PISCATAWAY – Rutgers (11-7, 1-4) plays its fifth opponent either ranked or receiving votes in its initial six league games when it welcomes Ohio State (14-4, 5-0) on Sunday for a 7 p.m. tip-off. The contest will mark the seventh match-up over 13 contests for RU against a foe ranked or receiving votes. The Buckeyes are one of four home-and-home match-ups for RU, along with 4/4 Michigan State, 5/7 Purdue and Nebraska.

As part of the "Jersey Series," it will be "Sub vs. Hoagie Night," at the RAC, with the first 500 fans of each moniker receiving complimentary t-shirts. It's also "Winter Break at the RAC," as RU students with a valid ID can bring up to two free guests. The Amazing Sladek will perform at halftime.
Rutgers is fifth nationally in rebounding (42.44) and offensive rebounding (14.56), and 11th in scoring defense (61.7) and FG% defense (38.3). The Scarlet Knights are among the top three in 12 Big Ten stat categories.

The game will be televised live on BTN with Brandon Gaudin calling the action and Jon Crispin providing the commentary. On the radio, the contest will be broadcast live on the Rutgers IMG Sports Network, WOR 710 AM in New York and WCTC 1450 AM in New Brunswick, as well as on Sirius 135 and XM 195. Jerry Recco will serve as play-by-play announcer and Joe Boylan will provide commentary. WRSU (88.7 FM) will also broadcast the game.

Rutgers and Ohio State have met six times, with the Buckeyes holding a 4-2 series advantage. In the last match-up, RU out-rebounded OSU 47-31, including 19 offensive boards, to establish a 22-6 advantage in second chance points in a 66-57 Big Ten Tournament victory in Washington, D.C. It marked the first postseason league win for Rutgers, which is 0-2 at the RAC against the Buckeyes.

Rutgers battled back from a 12-point deficit to tie the game with possession and just seconds on the clock, but the potential game-winning shot in regulation was off the mark in a hard-fought, 76-72, overtime loss at No. 4 Michigan State Wednesday night. The Scarlet Knights out-rebounded the Spartans 40-36 while establishing a 36-24 scoring advantage in the paint before 14,797 fans at the Breslin Center. Corey Sanders led all scorers with 22 points, while also contributing six rebounds and four assists. Deshawn Freeman added 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting. The Scarlet Knights shot 40.3 percent in the contest, which featured six ties and four lead changes. RU limited the Spartans to 41.2 percent shooting, well below their national-best 52.5 percentage. Nine Scarlet Knights played double-digit minutes, with four committing five personal fouls.

Ohio State's Chris Holtmann is the first, first-year Big Ten coach to begin league play 5-0 since Iowa's Tom Davis (6-0) in 1987. The Buckeyes have won nine of their last 10 games, including four straight, and arrive in Piscataway shooting 49.2 percent. Keita Bates-Diop leads the Big Ten in scoring (20.3) and is third in rebounding (8.8). He sat out all but nine games last season with a stress fracture in his left leg.

Single game tickets for Rutgers men's basketball home games are available online or by calling the Rutgers Ticket Office at 1-866-445-GORU. Fans also have the opportunity to purchase flex ticket plans, which enable consumers to select any four games from the home schedule to create their own package.

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