Ohio State Ousts No. 2 Purdue Five Days After Firing Head Coach
Ohio State took down No. 2 Purdue 73–69 on Sunday after leading the majority of the second half.
The massive Big Ten upset came just five days after the Buckeyes fired coach Chris Holtmann as the team started the season 14–11. Holtmann had led Ohio State since the beginning of the 2017–18 season. The Buckeyes never made it past the second round of the NCAA tournament under Holtmann’s leadership.
Sunday marked interim coach Jake Diebler’s first game in this position, making him 1-0 with an extremely impressive debut victory.
The Buckeyes crowd was electric and stormed the court at The Schottenstein Center following the upset.
IT'S STORMING IN COLUMBUS ⛈️@OhioStateHoops GETS THE WIN OVER NO. 2 PURDUE ????
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) February 18, 2024
(via @CBSSportsCBB)pic.twitter.com/yFLWSTzhRL
The Boilermakers were on a nine-game winning streak heading into Sunday’s matchup. Their last loss came over a month ago on Jan. 9 vs. another Big Ten opponent, Nebraska. Purdue was ranked No. 1 for four weeks leading up to that loss. The team’s held the No. 2 spot since then.