How to watch, listen, or stream

Game Time: 7 p.m. ET

TV: Big Ten Network

Radio: 103.7 WEEI (Providence) || 97.1 FM (Ohio State)

Stream: BTN2Go

Gamblin’ Info

Ohio State is the 7-point favorite against Providence, according to OddShark.com.

The Stakes

Providence will look to improve to 2-0 on the season after defeating Vermont 80-58 on Monday. Ohio State narrowly defeated North Carolina Central 69-63 on Monday and will improve to 3-0 if they win at home against Providence.

This will be just the second time ever these programs will face each other and the first time since 1990. The Buckeyes won their first meeting that year in the NCAA Tournament, defeating the Friars 84-83.

Three Things to Watch For

Can Emmitt Holt continue to prove he is the best player on Providence’s team?

With their two top-scorers from last season gone, Ed Cooley is in need of one his guys to emerge into a reliable scoring option. Although many thought it’d either be Rodney Bullock or Kyron Cartwright who would be the main contributors for Providence scoring-wise, on Monday it was Emmitt Holt.

Holt led the Friars with 22 points on an 8-of-12 shooting performance from the field, shot 1-4 from three, and made five of his six free throws. Holt also grabbed five rebounds in Providence’s win on Monday. Holt showed that he can do it all that day, but Ohio State on the road is a much tougher matchup.

Nonetheless, if Holt puts together another solid evening and leads the Friars in scoring again, he could be the guy moving forward that Ed Cooley leans on to make it back to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth consecutive year.

Can Ohio State overcome their early season struggles?

Yes, the Buckeyes are 2-0, but they had to fight hard in their wins against two very weak teams in Navy and North Carolina Central. Navy battled hard with the Buckeyes and started off the game on a 7-2 run, but never cut the deficit to fewer than 10 points in the second half. However, against North Carolina Central, Ohio State was in deep trouble.

The Eagles trailed by just one point at halftime, but led most of the first half. North Carolina Central took the lead in the opening two minutes of the second period, but Ohio State took the lead and held on for the victory. Ohio State will need to play much better against Providence, as they averaged 15 turnovers as a team in their first two games.

Can Providence make some noise in non-conference play again this year?

Last year, nobody knew what to expect from the Friars, but proved themselves in non-conference play. Their biggest win came on November 27th, as they defeated the Arizona Wildcats who were #11 at the time.

Their next game came against the #3 ranked Michigan State Spartans, where they unfortunately suffered a loss, but made more noise around college basketball and were ranked in the Top-25 for the first time all season the following week.

Providence would win the remainder of their non-conference games and entered conference play with a 12-1 record. Ohio State is one of Providence’s toughest opponents this season and a win for the Friars will give them a ton of momentum moving forward.