Ohio State basketball dropped third game by one possession: what's going wrong?

Ohio State lost its third one-possession game of the season against No. 10 Nebraska, falling 72-69 after a missed three-point attempt from Christoph Tilly in the final seconds.

The Buckeyes got down early, trailing by as many as 14 in the first half, a common pattern of having to claw back from a deficit.

Diebler said, “I challenged our guys after that first media timeout and said, ‘What are we doing?’ This is not who we are in practice, this is not how we play and prepare. There’s stretches where we lack physicality, we lack ball pressure, and you see some of the communication breakdowns, those are signs that we don’t have that aggressive attack mode mentality.”

Ohio State came out in the second half with a different approach. They upped their pressure, created turnovers, and had better spacing. They took their first lead late in the second half and led by as many as three before finding themselves in another eight-point hole with 2:18 to go.

“We need to develop the mentality that we play with when we’re potentially trailing or in the second half,” Diebler said. “We have to have that same mentality the whole game.”

Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Jake Diebler motions during the second half of the NCAA men's basketball game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers at the Schottenstein Center in Columbus on Jan. 5, 2026. Ohio State lost 72-69. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Diebler says the inconsistencies — which also burned the Buckeyes in their one-point losses to Pitt and UNC — are coming down to battling for those 50/50 balls, poise, and — last night specifically — fatigue. He said he regretted not using their final timeout sooner to give his guys some rest, because fatigue caught up with them, especially with Noel injured and out for the second half.

Diebler opted to save his final timeout, but Ohio State never used it. Instead, Tilly took a somewhat rushed three-point attempt with four seconds left. Diebler said he was still pleased with how the Buckeyes advanced the ball, anticipating the foul.

The Buckeyes were led by John Mobley Jr., who finished with 22, Bruce Thornton with 16, and Devin Royal with 14. Gabe Cupps, Brandon Noel, and Colin White — who played a combined total of 22 minutes off the bench — were all scoreless.

Diebler acknowledged that more offensive production is needed from the bench, and that at times they’re lacking aggression, playing with hesitation, and passing up open shots. As a whole, he said there’s a nastiness mentality he’s looking to see the whole way through. It’s not a “play hard” problem, but a tendency to ball watch and relax at times.

“This was a missed opportunity, and we’ve got a bunch of other opportunities coming up,” Diebler said. “That’s life in the Big Ten. We have to keep getting better, there’s no denying that. But we also have to take advantage of the opportunities in front of us, and we have 18 left.”

Ohio State’s next opportunity is Thursday, Jan. 8 at 10:30 p.m. against Oregon.