In recent years, January has not been a good month for Ohio State basketball, and that is a trend that has continued this season so far.
The Buckeyes go into tonight’s road matchup against Nebraska with a 2-3 record in January with wins coming at home against Rutgers and Penn State, and losses coming on the road against Indiana and Michigan, and at home against Wisconsin.
The three-game skid has resulted in the Buckeyes dropping to eighth in the Big Ten standings and out of the field in Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology prediction on ESPN.
Lunardi is known as one of the best NCAA Tournament bracket experts in the business and he updated his predictions for who would make the field of 68 on Tuesday morning.
Here’s where the Big Ten teams stack up in his latest update.
Purdue (17-2) - Top Overall Seed
Bracketology Breakdown
Seeding | No. 1 – Midwest Region (Indianapolis)
Opponent | No. 16 seed (winner of Delaware State vs. Lafayette)
The season so far
Key Loss(es) | at Northwestern, at Nebraska
Best Win(s) | Arizona, Marquette, Tennessee, Gonzaga, Illinois
Wisconsin (14-4)
Bracketology Breakdown
Seeding | No. 2 – East Region (Indianapolis)
Opponent | No. 15 seed Oakland
The season so far
Key Loss(es) | Tennessee, at Providence, at Arizona, at Penn State
Best Win(s) | Virginia, Marquette, at Michigan State, Nebraska, at Ohio State, Northwestern
Illinois (14-4)
Bracketology Breakdown
Seeding | No. 3 – West Region (Brooklyn)
Opponent | No. 14 seed UMass Lowell
The season so far
Key Loss(es) | Marquette, at Tennessee, at Purdue, Maryland
Best Win(s) | FAU, at Rutgers, Missouri, Northwestern, Michigan state
Michigan State (12-7)
Nebraska (14-5)
Bracketology Breakdown
Seeding | No. 9 – South Region (Charlotte)
Opponent | No. 8 seed Seton Hall
The season so far
Key Loss(es) | UConn, Auburn, Kansas, at Wisconsin, at Iowa, at Rutgers
Best Win(s) | Maryland, at Michigan, Indiana, Purdue, Northwestern
Northwestern (13-5) - Last Four Byes
Bracketology Breakdown
Seeding | No. 10 – Midwest Region (Omaha)
Opponent | No. 7 seed Utah
The season so far
Key Loss(es) | Chicago State, Mississippi State, at Illinois, at Wisconsin, at Nebraska
Best Win(s) | Purdue, Dayton, Arizona State, Michigan State, at Penn State
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