Program history
Ohio State
in the tournament.
Ohio State appears in 36 tournaments in this archive, between 1939 and 2026, with an all-time record of 56–35. One of those runs ended with the net coming down, in 1960.
It has also lost the title game 4 times: 1939, 1961, 1962 and 2007.
In its opening game it is 15–5. 10 of its 21 games decided by three points or fewer went its way.
Its biggest upset as the underdog came in 2019, when an 11th seed beat the 6th-seeded Iowa State 62–59. The reverse happened in 2021: as a 2nd seed it lost to the 15th-seeded Oral Roberts 75–72.
Its longest run of consecutive appearances is 7, from 2009 to 2015. Its longest absence ran 10 years, between 1950 and 1960. It has met Kentucky 6 times, more than any other opponent.
This archive carries no numeric seed before 1979. Since then it has entered as high as a 1st seed and as low as an 11th.
- 36 Appearances
- 56–35 All-time record
- 1 Title
Season by season
| Year | Seed | Record | Coach | Conference | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 | — | 16–7 | Harold Olsen | Big Ten | Runner-up |
| 1944 | — | 14–7 | Harold Olsen | Big Ten | National Semifinals |
| 1945 | — | 15–5 | Harold Olsen | Big Ten | National Semifinals |
| 1946 | — | 16–5 | Harold Olsen | Big Ten | Third Place |
| 1950 | — | 22–4 | Tippy Dye | Big Ten | Regional third place |
| 1960 | — | 25–3 | Fred Taylor | Big Ten | Champion |
| 1961 | — | 27–1 | Fred Taylor | Big Ten | Runner Up |
| 1962 | — | 26–2 | Fred Taylor | Big Ten | Runner Up |
| 1968 | — | 21–8 | Fred Taylor | Big Ten Conference | Third Place |
| 1971 | — | 20–6 | Fred Taylor | Big Ten Conference | Regional Runner-up |
| 1980 | 4 | 21–8 | Eldon Miller | Big Ten Conference | Round of 16 |
| 1982 | 8 | 21–10 | Eldon Miller | Big Ten Conference | Round of 48 |
| 1983 | 3 | 20–10 | Eldon Miller | Big Ten Conference | Round of 16 |
| 1985 | 4 | 20–10 | Eldon Miller | Big Ten Conference | lost in the Round 2 to Louisiana Tech, 67–79 |
| 1987 | 9 | 20–13 | Gary Williams | Big Ten Conference | lost in the Round 2 to Georgetown, 79–82 |
| 1990 | 8 | 17–13 | Randy Ayers | Big Ten | lost in the Second Round to UNLV, 65–76 |
| 1991 | 1 | 27–4 | Randy Ayers | Big Ten | lost in the Regional semifinals to St. John's, 74–91 |
| 1992 | 1 | 26–6 | Randy Ayers | Big Ten | lost in the Regional Finals to Michigan, 71–75 (OT) |
| 1999 | 4 | 1–1 | Jim O'Brien | Big Ten | lost in the National Semifinal to Connecticut, 58–64 |
| 2000 | 3 | 11–3 | Jim O'Brien | Big Ten | lost in the Round of 32 to Miami (FL), 62–75 |
| 2001 | 5 | 0–0 | Jim O'Brien | Big Ten | lost in the Round of 64 to Utah State, 68–77 (OT) |
| 2002 | 4 | 0–0 | Jim O'Brien | Big Ten | lost in the Round of 32 to Missouri, 67–83 |
| 2006 | 2 | 26–6 | Thad Matta | Big Ten | lost in the Round of 32 to Georgetown, 52–70 |
| 2007 | 1 | 35–4 | Thad Matta | Big Ten | lost in the Championship to Florida, 75–84 |
| 2009 | 8 | 22–11 | Thad Matta | Big Ten | lost in the round of 64 to Siena, 72–74 (OT) |
| 2010 | 2 | 29–8 | Thad Matta | Big Ten | lost in the regional semifinal to Tennessee, 73–76 |
| 2011 | 1 | 34–3 | Thad Matta | Big Ten | lost in the regional semifinal to Kentucky, 60–62 |
| 2012 | 2 | 31–8 | Thad Matta | Big Ten Conference | lost in the national semifinal to Kansas, 62–64 |
| 2013 | 2 | 29–8 | Thad Matta | Big Ten Conference | lost in the regional final to Wichita State, 66–70 |
| 2014 | 6 | 25–10 | Thad Matta | Big Ten Conference | lost in the round of 64 to Dayton, 59–60 |
| 2015 | 10 | 24–11 | Thad Matta | Big Ten Conference | lost in the round of 32 to Arizona, 58–73 |
| 2018 | 5 | 25–9 | Chris Holtmann | Big Ten Conference | lost in the round of 32 to Gonzaga, 84–90 |
| 2019 | 11 | 20–15 | Chris Holtmann | Big Ten Conference | lost in the round of 32 to Houston, 59–74 |
| 2021 | 2 | 21–10 | Chris Holtmann | Big Ten Conference | lost in the round of 64 to Oral Roberts, 72–75 (OT) |
| 2022 | 7 | 20–12 | Chris Holtmann | Big Ten Conference | lost in the round of 32 to Villanova, 61–71 |
| 2026 | 8 | 21–13 | Jake Diebler | Big Ten Conference | lost in the round of 64 to TCU, 64–66 |
How the games went
| Round | W–L |
|---|---|
| Opening | 15–5 |
| Round of 64 | 20–7 |
| Round of 32 | 6–8 |
| Round of 8 | 4–3 |
| Semifinal | 10–8 |
| Final | 1–4 |
Every one of these fields is playable. Take Ohio State into any of them and change what happened.
Free with ads on both. Every game is simulated — nothing here predicts a real result.