Ohio State 2026 basketball will play anyone. That is evidenced by upcoming games for both the men and women coming up this week both teams. The Lady Buckeyes host the Huskies on Thursday. The men travel to Storrs, Connecticut, to face the male Huskies. The women will play at 6:30 p.m.; the men at 7:30.
These games for the Ohio State 2026 basketball teams signify that the usual practice of playing teams you can beat by 50 points prior to the start of the conference season does not really exist in Columbus or in Storrs. Both teams play a couple of soft teams already this season, but ramp up now. Do you think that playing good teams in the nonconference schedule is good for the Buckeyes?
Ohio State 2026 Basketball Plays UCONN Preview
The first thing we should do in this article is to give the details of the games. The Women host UCONN at 6:30 pm at the Schottenstein Center. The game is on FS1. The Men travel to Storrs, Connecticut, for a road game at 7 p.m. The game is on TRU TV and HBO Max. Here is a preview of the basketball games, ladies first. Ohio State 2026 basketball is probably stronger for the women than the men, but it probably will not matter in these two games.
Women
The Lady Buckeyes are coming off a 91-57 victory against Mercyhurst. In that game, the Lady Buckeyes had six players score in double figures for the first time since January: Elsa Lemmilä (19), Jaloni Cambridge (17), Ava Watson (15), Kylee Kitts (12), Kennedy Cambridge (11) and Sydney Mobley (11). Lemmilä also had 12 rebounds as Mercyhurst could not contend with their size.
UCONN is ranked fourth in both polls; Ohio State is ranked seventeenth and nineteenth, and should be better equipped to deal with the size. However, the Lady Huskies are led by one of the best women’s basketball teams in the nation. Junior forward Sarah Strong was just named Big East Player of the Week (that is going to happen often this season). Guard Jovana Popovic earned Big East Freshman of the Week honors; she is also a player to watch.
All-time, it has not been pretty for the Lady Buckeyes against UCONN. Ohio State trails 7-1 in the all-time series. The Lady Buckeyes’ only win of the series came in the 2023 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 round in Seattle. You can probably throw the records out, but this is going to be a difficult game for the Lady Buckeyes to win.
Men
The Ohio State men are not ranked in the polls; they are in the “other receiving votes” category. UCONN, like the women, are ranked number four. It is important to realize that the Buckeyes just lost on the road to number twenty-five BYU. Ohio State is 2-2 all-time against the Huskies, winning in 1992 and 2004. They lost in 2015 and 1999. So, these teams do not play often.
Ohio State is led in scoring by John Mobley Jr. He averages 19.3 points per game. At big man, Ohio State is led by its other star, Amare Bynum. However, forward Andrija Jelavic leads the team with 7.9 rebounds per game. UCONN is 3-0 and led by Braylon Mullins in scoring with 17.7 points per game. Center Na’jai Hines leads the team with 7.3 rebounds per game.
Conclusion: Challenge Yourself
In March, the Selection Committee rewards teams for playing good opponents, even more so if a team wins. Therefore, it behooves both men’s teams and women’s teams to play good opponents in their nonconference schedule. That is what is going on in these games. Ohio State will play anyone, and even if they do not win, they will get rewarded.
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