Ohio State's starting center got hurt in the opening minutes against the Boilermakers and was ruled out for the rest of the game.
Ohio State's highly anticipated matchup against top-ranked Purdue got off to a shaky start on Thursday night.
On one hand, the Buckeyes raced out of the games, played great defense and have put the No. 1 team in the country in a bit of a hole. The Buckeyes led almost the entire first half and and consistently frustrated the Boilermakers.
But life got considerably more difficult for Chris Holtmann's team when starting center Zed Key got hurt before the first media timeout. Key extended his arm while trying to block a shot and appeared to injure it when he came back down to the ground. He left the floor with his arm hanging by his side and the medical staff taking him back to the locker room.
According to a team spokesperson, Key suffered a sprained shoulder and won't return to the floor.
That puts a lot on true freshman Felix Okpara's plate as he has to bang around in the paint with National Player of the Year candidate Zach Edey. Okpara was highly recruited and stands at 6-foot-11 and 220 pounds, but Edey is a mountain of a human being. He's listed at 7-foot-4 and weighs 305 pounds.
Transfer guard Sean McNeil also injured his ankle a few minutes later, but would return to the floor.
Ohio State is trying to knock off Purdue for the first time since the 2021 Big Ten Tournament, when their overtime win at Lucas Oil Stadium sent them to the semifinals against Michigan.
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