Michigan trailed only 24-to-21 at halftime yesterday at Ohio State, but the 4th-ranked Buckeyes used a 14-to-2 run midway through the second half and cruised to a 64-to-49 victory, their sixth straight over the number-20 Wolverines. Tim Hardaway Jr. paced Michigan with 15 points while freshman point guard Trey Burke tallied 13 points and five assists.
Burke returned to his hometown for the first time to play against former high school teammate, Buckeye star center Jared Sullinger. Burke said the Wolverines made a game of it, but the Buckeyes just had too much muscle and rebounding to be stopped.
Ohio State, which has won 38 straight at home, improved to 7-and-2 in the Big Ten and is alone in first place, a half game up on 6-and-2 Michigan State. The Wolverines slip to 6-and-3 in league play and 16-and-6 overall.
Michigan’s next game is Wednesday night at home against Indiana, which yesterday beat Iowa 103-to-89. Number-10 Michigan State, which had the weekend off, plays tomorrow night at Illinois.
