Ohio State’s game this past Saturday against Illinois was not a must-win game in any sense of the word. The Buckeyes needed help from Wisconsin or Indiana to jump up to the 4-seed and secure a double-bye in the Big Ten Tournament, so even a victory over the Illini wouldn’t have necessarily changed anything. In terms of the NCAA Tournament, Ohio State looks to be locked into a 2-seed as long as they win at least one game in this week’s conference tournament. A victory over Illinois wouldn’t have changed that.
But from an emotional perspective, the Buckeyes did not want to roll into the conference tournament riding a four-game losing streak.