Ohio State Basketball

Ohio State will be without guard D.J. Carton for an indefinite amount of time as the freshman announced he is stepping away from the program Thursday night. 

In a note posted to Twitter, Carton detailed mental health problems and cited the need to take time away from basketball to properly address the matter.

"After talking to my family, teammates and coaches I have decided it is best at this time to temporarily step away from the Ohio State basketball program," Carton wrote. "In making this decision I felt it was important to be transparent as to why I’m taking this break. I have been suffering with mental health issues for a couple years. I have been through a lot. I’m disappointed to say I’m not 100% right now.

"I am not doing my teammates justice if I don’t work on this now. I am doing everything in my power to strengthen my mental health. I will fight for my team and Buckeye Nation and I will come back stronger! If you are going through mental health issues, I have learned through this you are loved and valued. Thank you for the continuous love and support Buckeye Nation. Please respect my decision and my privacy." 

Carton's announcement comes just days after he led Ohio State (13-7, 3-6 Big Ten) to a 71-59 victory over Northwestern to snap the Buckeyes' two-game losing streak. Through 20 games this season, Carton is averaging 10.4 points and 2.9 assists while shooting 47.7 percent from the field and 40 percent from three-point range. 

After his 17 points and four rebounds against Northwestern, Carton noted just how much his teammates have helped him adjust to college basketball this season.

"I've been working hard on practice, and my teammates put a lot of belief in me and push me at practice," Carton said per the Associated Press, "so it's starting to come along and my confidence is building."

The Iowa native was a four-star recruit out of high school, according to 247Sports.com, and ranked as the fourth-best point guard in the nation with offers from Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Iowa and Creighton. He would up choosing the Buckeyes over the Hoosiers and Wolverines. 

Despite starting just three games this season, Carton was averaging 23.9 minutes per game for an Ohio State team that got off to a scorching hot start. The Buckeyes reached No. 2 in the AP poll in December before losing six of their next seven games and falling out of the Top 25 altogether. 

Ohio State is set to return to action Saturday when Indiana visits Value City Arena. 

Another Top Five men's college basketball team fell once again as No. 5 Ohio State lost to unranked Wisconsin 61-57 in Columbus' Value City Arena on Friday evening. 

Nate Reuvers led Wisconsin with 17 points and nine rebounds. He scored seven of Wisconsin's final 11 points in the last 3:20 to turn a 51-50 deficit into a 61-57 victory.

Kobe King added 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting for the Badgers.

Kaleb Wesson dropped 22 points on 7-of-10 shooting and 13 rebounds for the Buckeyes, who shot just 12-of-37 otherwise. Duane Washington Jr. added 18 points for OSU.

OSU, which lost to No. 22 West Virginia on Sunday, has dropped two straight.

Ohio State looked like it may cruise to victory after holding Wisconsin scoreless for the first six minutes of the game, but the Buckeyes couldn't get much going offensively themselves en route to scoring only seven points during that span.

Wisconsin eventually ended the first half on a 14-6 run to take a 29-25 lead.

The second half started out similarly, with OSU clamping down on defense and extending its lead to seven points. A Kaleb Wesson layup capped a 13-2 run in a three-minute stretch after halftime.

But Wisconsin slowly clawed its way back en route to tying the game at 47 thanks to a King steal and layup.

Kobe King looks like a free safety taking an interception to the house on this one! @BadgerMBB pic.twitter.com/kxFI13v6uP

— Wisconsin On BTN (@WisconsinOnBTN) January 4, 2020

The two teams traded buckets and points before an 8-0 Wisconsin run gave it a 55-51 lead. A Brevin Pritzl three-pointer capped the stretch:

Brevin Pritzl 3 points here helps @BadgerMBB get the upset and their first signature win of the season. pic.twitter.com/EbV3t1o2Lh

— Wisconsin On BTN (@WisconsinOnBTN) January 4, 2020

Ohio State's offense struggled for the second straight game after losing 67-59 to West Virginia on Sunday. Kaleb Wesson, Andre Wesson and Washington combined to score all but eight of OSU's points.

As for Wisconsin, the Badgers won as a +285 money line underdog, per B/R Betting.

ESPN Stats & Info also put the 10th Top Five upset of the season into context:

Wisconsin defeated 5th-ranked Ohio State tonight. This marks the 10th time this season an unranked team has beaten an AP Top 5 opponent.

Through this date last season, there hadn't been a single win by an unranked team over an AP Top 5 opponent. pic.twitter.com/7JOKxxelVz

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) January 4, 2020

Ohio State will visit No. 15 Maryland on Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET. Wisconsin will host Illinois on Wednesday at 9 p.m.

Freshman guard Miles McBride scored a career-high 21 points off the bench as No. 22 West Virginia upset No. 2 Ohio State 67-59 on Sunday at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland.

The upset comes one day after No. 3 Louisville lost to No. 19 Kentucky in overtime, continuing a chaotic men's college hoops season where upsets of Top Five teams regularly occur.

OSU led 54-53 after an Andre Wesson three-pointer with 4:43 remaining, but the Buckeyes then failed to score for nearly four minutes.

WVU took advantage of OSU's shooting slump with an 8-0 run, which included a nifty McBride 20-footer that floated into the hoop.

A Kaleb Wesson triple with 50.7 seconds left finally ended the slump. OSU had a chance to cut the lead to one after a CJ Walker steal, but the Buckeyes came up empty on their possession. 

WVU then scored four straight off two free throws and a steal-and-score to effectively put the game away.

OSU shot 30.6 percent from the field and scored 22 second-half points. The Buckeyes also committed 22 turnovers.

Kaleb Wesson led the Buckeyes with 17 points. Duane Washington Jr. had 12, while two other Buckeyes scored 10.

The game served as a coming-out party for McBride, who entered the game having averaged 12.5 points in his last two contests.

McBride continued his hot stretch against an Ohio State team that KenPom.com ranked first in overall efficiency and fourth in adjusted defensive efficiency pregame.

The first-year Mountaineer shot 6-of-12 from the field, 3-of-4 from three-point range and 6-of-8 from the free-throw line in leading a WVU offense where no other player scored more than 10 points.

McBride was the catalyst of a 7-0 early second-half run when WVU turned a 40-34 deficit into a 41-40 lead. This mid-range jumper capped the stretch:

Miles McBride is on 🔥🔥🔥

He takes back the lead for @WVUhoops pic.twitter.com/H7tCrefNOw

— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) December 29, 2019

WVU never trailed by more than two points from that moment onward thanks to some tenacious defense and McBride magic. The freshman notably pulled off the famous Michael Jordan shrug after hitting his late 20-footer as well.

Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports also gave credit where it was due.

Miles McBride. You should have bought stock a long time ago.

— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) December 29, 2019

The 11-1 Mountaineers have a chance to upset another Top Five team when they visit No. 5 Kansas on Saturday.

The 11-2 Buckeyes will host Wisconsin on Friday at 7 p.m. ET.

Fifth-ranked Ohio State earned its third win over a Top 25 opponent, beating No. 6 Kentucky 71-65 on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Defense has been the Buckeyes' calling card all season. Entering Saturday, opposing teams had shot just 34.6 percent against OSU, the second-lowest percentage in Division I. Villanova and North Carolina scored 51 and 49 points, respectively, when matched up with Ohio State earlier in the year.

That suffocating defense claimed another victim, as Kentucky shot 42.4 percent from the floor but went 7-of-23 from beyond the arc.

Ohio State was unable to pull away despite its excellent defensive effort. CJ Walker finally iced the game with a three-pointer as the shot clock expired with 26.6 seconds remaining.

DAGGER!@OhioStateHoops pic.twitter.com/Gy37xAYez1

— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) December 22, 2019

           

Notable Performers

• Kaleb Wesson, F, Ohio State: 12 points, eight rebounds, two assists, one block
• Kyle Young, F, Ohio State: 10 points, six rebounds, one assist, one steal, one block
• Nate Sestina, F, Kentucky: 17 points, four rebounds, one assist
• Tyrese Maxey, G, Kentucky: 15 points, six rebounds, three assists, one steal
• Ashton Hagans, G, Kentucky: 14 points, one rebound, nine assists, three steals

           

Ohio State Outmuscles Kentucky with Physical Approach

Ohio State hit 19 combined three-pointers in those aforementioned wins over Villanova and North Carolina. The Buckeyes entered Saturday having connected on 41.6 percent of their long-range attempts.

They struggled to find their shooting stroke from three-point range against Kentucky and instead adopted a more direct route to the basket. Ohio State attacked Kentucky inside, which often resulted in either a made basket or a trip to the charity stripe.

D.J. Carton is doing it all here early on for the Buckeyes.@DJCarton | @OhioStateHoops pic.twitter.com/K5jyofCy4m

— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) December 21, 2019

The Buckeyes scored 26 points in the paint and got another 21 points at the foul line.

Their success in the paint went beyond scoring, too. They out-rebounded the Wildcats 33-26 and had seven blocks as a team. D.J. Carton and Andre Wesson each had an emphatic chase-down block in the second half. Taking four points off the board was important in a game as tightly contested as this one.

GET. THAT. STUFF. OUTTA. HERE. D.J. Carton with the big time rejection, a la @KingJames.@OhioStateHoops pic.twitter.com/XnQ18Y6Ilv

— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) December 22, 2019

"What a great effort! SENSATIONAL!"@OhioStateHoops pic.twitter.com/sNETtelbyZ

— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) December 22, 2019

Kentucky didn't have much answer for Ohio State's starting frontcourt trio of the Wesson brothers and Kyle Young.

Ohio State's front line has taken Kentucky's to school today. Total mismatch.

— Justin Rowland (@RowlandRIVALS) December 22, 2019

Kaleb Wesson fouled out with 3:30 left in the game and Ohio State ahead 62-56. The Wildcats couldn't take advantage of his absence and close the gap.

       

Sestina's Big Day Not Enough for Kentucky

Wildcats graduate transfer Nate Sestina had some experience playing against Ohio State. He was part of a Bucknell squad that lost to the Buckeyes last season. That might have provided the senior forward with a slight advantage as he came off the bench to provide a much-needed offensive spark for Kentucky.

Sestina was the only real perimeter threat for John Calipari on Saturday.

That first-half Nate Sestina performance is what Kentucky was hoping for when it landed him as a grad transfer. A big who can stretch the floor, make perimeter shots.

Wildcats made a total of 11 3s as a team in the three games Sestina missed.

— Jeff Borzello (@jeffborzello) December 21, 2019

Why leave Sestina on the pick and pop? No one else on this team has made a three.

— Seth Davis (@SethDavisHoops) December 22, 2019

Whitney doesn’t get that basket without the spacing Sestina gives UK when he’s out there.

— Eric Crawford (@ericcrawford) December 22, 2019

In addition to its poor shooting, Kentucky's foul trouble doomed it to a defeat. Sestina and Nick Richards finished with four fouls, while Tyrese Maxey fouled out.

Sestina, Maxey, Richards all with four fouls. That's 23 fouls on Kentucky. OSU bricked two free throws, though, and it's five-point deficit for the Cats, 2-plus to play.

— Kyle Tucker (@KyleTucker_ATH) December 22, 2019

That not only allowed Ohio State to have a decided edge in foul shooting but also hamstrung the Wildcats in terms of attempting to match the Buckeyes' physicality inside.

            

What's Next?

The Buckeyes play No. 25 West Virginia on Dec. 29 in Cleveland before their focus shifts to conference play. The Wildcats face off with in-state rival Louisville, who sit third in the AP Top 25 poll, on Dec. 28 in Lexington.