January 01, 2026 - 7:51 PM
Ohio State Buckeyes (9-3, 1-1 Big Ten) at Rutgers Scarlet Knights (7-6, 0-2 Big Ten)
Piscataway, New Jersey; Friday, 8 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Ohio State visits Rutgers after John Mobley Jr. scored 20 points in Ohio State's 89-63 win against the Grambling Tigers.
The Scarlet Knights have gone 6-2 in home games. Rutgers allows 71.0 points to opponents and has been outscored by 2.3 points per game.
The Buckeyes are 1-1 against Big Ten opponents. Ohio State has a 2-2 record in games decided by 3 points or fewer.
Rutgers scores 68.7 points per game, 3.2 fewer points than the 71.9 Ohio State allows. Ohio State averages 15.3 more points per game (86.3) than Rutgers gives up (71.0).
The Scarlet Knights and Buckeyes match up Friday for the first time in conference play this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Dylan Grant is shooting 48.8% and averaging 14.4 points for the Scarlet Knights. Harun Zrno is averaging 1.5 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
Bruce Thornton is averaging 21 points and 4.1 assists for the Buckeyes. Mobley is averaging 13.6 points over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Scarlet Knights: 4-6, averaging 65.6 points, 30.6 rebounds, 9.5 assists, 6.0 steals and 3.7 blocks per game while shooting 38.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 73.8 points per game.
Buckeyes: 7-3, averaging 82.3 points, 32.9 rebounds, 16.2 assists, 4.8 steals and 2.5 blocks per game while shooting 48.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 69.3 points.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
News from © The Associated Press, 2026