Minneapolis, MN (SportsNetwork.com) - Marc Loving's floater in the final seconds of overtime gave No. 22 Ohio State a 74-72 win over Minnesota on Tuesday.
D'Angelo Russell scored 25 of his game-high 27 points in the first half. Loving added 13 points for the Buckeyes (13-3, 2-1 Big Ten), who ended Minnesota's 14-game home win streak.
With time winding down in overtime, Loving came off a curl on the left side of the court, caught a feed from Sam Thompson and got a one-handed push shot to fall. Minnesota had a timeout left but opted not to use it, instead rushing the ball up the court. Thompson deflected a pass, knocking the ball towards midcourt, and the clock hit zero before Minnesota's desperation heave.
Maurice Walker tallied 18 points and nine rebounds and DeAndre Mathieu scored 17 for Minnesota (11-5, 0-3).
"They're all tough. You know, a loss is a loss in my book and everyone just wants to win, so it's tough," said Walker.
The Gophers chipped away from a 12-point halftime deficit, eventually tying the game with 6:20 remaining.
The Buckeyes led by seven when Amir Williams was handed a technical foul after getting whistled for a shooting foul that he disagreed with. Four free throws and a Joey King 3-pointer later, and the game was knotted at 60.
"That technical foul was huge. I think that that was kind of a turning point," said Ohio State coach Thad Matta.
It was 66-66 late when Russell was stripped on a drive to the basket. Williams came up with the loose ball and could have won it for OSU, but his point-blank layup hit back rim and bounced off.
Leading by three late in the extra session, Russell lost the ball again driving to the basket. This time Minnesota came up with it, and Nate Mason drove past Williams for a layup plus a foul. His free throw tied it at 72.
Minnesota scored on four of its first six possessions and led 9-5. Then, the future lottery pick Russell went to work.
Consecutive 3s by the star freshman highlighted a 12-0 run that Thompson capped with a transition layup. Minnesota rattled off seven straight later to tie it at 21, but Russell scored 14 of the next 16 OSU points.
His field goals around the final media timeout of the half were part of an 8-0 run -- which included a Loving tip-slam just before the buzzer -- and the Buckeyes led 41-29 at halftime.
Game Notes
Shannon Scott had nine points and 10 assists for Ohio State ... Minnesota has lost three straight games to open Big Ten conference play ... Both teams had 14 turnovers.