COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio State men’s basketball team opens its 2026-27 season Monday night on the road, facing No. 25 BYU at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City. Tip-off is set for 9 p.m. Eastern on FS1, and the Buckeyes carry a 4-3 all-time record against the Cougars into the neutral-site showdown, according to 247Sports’ summary of the non-conference schedule.
The opener closes a three-game preseason against high-major competition. Ohio State played an outdoor exhibition against Cincinnati, a closed-door scrimmage at Louisville and, most recently, an 82-73 exhibition win over Butler on Oct. 25 at the Schottenstein Center in front of an announced crowd just shy of 7,000, The Columbus Dispatch reported.
Sophomore forward Amare Bynum led the way against Butler, scoring 23 points on only 10 shots in 31 minutes, pulling down a team-high six rebounds and going a perfect seven-for-seven at the free-throw line, The Columbus Dispatch reported. Freshman guard LJ Smith added 12 points off the bench on four-of-five shooting, all from three-point range.
The win did not hide the Buckeyes’ biggest preseason concern. Butler outrebounded Ohio State 42-33 and turned that edge into an 18-8 advantage in second-chance points, and Cincinnati had beaten the Buckeyes 45-35 on the glass in the outdoor exhibition, according to The Columbus Dispatch. Head coach Jake Diebler told The Columbus Dispatch he was “disappointed in our lack of defensive communication and certainly rebounding” after the Butler game.
Freshman Anthony Thompson pointed to the same fix when The Columbus Dispatch asked what Ohio State most needs to improve before facing BYU. “That’s the biggest thing,” Thompson told The Columbus Dispatch. “BYU has a lot of big-time players so we have to be more physical in our rebounding and our box-outs and being able to take care of the ball more.”
Diebler is also sorting out a deep rotation. The Buckeyes carry a 15-man roster, with 11 players in the mix for minutes against Butler, and The Columbus Dispatch reported that Diebler expects that number to shrink as the high-level games arrive. Ohio State is navigating its first season without four-year stalwart Bruce Thornton, and Bynum’s efficient night suggested he is ready to shoulder more of a go-to role.
After Monday’s opener, the Buckeyes return to Columbus for their home opener against Youngstown State on Friday, Nov. 6, at 6:30 p.m. on B1G+, then host Marshall on Nov. 9 before a road trip to Connecticut on Nov. 13. A win over a ranked BYU team on a neutral floor would give Ohio State an early resume result — but only if the rebounding work the team talked about all week shows up on the glass.
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