Ohio State Vs. Michigan Tactical Breakdown: Three Ways the Wolverines Can Beat the Buckeyes

After Ohio State beat the Iowa Hawkeyes 72-69 earlier this afternoon, they will advance to take on the top-seeded Michigan Wolverines. Michigan enters this game ranked 3rd in the country with a 29-2 record overall, while Ohio State is now up to a 21-11 record. Michigan is firmly entrenched as a #1 seed for the NCAA Tournament and Ohio State is likely already in the NCAA Tournament field, but another win here against the Wolverines would really solidify that.

Michigan won the two matchups between these two teams earlier this season, by scores of 74-62 and 82-61. Round 3 will have a different feel though with it being a neutral site game in Indianapolis and having a tournament atmosphere. Let's dive into the three keys for the Wolverines to beat the Buckeyes in this Big Ten Tournament game.

Limit Foul Trouble

The most susceptible Michigan has looked all year is when their imposing front court gets itself into foul trouble. Aday Mara in particular needs to stay out of foul trouble in this game, along with Morez Johnson Jr. Michigan is a completely different team when those two can play freely and rotate in for their normal minutes but things can get off kilter when they're in foul trouble. Michigan is the favorite here in this game and has already beaten this Ohio State team twice, so as long as Mara and Johnson Jr. stay out of foul trouble, that should be a good sign for the Wolverines.

Limit Turnovers

This is the second biggest issue Michigan has had this year, is limiting their turnovers. They turn it over more than most elite teams in the country, ranking 254th nationally in average turnovers per game. It's really the only thing that holds them back on offense, other than the occasional bad shooting night. For much of the season, Michigan has been so good everywhere else that the turnovers haven't really cost them games, but that could change at any time. If Michigan takes care of the basketball and turns it over 12 times or less, they should be in good shape for this game.

Defend the 3-Point Line

Ohio State is a top 50 team in the country in 3-point shooting percentage. We saw what can happen if Michigan's opponent is lighting it up from 3-point range when the Wisconsin Badgers made 15 3's to win the game in Ann Arbor earlier this year. For Ohio State to stay competitive or even win this game, they will almost surely have to rely on making a bunch of 3-point shots against Michigan's defense. It hasn't happened much to Michigan this year but if Ohio State shows up and shoots the lights out from distance, that could easily end the Wolverines chances at winning the Big Ten Tournament.

Michigan will rightly be the big favorite in this game and ultimately should win this game. Ohio State is a good offensive team but they've largely struggled on defense this year. Both times Michigan played them, they were able to wear them down in the second half and take control of the game. If Michigan can keep their big guys out of foul trouble, limit their turnovers, and defend the 3-point line, they'll have no problems beating Ohio State in this game.