COLUMBUS — C.J. Jackson scored 18 points to help No. 16 Ohio State rout Rutgers 79-52 on Tuesday night.
Kaleb Wesson added 14, and Kam Williams, playing his last home game, had 13 as the Buckeyes (23-7, 14-3 Big Ten) got a feel-good win on senior night, coming on the heels of tough road losses to Penn State and Michigan that dropped them out of first place in the conference.
Corey Sanders had 12 points for the Scarlet Knights (13-17, 3-14). They’ve lost eight of their last nine games.
Keita Bates-Diop, Ohio State’s best player who missed most of last season to a leg injury, continued to struggle with his shooting. After starting the month as the likely candidate for Big Ten Player of the Year, he has had trouble scoring against more aggressive defenses. He had just six points against Rutgers on 3-for-11 shooting.
Bates-Diop has a year of eligibility remaining but likely will leave for the NBA. He graduated from Ohio State in December.
Jae’Sean Tate, also playing his last game at Value City Arena, had nine points and 10 rebounds.
Ohio State led 32-27 at the half. The Buckeyes had built a 19-point lead coming off an 11-0 run with 5:41 left in the half but then went cold. Rutgers put together a 16-2 run to finish the half, during which Ohio State went 1 for 8 from the floor.
But Rutgers, one of the nation’s worst offensive teams, opened the second half 1 for 8, and Ohio State took control with an 18-2 run.
Miami (Ohio) 84, Buffalo 81
OXFORD — Nike Sibande scored 21 points, freshman Isaiah Coleman-Lands added 17 points with five 3-pointers — both season highs — and Miami (Ohio) beat Mid-American Conference-leader Buffalo.
Buffalo guard Wes Clark completed a 3-point play on a driving layup with 22 seconds to go to pull to 80-78. Sibande was quickly fouled and made two free throws, Clark missed a layup and Sibande added two more at the stripe for a six-point lead with 14 seconds left.
Dalonte Brown scored 13 points of his 17 points in the first half for Miami (14-14, 7-8 MAC).
Jeremy Harris had 23 points with five 3-pointers and eight rebounds for Buffalo (20-8, 12-3. Clark and Nick Perkins each added 18 points.
Eastern Michigan 85, Toledo 79
YPSILANTI, Mich. — James Thompson IV and Elijah Minnie each scored 23 points and Paul Jackson had 18 points and 10 assists to help Eastern Michigan beat Toledo.
Minnie was 8-of-11 shooting, including 4 of 6 from 3-point range, and Thompson made 11 of 14 from the field. Tim Bond added 17 points for Eastern Michigan (17-11, 8-7 MAC). The Eagles have won three in a row and five of their last six.
Luke Knapke was fouled on a dunk and converted the 3-point play to give Toledo a 12-point lead midway through the first half, but Minnie and Bond scored nine points before Thompson made back-to-back baskets to give EMU its first lead early in the second half. Thompson’s alley-oop dunk from Jackson sparked a 10-1 run that made it 72-63 with five minutes to play. Marreon Jackson’s layup about a minute later pulled the Rockets within six, but they would get no closer.
Tre’Shaun Fletcher led Toledo with 21 points.
The Rockets (19-9, 11-4), who have a one-game lead over Ball State in the West standings, have lost two in a row. Buffalo (12-3) leads the East.
Akron 81, Bowling Green 79
BOWLING GREEN — Jimond Ivey drove into the middle of the lane to hit a floater and Lucas Smith added a free throw in the final seconds as Akron (12-15, 5-10 MAC) upset Bowling Green (16-12, 7-8).
Daniel Utomi led Akron with 29 points, making 9 of 10 from the line and draining four treys. Malcolm Duvivier added 14 points and Ivey finished with 12 for the Zips, who garnered their first road win of the season.
Dylan Frye drained 5 of 7 from long range to finish with 24 points and Turner added 15 with six assists for Bowling Green , which has dropped two straight but remains in second place behind Buffalo in the MAC East standings.
Dayton 53, Saint Louis 50
DAYTON — Trey Landers scored 13 points, grabbed eight rebounds and made key plays down the stretch to help Dayton rally from a 13-point second-half deficit on Tuesday night to beat Saint Louis 53-50.
Kostas Antetokounmpo had 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting for Dayton (13-14, 7-9 Atlantic 10).
The Flyers used a 17-4 run to tie it at 37-all with 10½ minutes to play and it was tied four more times before Jordan Davis hit a 3 to give the Flyers their first lead since midway through the first half. Landers’ tipin made it 50-45 with 1:45 to play, but Hasahn French hit a jumper and Aaron Hines made a layup to pull Saint Louis within two. Landers found Josh Cunningham for a dunk with 25 seconds left and then had a steal on the Billikens’ next possession as Dayton held on.
French, a freshman, had 12 of Saint Louis’ last 13 points and finished with a season-high 20 on 10-of-15 shooting.
Landers and Jalen Crutcher hit 3s on Dayton’s first two possessions, but the Flyers missed 11 of their next 14 field-goal attempts and committed eight first-half turnovers as Saint Louis took a nine-point lead into the break. Javon Bess and French made back-to-back jumpers to make it 33-20 with 18 minutes left.
Ohio 88, Kent State 76
ATHENS — Jordan Dartis sank half of his 10 3-point attempts and scored 20 to lead six players in double figures and Ohio won back-to-back MAC games for the first time this season.
Dartis added four assists, three rebounds and two steals for the Bobcats (12-15, 5-10 MAC). Teyvion Kirk scored 17 and Kevin Mickle and James Gollon added 13 points apiece with Gollon snaring seven rebounds. Mike Laster and Doug Taylor scored 11 and 10, respectively.
Ohio hit 7 of its 10 3-pointers in the first half and led 47-39 at intermission. The Bobcats led 62-51 on a Laster layup with 12 minutes left to play, but Kevin Zabo and BJ Duling combined for seven points in a 9-0 surge to pull Kent State within 62-60 with 9:12 remaining. Kirk scored six straight points in an 8-0 run to push Ohio’s lead back to double digits and the Bobcats were never threatened from there.
Adonis De La Rosa paced the Golden Flashes (13-15, 7-8) with 13 points, while Jaylin Walker, Desmond Ridenour and Zabo all scored 12.
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