Ohio State’s seed for the Big Ten Tournament solidified with Saturday’s loss at Indiana.
Now, the Buckeyes know their first-round opponent and the path they face when they go to Indianapolis. As a No. 10 seed, Ohio State will play No. 15 seed Iowa on Wednesday inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse in a game that will be streamed exclusively on Peacock.
The Buckeyes finished the 2024-25 season 17-14 overall and 9-11 in the Big Ten after Saturday’s 66-60 loss to the Hoosiers. In the only matchup between the Buckeyes and Hawkeyes this year, Ohio State won 82-65 in Columbus on Jan. 27.
Should Ohio State win Wednesday, it will play No. 7 seed Illinois on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. That game will be televised by the Big Ten Network.
“We’re focused on Wednesday,” coach Jake Diebler said after Saturday’s loss. “I know Wednesday’s important, make no mistake about that. I understand that. We need to get a win on Wednesday. Our focus is to live in the moment. There’s a championship to be won in the Big Ten Tournament.”
The Wednesday evening game will be the first in Big Ten history to feature a No. 15 seed. Although the league expanded from 14 to 18 teams this offseason, the conference tournament only added one more team to the mix.
This is the first time Ohio State has ever been the No. 10 seed in the conference tournament. It’s also the first time that the No. 10 seed has played on the opening day of the tournament since the league expanded to 14 teams in 2015.
Washington (No. 18), Penn State (No. 17) and Nebraska (No. 16) become the first teams to not reach the Big Ten Tournament.
All-time, No. 10 seeds are 15-26. Only twice has a No. 10 seed won multiple games in the Big Ten Tournament, and on both occasions it made the title game. In 2008, Illinois won three straight before losing to No. 1 seed Wisconsin 61-48 and in 2023 Penn State did the same before losing to No. 1 seed Purdue.
Both the Fighting Illini and Nittany Lions avoided the opening day of the tournament, however. The only team to play on the opening day of the tournament since it expanded to five days and reach the weekend was Ohio State, which made it to Saturday’s semifinals in 2023.
