ANN ARBOR, Mich. – It was fair to question which team needed Monday’s game more. Michigan, which had lost five straight in a season that has looked increasingly lost, or Ohio State, losers of two straight and teetering on the verge of reverting to last year’s lost season.

Both sides have compelling arguments, but just one has a potentially season-altering win now in its pocket. And given where the game was played, and what the Buckeyes have done for the last year, that would be the Wolverines who turned their rival’s misery into their joy – at least for one day.

Inside a roughly half full Crisler Center, Ohio State (12-5, 2-4 Big Ten) rallied late, held a lead with four minutes to play but again came up short, 73-65, to a Michigan (7-10, 2-4) team that had not won since Dec. 16.

The Buckeyes have now lost three straight, their seventh losing streak of at least that many games during coach Chris Holtmann’s tenure. They have now lost 12 straight road games dating back to a New Year’s Day win at Northwestern last season. Most critically, they might have lost their grip on a season that entered 2024 with promise.

Down nine points at halftime, Ohio State traded buckets for the first half of the second half and trailed by a game-high 12 points with about 12 minutes to play against a Michigan team that held halftime leads in each of its last two losses. The Buckeyes, seemingly dead in the water, put together a game-changing, 16-0 run that pushed them to a 59-55 lead with 7:21 to play.

But when Dale Bonner missed at the rim and Olivia Nkamhoua hit a jumper to cut the deficit to two, Michigan started to land its counterpunch. Nimari Burnett buried a deep 3-pointer from the left wing to reclaim the lead, setting the stage for a tense final five minutes.

Terrance Williams III put the Wolverines ahead for good with 3:37 to play with a 3-pointer from straight-on that hit every part of the rim and part of the backboard before falling through. It gave Michigan a 63-61 lead and was the start of a 7-0 Michigan run that was too much for the Buckeyes to overcome.

Ohio State went 3 for 24 (12.5%) from 3 in the loss. Michigan was 12 for 23 (52.2%).

After rolling ankles in practice during the week, Ohio State’s Roddy Gayle Jr. and Scotty Middleton were both listed as questionable on the pregame availability report but both played.

Trailing by a game-high 10 points with five minutes left in the first half, Ohio State cut it to 32-28 on a three-point play from Devin Royal off an offensive putback off of a Taison Chatman 3-point miss. And when McDaniel missed on a drive, the Buckeyes had a chance to pull even closer. Instead, Middleton missed a 3-pointer and Michigan capitalized when Tarris Reed backed down Royal and scored in the paint to push it back to a six-point lead.

Ohio State Buckeyes: Join the Ohio State Sports Insider text group with Bill Rabinowitz, Joey Kaufman Adam Jardy

Middleton again missed from the left corner, this one an airball that went long, and Ohio State fouled twice in the final six seconds to try and disrupt Michigan’s defensive plans. It didn’t matter: McDaniel took an inbounds pass from the right sideline in the backcourt and swished a straight-on 3-pointer as the buzzer sounded.

It was five points in 48 seconds for the Wolverines, who took a 37-28 lead into the break. After shooting 32.3% from 3-pont range in Big Ten play entering the game, Michigan hit 7 of their 11 first-half attempts as four different players made at least one. Ohio State, which had been shooting 39.3% from 3 against conference foes, made just 1 of its 14 attempts at the break.

That lone make was from Thornton, who had five attempts and tied for the team-lead with seven first-half points. Royal, who had not scored in Big Ten play entering the game, also had seven at the break.

ajardy@dispatch.com

@AdamJardy

 Get more Ohio State basketball news by listening to our podcasts