Ohio St. @ Northwestern preview

Last Meeting ( Mar 6, 2019 ) Ohio St. 50, Northwestern 68

A forgettable January nears its conclusion Sunday night for Ohio State and Northwestern in a Big Ten matchup of teams with one win apiece since the new decade began. The Buckeyes have lost six of their last seven games to go from a potential No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament to a bubble team, and Northwestern is mired in a three-game skid heading into the only meeting between the teams this season.

In a month's time, Ohio State has gone from 11-1 and a No. 2 national ranking to 12-7 and out of the Top 25. The Buckeyes entered the weekend tied for next to last in the Big Ten as the result of a confounding January swoon for the second year in a row. Northwestern is the lone conference team below Ohio State in the standings and could provide the Buckeyes an opportunity to get back on track. The only January win for each team came at home over Nebraska (Northwestern by five points, Ohio State by 12).

TIME: 6:30 p.m. ET. TV: Big Ten Network

ABOUT NORTHWESTERN (6-12, 1-7 Big Ten): The Wildcats lost their last two games to ranked opponents but were competitive in both, falling 75-71 at No. 22 Illinois and 77-66 at home to 17th-ranked Maryland on Tuesday night after leading the Terrapins 40-26 at halftime. Pat Spencer scored a team-high 17 points against Maryland and Miller Kopp, the team's top scorer at 13.3 points, finished with 16 in his eighth consecutive double-digit game. Kopp was tied for third in the Big Ten in 3-point baskets with 17 in conference play entering the weekend.

ABOUT OHIO STATE (12-7, 2-6): The Buckeyes had Minnesota on the ropes Thursday night but couldn't finish the job in the final minute and lost to the Golden Gophers for the second time this season. Kaleb Wesson, Ohio State's leading scorer at 14 points per game, should have an easier time inside against Northwestern after managing two points while yanking down a game-high 14 rebounds against Minnesota. Kyle Young picked up the slack with 14 points that included a late go-ahead basket and six rebounds, but Ohio State shot 37 percent from the floor in the second half and finished with 12 turnovers as the team continues to deal with continuity issues.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Wesson finished 1-for-10 from the field and 0-for-3 from 3-point range and also failed to score in the first half of the loss to Minnesota on Thursday.

2. Ohio State's points-allowed average has crept up to 61.6 per game, but it's still good enough for 25th nationally entering Saturday.

3. Home teams have dominated Big Ten games this season, but Northwestern bucks that trend having lost two straight and four of its last five on its own court.

PREDICTION: Ohio State 65, Northwestern 59