championship were faltered by the team that they beat on the last day of the season to earn a share of the regular season title, Michigan State.
Ohio State played well in the first half, but couldn't hit a three pointer to save their lives even as they out-rebounded the Spartans and kept themselves low on fouls. Michigan State took advantage and took a lead into halftime, a slim 34-32 advantage.
The second half was a game of runs, with both teams putting together ten point streaks on occasion and gaining decent leads only to see the other team come right back and pick the lead back up for themselves again.
Unfortunately for the Buckeyes, the most important of those streaks was a streak of over five straight minutes where they didn't score a single basket. The Spartan offense continued to be not particularly high scoring but effective during that period, good for the Buckeyes because that kept it a close game going into the final four minutes.
It felt from the start like this would be another classic that would go down to the final possession with the score staying so close all game, and that feeling was proved correct as the final two minutes started to tick away and Michigan State's Draymond Green hit a huge three pointer to make it 67-62. That was the dagger and Ohio State couldn't complete a comeback, eventually losing 68-64.
Ohio State had the far more effective team offense in the game with four different players getting double digit points, but Michigan State's Brandon Wood was a monster with 21 points to carry the Spartans to the victory. Jared Sullinger was the leading scorer for Ohio State with 18 points.
Ohio State will still probably be a favorite for a very high seed in the NCAA tournament, but the Championship game loss effectively ended their chances at getting one of the No. 1 seeds.
For more on the Ohio State Buckeyes, check out Along The Olentangy. For more on the Michgan State Spartans head over to The Only Colors. For on the Big Ten Championship,stay on this Storystream or head to the NCAA hub at sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball.