After a flawless start in their first six games, the Ohio State Buckeyes have faltered of late as the schedule has toughened. However, the final game of the non-conference slate will feature a matchup Ohio State should be able to easily take care of business in when it hosts the UNC Asheville Bulldogs.
While the teams have similar records, the talent levels couldn’t be much different. Ohio State is aiming to prove it is a March Madness contender and needs to keep piling up wins before the meat of its schedule hits, which is where the true determination will be made. An upset seems extremely unlikely as UNC Asheville will mostly aim to keep this one respectable on the road.
At 9 p.m. ET, tune into ESPN2 for live television coverage of this NCAA basketball game on Thursday, December 22, 2016, at Value City Arena.
We'll have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the college basketball Thursday schedule.
Odds at BookMaker.eu
Ohio State is 8-3 straight up on the season but only 3-6 against the spread. The Buckeyes have played at home six times this year but managed to cover the spread only twice in those contests. Ohio State is 2-5 against the spread as the favorite and will be giving points once again in this one.
UNC Asheville is an impressive 8-3 straight up, which is the best mark in the Big South. The Bulldogs have only played in one game this year that featured a point spread and covered as an underdog. UNC Asheville hopes to do so again in this one.
Player to Watch
Keita Bates-Diop -- The Ohio State junior forward missed a chunk of action earlier this season but has returned to the floor and is a key cog for the Buckeyes. He is averaging 9.8 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game after averaging in double figures a season ago.
Bates-Diop was impressive last time out in a loss to No. 2 UCLA, scoring 13 points and hauling in three rebounds while shooting 50 percent from the field in 25 minutes of action.
With a leg injury behind him, Bates-Diop should continue to be integrated into the offense and see his numbers grow. He has a nice situation here to put up some good numbers against a UNC Asheville team which is strong on the perimeter defensively but doesn’t have as much of an interior defense.
Lookahead Situation
This is the final tune-up of the non-conference season before Ohio State will enter the all-important Big Ten schedule. The Buckeyes’ chances of making the NCAA men’s basketball tournament and subsequently securing one of the top seed will ultimately come down to how they do in conference play.
Naturally, the team will be gearing up for that with a lot of talented teams to face on a weekly basis. Ohio State is a heavy favorite in this game against UNC Asheville and may not pay it a ton of attention.
While that isn’t likely to affect the outcome, it could make a difference in the margin of victory. That’s something to consider when the spread comes out as the Bulldogs look to cover as the underdog after getting a hefty amount of points to start.
Free College Basketball ATS Picks
The Bulldogs are a plucky team and not the easiest opponent to play when it comes to a smaller-conference program. However, Ohio State is at home and has the more talented roster.
The Buckeyes need to get up early and put this one away so UNC Asheville doesn’t begin to fancy itself competitive. That should happen, as Ohio State has the offensive balance to score in bunches and eventually pull away instead of sweating this one out.
College Basketball Odds: Ohio State 74, UNC Asheville 62
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