What: Ohio State Buckeyes vs. Penn State Nittany Lions

When: Wednesday, January 25th; 6:30 p.m.

Where: Value Center Arena; Columbus, Ohio

Television: Big Ten Network

Nittany Lions Record: 10-11

Opposing Coverage: Black Shoe Diaries

As expected by everyone, except perhaps the corn farmer with red ink Husker tattoos, Ohio State defeated Nebraska handily, 79-45. Ohio State forced an absurd 25 turnovers, and William Buford led three Buckeyes in double-digits with 15 points.

Now a struggling Penn State program, tied for last place in the Big Ten and in possession of a 1-5 record on the road, comes to town looking to remain afloat in the Big Ten race. Head coach Patrick Chambers inherited a depleted roster from his predecessor Ed DeChellis, who surprisingly bolted to Navy last offseason. Against Indiana last Monday, the Nittany Lions were competitive for a time, leading at the half before a disastrous stretch gave way to a Hoosier blowout victory.

Junior Tim Frazier leads the Nittany Lions with 18 points and 5 rebounds per game, but lacks a deft shooting touch, only hitting 40% of his shots and 27% from 3-point range. Frazier's points-per-game average places him atop the conference scorers list, but he undeniably benefits from a paucity of competition from his teammates.

With Talor Battle's exit, Frazier remains the sole consistent scoring threat. Sophomore guard Jermaine Marshall averages 9 points per game, and functions as the next strongest contributor, but he had an awful showing against the Hoosiers, missing all of his shots. Sophomore forward Sasa Borovnak adds size to the mix, but he, too, struggled against Indiana and their talented freshman Cody Zeller. Borovnak is neither as talented nor as polished as Jared Sullinger, and Sullinger should dominate.

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On February 1st, the majority of high school athletes with scholarship offers will sign their National Letter of Intent and officially bind themselves to their school of choice. Some will delay their signing, either to create a spectacle around themselves or because they are genuinely confused about their college decision. As it stands today, Ohio State has 23 committed athletes who have, as far as we know, full intentions to maintain their commitment and end up Buckeyes.

With recent departures and medical redshirts, Urban Meyer has room to add an additional four to six athletes to the class. He may also gain an additional scholarship if Roger Lewis, a four star receiver from Pickerington Central, cannot raise his grades and pass NCAA requirements If Lewis cannot meet the NCAA minimum, he will head to a prep school for a year and play the recruiting game all over again.

Six names have been connected to Ohio State the most these past few weeks: Kyle Dodson, Jamal Marcus, Demetrious Cox, Bam Bradley, Armani Reeves, and Davonte Neal.

Dodson, a four star offensive tackle committed to Wisconsin, will make his college choice this Saturday. Odds are that he flips from the Badgers and joins the Buckeyes. Dodson's commitment would fill the last true need on Ohio State's roster, adding depth to the depleted tackle position.

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What: Ohio State Buckeyes vs. Nebraska Cornhuskers

When: Saturday, January 21st; 8:00 p.m.

Where: Bob Devaney Sports Center; Lincoln, Nebraska

Television: Big Ten Network

Cornhusker Record:10-8

Opposing Coverage: Corn Nation

Ohio State avenged an earlier loss against Indiana with an 80-63 drubbing of the Hoosiers at home last Sunday, and now the Buckeyes travel to Lincoln, Nebraska to cap off their season series against the Cornhuskers.

In their matchup on January 1st, Ohio State decimated Nebraska, 71-40. Jared Sullinger scored 19 points, Deshaun Thomas scored 15, hitting seven of nine shots, and William Buford added 13 more to drown out the Cornhuskers, who were held to a 30% field goal percentage. Not only did Ohio State shoot more efficiently than Nebraska, but the Buckeyes grabbed 16 more rebounds, six of which came on the offensive boards. The gap was so extreme that, according to Bill James' methodology, the game was statistically over with eleven minutes remaining in the second half.

Nebraska ranks last in the Big Ten in points per game and second from last in 3-point shooting. Led by senior guard Bo Spencer, the Husker offense has struggled against any defense with some skill. Nebraska has lost six of seven games against the RPI top 50, beating only the suddenly stagnant Indiana Hoosiers.

For the Buckeyes, today's game should offer an opportunity to further gel the young talent with the old. Sophomore guard Lenzelle Smith Jr. has come on strong of late, scoring a career-high 28 points against Indiana. Smith's unique skillset--a long, lean body matched with impressive range--fills a role lacking on Ohio State's roster, a role that could augment a deep tournament run in March.

After not playing for six days, it will be good for the Bucks to get back on the court. It's now obvious that the path of this year's team is markedly different than the senior-heavy version of a year ago, which makes this stretch of conference play, the unappreciated brunt of the schedule, decisively important. Although the 2010-11 Buckeyes were stronger in the regular season than this group, there remains plenty of time for the 2011-12 squad to surpass their ancestors and win that elusive prize.

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What was looking like a bleak offensive line class for the Buckeyes in 2012 has suddenly made a turn for the better with the commitments of Taylor Decker and Joey O'Connor. O'Connor is an offensive guard prospect from Windsor, Colorado who picked up his offer on his visit this past weekend. It did not take long for him to turn around and give Urban Meyer his verbal, as it seemed like once he was offered he was going to join the Buckeyes.

Previously a Penn State commitment before the scandal broke out, O'Connor reopened his search and made an official visit last weekend and loved what he saw. Bill Greene over at Scout had a chance to speak with him and he stated, "Ohio State is just an all-around great place, first off," O'Connor stated Tuesday afternoon. "I loved the guys, the coaches, just everything about Ohio State, to be honest. I would say it is just the right fit for me."

O'Connor joins Jacoby Boren, Patrick Elflein, and Taylor Decker in the 2012 offensive line recruiting class. With the loss of Mike Adams, Mike Brewster and J.B. Shugarts and the youth on next years offensive line, it was a key position that Urban Meyer addressed as soon as he was hired. Meyer knew that he was going to need some big athletic football players on the offensive line if he wanted to run his version of the spread offense in the Big Ten.

O'Connor decommitted from Penn State amidst the scandal that broke out with Jerry Sandusky in November of last year. He had offers from other big schools like Iowa, Arizona, Colorado, Tennessee and UCLA.

Read more about the 21st Buckeye in the 2012 class below the jump.

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