The Ohio State Buckeyes are back home, rested, and recovered before tonight’s important tangle with the Nebraska Cornhuskers.
The Buckeyes are aiming to boost their seeding in the Big Ten tournament while the Huskers are just trying to stay in the postseason conversation. A three-game slide and a series of heartbreaking losses have sent NU reeling at the worst possible time.
My Nebraska vs. Ohio State predictions and college basketball picks are backing the Buckeyes on Tuesday, March 4.
Nebraska vs Ohio State prediction
My best bet
Ohio State -6 (-110 at bet365)
My analysis
The Ohio State Buckeyes snapped their own three-game losing skid with a solid win at Southern California last Wednesday.
Now, Ohio State has had an extended break to prep and plan for the Nebraska Cornhuskers. This is some much-needed rest and recovery after not only fighting the nightly challenges of the Big Ten, but also a flu bug that ran through the locker room last month.
With six days off, the Buckeyes are in their best shape in a long time and welcome a Cornhuskers team pushing the panic button.
Nebraska was once on track for a ticket to the NCAA Tournament, but after this current losing streak, Fred Hoiberg’s team may not make the 15-team cutoff for the Big Ten tournament.
Nebraska scored a 79-71 win over Ohio State in Lincoln on February 9 but has since gone 1-4 SU and ATS in the five games following that victory. That slump includes a gutting two-point loss to Minnesota at home on Saturday, leaving NU little time to recoup and travel to Columbus tonight.
Offensive inconsistencies are plaguing the Huskers and Hoiberg continues to juggle his rotation, trying to solve for the missing piece in this lineup. This is extremely late in the season and a crucial road stop isn’t conducive to suddenly scoring the basketball.
Ohio State’s defense is stingy at home, checking visitors to the third lowest eFG in the Big Ten (45.4%) while holding those foes to less than 69 points against inside Value City Arena.
Head coach Jake Diebler has had extra time to study that loss to NU last month and will focus his defense’s attention on slowing down Huskers’ standout Brice Williams, who dropped 24 points on 9-for-16 shooting versus the Buckeyes.
“We've got to give Williams different looks so he can't just get into a rhythm, but he's a good player and he's going to make some tough shots,” Deibler told the media on Monday.
Williams has been the one constant for Nebraska’s offense his season, averaging just under 20 points per contests. The Cornhuskers are 1-6 SU in Big Ten competition when Williams scores 20 points or less.
Offensively, Ohio State should thrive from beyond the arc. The Buckeyes are the 25th best 3-point shooting school in the land and pick up almost 25 points per home game from long-range looks. They knock down better than 38% of their shots from distance at home.
Nebraska’s defensive philosophy is to pack the paint and make opponents hurt it from outside. The Cornhuskers allow the ninth most 3-point attempts in the country (27.8 per game) and OSU finished 10-for-25 from outside (40%) in that January 20 encounter.
Game projections all side with Ohio State in this second meeting, with the majority of margins at six points and above. This point spread opened at OSU -5.5 and has surged to as high as -6.5 at some shops.
Nebraska vs Ohio State same-game parlay (SGP)
Ohio State -5.5
Brice Williams Under 20.5 points
Bruce Thornton 2+ 3-pointers
The Buckeyes are battling to avoid the NCAA bubble bursting and need these late-season wins.
Williams is the key to slowing down the Huskers attack. With added time to prep, Ohio State will force NU’s other guys to hurt them.
Thornton will have plenty of space to let it fly from outside against this Huskers defense. He’s 5-for-13 from deep the past two games.
Learn how to bet a same-game parlay with these helpful tips and strategies.
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Nebraska vs Ohio State odds
Nebraska vs Ohio State live odds
Nebraska vs Ohio State opening odds
- Spread: Nebraska +6 | Ohio State -6
- Moneyline: Nebraska +202 | Ohio State -242
- Over/Under: Over 144.5 | Under 144.5
Odds courtesy of bet365
Nebraska vs Ohio State betting trend to know
Ohio State has covered the spread in 20 of its last 35 games (+3.50 Units/9% ROI). Find more college basketball betting trends for Nebraska vs. Ohio State.
How to watch Nebraska vs Ohio State
| Location | Schottenstein Center, Columbus, OH |
| Date | Tuesday, 3-4-2025 |
| Tip-off | 9:00 p.m. ET |
| TV | Peacock |
Nebraska vs Ohio State key injuries
Not intended for use in MA.
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