Slow Second Half Start Dooms Buckeyes Men's Basketball Season Debut

Early November is a true sweet spot in the college sports calendar when the fall and winter sports overlap. That combination began for the Buckeyes as the Ohio State men's hoops team got their 2026-27 season underway out west against No. 25 BYU.

This game was technically a "neutral site" game as part of the Bad Boys Mower Series that took place in Salt Lake City, Utah, roughly a one-hour drive from Provo. 

It was largely a home game for the Cougars, so the Buckeyes got a great challenge to start the season. 

In the first half, they looked like they were more than up for the task. They built up a nice 11-point lead early in the first half and were doing all of the right things. The new combination of transfer Buckeyes was finding their rhythm, and most importantly, they showed up in a big way on the defensive side of the ball. 

The Cougars started to get hot towards the end of the first half, and the pace in the final three minutes of the half was awesome. It was good offense on both sides, and shots were starting to fall.

The Buckeyes were able to take a three point lead into the break.

That would be the top of the mountain for the Buckeyes because, credit to BYU, they came out of the locker room on fire. They began the second half with a 7-0 run to take a lead that they would never surrender.

The two teams traded blows throughout the first half of the second half, and then it started to get out of hand. With 11 minutes to go in the half, the game was tied at 57, and the Buckeyes needed to just close it out and steal a nice win.

It didn't take long, as over the next four minutes of game time, BYU took and maintained a 73-61 lead. A 16-4 run proved to be the difference in what ended with a final score of 94-83.

There are several storylines to monitor as they begin to form early in the season. The main one to monitor early is the balance between the starters and the bench. The Buckeyes starting five combined for 61 of the Buckeyes' 83 points. The numbers and efficiency were solid for four of the five members of the starting five.

Then, the bench really struggled. None of the six players who checked in scored more than five points, even with four of them playing over 12 minutes of game time.

The other storyline will be the development of the young stars on this roster. The two that everyone in Buckeye Nation is most excited about are the freshmen LJ Smith and Anthony Thompson.

Both players struggled tonight, as they should! It was their first game ever in college against a really good team, so none of this is a worry.

Thompson was in the starting lineup, and he was 0-for-5 from the field, with his only two points coming at the free-throw line.

Smith played 12 minutes off the bench scoring just three points and dishing out one assist. 

The development of those two players will be something to monitor and watch at the start of this year.

The positives from tonight were Amare Bynum looking like a legitimate star. He showed the ability to score at all levels and was making plays all over the floor. The Buckeyes have a very real perimeter attack with John Mobley Jr. and Justin Pippen. 

Ohio State has real scorers on this offense for the first time in a while. They just need to get some more production from their bench, including their freshmen, who need to make a much larger impact than they have.

Buckeyes fall in their first game of the season. Next up is a home game against the Youngstown State Penguins on Friday.