Ohio State Men's Basketball: Chances Of An Undefeated Season?

The Ohio State Buckeyes (22-0, 9-0 Big Ten) are the only team left in Division-1A with a goose egg in the loss column. Close calls have been the story for Thad Matta's squad so far in Big Ten play; six of their nine conference wins have came by five points or less.

Ohio State is shooting 50% for the season, resulting in an average of 78.4 points per contest. The Buckeyes also average 17.1 assists for each game, which is ranked 13th overall.

Freshmen Jared Sullinger and Aaron Craft have contributed greatly to the success of the Bucks. Sullinger, a 6'9" forward, is consistently putting up outstanding numbers by averaging a double-double. Craft, an Ohio native, leads the team in assists per game (4.8).

With nine games remaining, what are the chances that Ohio State pulls off the first undefeated season since Bobby Knight's Indiana Hoosiers in 1975-1976? Here's what we know about Ohio State's opponents over those last nine regular season games:

Michigan Wolverines

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INDIANAPOLIS - MARCH 12: Forward DeShawn Sims #34 of the Michigan Wolverines attempts a shot against the Ohio State Buckeyes during the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament at Conseco Fieldhouse on March 12, 2010 in Indianapolis, Indi

The Michigan Wolverines (13-9, 3-6) are coming off of two big wins against Michigan State and Iowa. However, in their previous match up, Ohio State shot 18 more free throws than the Wolverines and hit nearly 53% of their shots. If the Buckeyes can contain guard Darius Morris, I wouldn't expect another last-minute comeback by Michigan while in Columbus.

Ohio State will host arch rival Michigan tonight at 7:00 P.M. ET.

Minnesota Golden Gophers

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PHILADELPHIA, PA - DECEMBER 08: Carl Jones #35 of the St. Joseph's Hawks drives for a shot attempt in the first half against Rodney Williams #33 and Ralph Sampson III #50 of the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Michael J. Hagan Arena on December 8, 2010 in Ph

Ohio State will have to make a trip to Williams Arena for a battle against the Minnesota Golden Gophers (16-6, 5-5). Coming off of a disappointing road loss to Indiana, Tubby Smith will look for his team to rebound at home with a quality win (to say the least) against the Buckeyes.

Minnesota rallied from a 10-point half-time deficit, when the teams met earlier this season, only to have a game-tying buzzer-beater blocked to end the game. The Golden Gophers shot 2 of 14 from the 3-point line, as they lost 67-64.

These teams will meet again Sunday, February 6 at 2:00 P.M. ET.

Wisconsin Badgers

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LAS VEGAS - NOVEMBER 20: Jon Leuer #30 of the Wisconsin Badgers looks to pass the ball inbounds as Derrick Jasper #5 of the UNLV Rebels defends during their game at the Thomas & Mack Center November 20, 2010 in Las Vegas, Nevada. UNLV won 68-65. (Photo

The Buckeyes will no doubt have their hands full when they play the Wisconsin Badgers (16-5, 5-3). The Badgers rely on their stingy defense, which is allowing merely 56.1 points per game, and their ability to make free throws, shooting almost 82% from the line as a team.

However, Wisconsin has shot over 40% from the field in just one of their five losses this season, resulting in a struggle to put points on the board.

Ohio State will face the Badgers on Saturday, February 12 at 2:00 P.M. ET. and at home on Sunday, March 6 (Time to be determined).

Michigan State

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CHAMPAIGN, IL - JANUARY 18: Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans talks with Derrick Nix #25 during the game against the Illinois Fighting Illini at Assembly Hall on January 18, 2011 in Champaign, Illinois. Illinois defeated Michigan State 71

If Michigan State (13-9, 5-5) wants to find themselves in the NCAA Tournament, this will most likely be a must-win. At one point, Tom Izzo's Spartans were ranked second in the nation. Yes, second. But having lost four of their last five games, a reality-check is much needed, and a victory in Columbus would serve as a statement win.

Kalin Lucas and Durrell Summers will have to step up their game if they want to have a chance in Columbus on Tuesday, February 15th at 9:00 P.M. ET.

Purdue Boilermakers

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WEST LAFAYETTE, IN - JANUARY 09: Head coach Matt Painter of the Purdue Boilermakers talks with with his players during a timeout against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Mackey Arena on January 9, 2011 in West Lafayette, Indiana. Purdue won 17-16. (Photo by Chris Ch

After an 87-64 shellacking in Columbus, Purdue (18-5, 7-3) will be looking for blood when they get together with the Buckeyes again.

Despite losing four of their last seven games, don't count the Hummel-less Boilermakers out against Ohio State. Yes, the Buckeyes dominated Purdue in almost every statistical category, but Purdue has one thing going for them; they are 14-1 at home this season, having won eight in a row.

Ohio State will travel to Mackey Arena Sunday, February 20 at 1:00 P.M. ET.

Illinois Fighting Illini

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CHAMPAIGN, IL - JANUARY 22: Illinois Fighting Illini fans cheer during the game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Assembly Hall on January 22, 2011 in Champaign, Illinois. Ohio State won 73-68. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)

Illinois (15-7, 5-4) shoots the ball very well and has six players that score over eight points a game. Nevertheless, in six of their seven losses this season they have either had the lead or been tied at the half time break. This means that the Fighting Illini have struggled to hold on in the second half of games, which also happened to be their downfall in their previous game against Ohio State; at one point they owned an eight point lead over the Buckeyes with just under 13 minutes left.

Illinois is 2-3 so far on the road this season.

This game will be played Tuesday, February 22 at 7:00 P.M. ET.

Indiana Hoosiers

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BLOOMINGTON, IN - DECEMBER 27: Tom Crean the Head Coach of the Indiana Hoosiers gives instructions to Tom Pritchard #25 during the Big Ten Conference game against the Penn State Nittany Lions on December 27, 2010 at Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Indiana.

Its hard to believe that Indiana (12-11, 3-7) has any chance to knock off the number one team in the country, but hey, this is college basketball. Besides, they've earned some credit by beating Michigan, Illinois and Minnesota. The Hoosiers will have to find a way to slow the Buckeyes down from the 3-point line, though, as Ohio State nailed 13 of 19 in their previous match up.

Game-time is Saturday, February 26 (Time to be determined) at Value City Arena.

Penn State Nittany Lions

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BLOOMINGTON, IN - DECEMBER 27: Tim Frazier #23 of Penn State Nittany Lions dribbles the ball during the Big Ten Conference game against the Indiana Hoosiers on December 27, 2010 at Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images

Penn State (12-9, 5-5) ranks 276th in points per game (64.4), 272nd in rebounds (33.0), 228th in assists (12.3), and 196th in field goal percentage (.432), yet are still able to say they beat Michigan State, Illinois and Wisconsin.

Taylor Battle has had much of the say in Penn State's success this season, scoring an average of 20 per contest. However, his 15 points were not enough to stop Ohio State from holding on to their 69-66 victory on January 15.

If the Nittany Lions want their fans to storm the court on Thursday, March 1, they'll need to limit turnovers; they had 14 to the Buckeyes' five in their last meeting.

And Now The Waiting Game...

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COLUMBUS, OH - SEPTEMBER 11: Mascot Brutus Buckeye fires up the crowd before a game against the Miami Hurricanes at Ohio Stadium on September 11, 2010 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images)

And there you have it. An undefeated regular season is definitely a possible outcome with the Buckeyes' remaining schedule, but every game will require a full effort. Of course, there is still the Big Ten Tournament and the NCAA Tournament to be played, but it is within reach.

Gotta love college basketball.