Focus shifts to Maryland after Iowa blowout

Ohio State basketball dropped the first of two games against ranked opponents this week with an 85-76 loss to Iowa Thursday night.

The loss came as no surprise, given that the Hawkeyes have lost one home game all season and feature a potential National Player of the Year in Luka Garza. The junior forward played to that standard once again with 24 points, six rebounds and four assists. He dominated the floor.

Meanwhile, Oho State’s big man Kaleb Wesson struggled with 10 points and seven rebounds on just 4-of10 shooting. He recorded four fouls and spent the bulk of the final eight minutes on the bench as a spectator.

Trailing by nine, the Buckeyes had a chance to go on a run during a second-half stretch in which Iowa struggled to score. Instead, they missed 13 of their next 17 shots.

There is a silver lining. Losing to a superior opponent on their home floor shouldn’t affect OSU’s tournament chances, especially with more opportunities to get a needed quality win. Next up is No. 7 Maryland, the conference’s best team and national championship contender.

The Terrapins won the first meeting in College Park 67-55, with the Buckeyes shooting just 31.3%. Ohio State has been a far more efficient offensive team at home, which has often energized their defense. That could help keep Anthony Cowan Jr. from shooting 12 free throws again.

A win over Iowa would have gone a long way for Ohio State. Now it must shift its focus to trying to continue its success at home against the best team the Big Ten has to offer. — Stephen Means, The Plain Dealer

Carton returning to Ohio State

Ohio State coach Chris Holtmann confirmed an earlier Columbus Dispatch report that freshman guard and Iowa native D.J. Carton is returning to Ohio State after taking a break from the team to address mental health issues.

Carton has a long journey to get back to being able to participate in a team meeting or activity, much less take part in a game.

“D.J., he’s returning to school,” Holtmann said after the Iowa game. “The biggest thing for him is we want him to get on a path towards better health. That’s really all of our concern right now. The idea of anything beyond that, he’s got to get re-acclimated to school. That’s going to require some stuff. Meet with our medical staff. That’s our only concern. We’re happy he’s returning. We’re excited to have him back.”

Although the Buckeyes got to Iowa on Wednesday night, staying in Cedar Rapids, and Carton left for Columbus on Thursday, the players did not see the Bettendorf native while on the trip. — Adam Jardy, The Columbus Dispatch