Oct 21, 2023; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day walks behind the huddle during a timeout in the second half of the NCAA football game against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Ohio Stadium. Ohio State won 20-12.
Ohio State On Pace For Record-Breaking Season, But Not In A Good Way
Things have not gone as planned for the Ohio State Buckeyes men’s basketball team. The Buckeyes have lost six of their last seven games, including Tuesday’s home contest with the No. 14 Illinois Fighting Illini. What’s worse? The Buckeyes are on pace for a season-record-low attendance. On average, the Buckeyes are playing in front of 10,531 fans whenever they are in Columbus. This means Ohio State is filling just over half of the 18,809-seat arena during each of its home games.
Not even a Big Ten Conference battle with a team ranked among the top 15 in the country could do the trick. Just 10,285 seats were filled for that aforementioned affair with the Illini, which the Buckeyes lost, 87-75. The defeat served as Ohio State’s third-straight loss since a victory over Penn State back on January 20. Tuesday’s game also extended the Buckeyes’ recent streak of allowing 80 points or more to its opponents (with each instance ending in a
loss). Fans do not have to look back far to find when the last time Ohio State failed to attract a crowd to this level. The previous low was set just last year when 12,181 fans were filing into Value City Arena for each game.
There is still time for Ohio State to turn things around. The Buckeyes need to win three of their final ten games in order to secure a winning record for the
year. Ohio State has a chance to get back on track (and secure their first road win of the season) tonight against the Iowa Hawkeyes. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. eastern on FS1.
