Ohio State finalizes non-conference schedule highlighted by Texas A&M, Alabama
Ohio State has released its complete non-conference schedule for the 2023-24 men’s basketball season.
Or, at least, as much as it knows at this point of the calendar. The Buckeyes are awaiting a confirmed opponent in the CBS Sports Classic, and one of their home non-conference games could be played on one of two days, but otherwise it’s all set.
Ohio State will open the season with a Nov. 6 home date against Oakland, one of five games not previously announced. The schedule is highlighted with a home game against Texas A&M on Nov. 10, the first in a home-and-home series between the programs, as well as a game in Cleveland against West Virginia on Dec. 30 and an appearance in the Emerald Coast Classic.
That previously announced tournament will see the Buckeyes open against Alabama on Nov. 24 in Niceville, Florida, and play either Oregon or Santa Clara the following day. As part of the event, Ohio State will also host Western Michigan on Nov. 19.
Otherwise, the Buckeyes will host Merrimack on Nov. 15, Central Michigan on Nov. 29, New Orleans on Dec. 21 and Miami (Ohio) on either December 5 or 6. The date for that game will be set when the Big Ten finalizes its conference schedule, which will again feature league games in early December. Ohio State assistant coach Jack Owens was the head coach at Miami (Ohio) from 2017-2022.
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The Buckeyes will play either Kentucky, North Carolina or UCLA in the CBS Sports Classic on Dec. 16. Those four teams have been locked into the annual event for years, and with the Bruins joining the Big Ten next year it’s most likely they will play the Buckeyes for a final time before becoming conference foes. That event has not announced a location.
The Big Ten has already announced which teams will play each other and how many times as part of its 20-game conference schedule, but dates, times and broadcast details are still to be determined.
“This is the best and most challenging overall schedule we have put together in a few years,” coach Chris Holtmann said in a statement. “We have a preseason top-15 opponent coming to the Schottenstein Center in the early part of the year, a couple of preseason top-25 teams away from home and several good regional mid-major programs in the nonconference. This is all in addition to our tremendous home slate of Big Ten opponents.”
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Buckeyes to face Texas A&M, Alabama as part of non-conference schedule
