MBB Hosts Ohio State Saturday
Feb 11 | Men's Basketball
| Rutgers vs. Ohio State | |
| Date | Saturday, February 13 |
| Time | 4 p.m. ET |
| Location | Piscataway, N.J. | The RAC |
| Television | BTN |
| Radio | Rutgers IMG Radio Network - WOR (710) and WCTC (1450AM) WRSU (88.7 FM) |
| Game Notes | Rutgers | Ohio State |
| Live Stats | |
| Tickets | Buy Tickets |
| Promotions | Complimentary Rutgers Basketball T-Shirts (First 500 Fans) Junior Knights Dance Team at Halftime |
| Team Info | Online Media Guide |
| Statistics | Rutgers | Ohio State | Big Ten Conference |
| Social Media | @RutgersMBB  | #RHoops | Facebook/RutgersMBB  |
Rutgers Game Notes
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Rutgers (6-18, 0-11) returns to the friendly confines of the RAC to host Ohio State (15-10, 7-5) in a 4 p.m. tip-off on Saturday. The first 500 fans in attendance will receive complimentary Rutgers Basketball t-shirts and the Junior Knights Dance Team will perform at halftime. The game will feature two of the nation's top rookie point guards in RU's Corey Sanders and OSU's JaQuan Lyle. Among freshmen, Sanders is 1st in B1G/16th NCAA in scoring (15.9), 1st in B1G/12th in NCAA in steals (1.65) and 2nd in B1G/t-7th in NCAA in assists (4.2). Lyle is first in B1G and 5th in NCAA in assists (4.6) among freshmen. Lyle's 13 helper performance vs. Minnesota (12/30/15) and Sanders' 12 against Illinois (2/3/16) are the top two freshman assist outputs in the nation this season.
The Scarlet Knights will be working to return to the win column and earn their first B1G victory of the season, while the Buckeyes will be looking to earn their second straight and fourth league victory over six games.
The game will be televised live on BTN with Kevin Kugler calling the action and Bob Wenzel providing the analysis. On the radio, the contest will be broadcast live on the Rutgers IMG Sports Network, WOR 710 AM in New York & WCTC 1450 AM in New Brunswick, as well as on Sirius 135 and XM 195. Chris Carlin will serve as play-by-play announcer and Joe Boylan will provide commentary. WRSU (88.7 FM) will also broadcast the game.
The contest will mark the fourth meeting on the collegiate hardwood between RU and Ohio State, with the Buckeyes holding a 2-1 advantage. On Jan. 13, Rutgers fell 94-68 in Columbus. Sanders scored 17 points in the opening 20 minutes, was 7-of-14 from the field and 4-of-8 from behind the arc en route to a game-high 20 points. The Scarlet Knights held a 41-39 lead at the midpoint. Last season at the RAC, RU dropped a 79-60 decision to No. 20 OSU before a sellout crowd of 8,003. Bishop Daniels scored 17 points, but the Buckeyes shot 51 percent (30-of-59) and out-rebounded RU 48-40. The Scarlet Knights defeated Ohio State, 97-96, in triple overtime to win the Holiday Festival at Madison Square Garden on Dec. 30, 1978. James Bailey had 31 points, Daryl Strickland had 17 and Abdel Anderson contributed 16. A Bailey slam dunk with 34 seconds remaining proved the decisive score.
Despite 28 points from Sanders, Rutgers fell at Nebraska, 87-63, on Saturday afternoon. Following his freshman record 39-point performance versus Illinois, he shot 12-of-20, while adding five assists. Daniels supplemented the RU scoring, depositing six-of-11 from the field to register 13 points. Overall, Rutgers made 41.4 percent (24-of-58) of its field goal attempts, while the Huskers shot 50.7 percent (34-of-67) and made eight three-pointers.
Sanders earned his second Big Ten Freshman of the Week honor of the season on Monday, after averaging 33.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 8.5 assists and 2.5 steals.
Ohio State earned a 71-63 home victory over Northwestern on Tuesday night. The Buckeyes trailed 33-26 at halftime, but only committed five turnovers to establish an 18-10 edge in points-off-turnovers. OSU also out-scored NU 24-10 in the paint. Ohio State ranks 21st nationally and third in the Big Ten in field goal percentage defense (39.3).
