The Ohio State Buckeyes take on the Indiana Hoosiers. Check out our college basketball odds series for our Ohio State Indiana prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Ohio State Indiana.
The Ohio State Buckeyes are in 12th place in the Big Ten at 3-6 through nine league games. It has been a rough ride for coach Chris Holtmann, who did such an exceptionally great job at Butler after Brad Stevens went to the NBA to pursue his dream in the pros with the Boston Celtics. Holtmann got Butler to the Sweet 16 and made the Bulldogs a factor. When Ohio State hired Holtmann, the hire was universally praised, and it seemed just a matter of time before Ohio State thrived under another ex-Butler head coach. The previous one was Thad Matta, who guided the Buckeyes to the 2007 national championship game and the 2012 Final Four.
Holtmann has just not been able to get the engines roaring at Ohio State. The Buckeyes are still in the hunt for an NCAA Tournament berth, but they can't afford too many more losses. They have to pick off quality road wins in the conference, and this one would qualify. Even if Ohio State makes the Big Dance, the larger reality is that Holtmann was expected to have a Sweet 16 or Elite Eight-level program, not a team which barely makes the field as an 11 seed, which might be OSU's ultimate outcome.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Ohio State-Indiana College Basketball odds.
College Basketball Odds: Ohio State-Indiana Odds
Ohio State Buckeyes: +5.5 (-122)
Indiana Hoosiers: -5.5 (+100)
Over: 145.5 (-106)
Under: 145.5 (-114)
How To Watch Ohio State vs. Indiana
TV: Fox
Stream: Fox Sports app
Time: 8:00 p.m. ET, 5:00 p.m. PT
*Watch Ohio State-Indiana LIVE with fuboTV (Click for free trial)*
Why Ohio State Could Cover the Spread
This is a huge game for the Buckeyes. They know their season is on the line. They know they have to play dramatically better to win games and save their hopes of making the NCAA Tournament. Indiana has won a bunch of games over the past two weeks, which might seem like a good reason to take the Hoosiers, but with Ohio State slumping, the odds point to Ohio State eventually playing a good game and Indiana playing a bad one. Moreover, Ohio State needs this game so much more than Indiana does. Urgency is a foremost, central reason to take the Buckeyes here. They're getting more than five points in the spread, too, so they just have to keep it close. The chances of that happening are good against an Indiana team which can go through scoring droughts and has lost at home to Northwestern earlier this season.
Why Indiana Could Cover the Spread
The Hoosiers have rediscovered Trayce Jackson-Davis, their elite big man. They actually don't feed him the ball enough, but they have been giving him the ball more in recent weeks, and it shows. TJD has been a meal-ticket producer for Indiana — not just as a scorer, but as a rebounder and defender. He gets loose balls. He makes clutch plays. He helps his team at both ends of the floor. Ohio State has no one who can deal with him. Jackson-Davis is the best player on the floor, and that will be the ultimate difference. Indiana playing at home helps as well.
Final Ohio State-Indiana Prediction & Pick
Stay away from this game. Both teams are unreliable. Indiana has been better of late, but the Hoosiers very nearly lost to a skeleton crew from Minnesota the other night. It's not worth betting on the spread here.
Final Ohio State-Indiana Prediction & Pick: Ohio State +5.5
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