2011-12 Big Ten Schedule: Ohio State

Ohio State dominated the conference last year, and they will start this year as heavy favorites to repeat. The conference schedules were released earlier in the week, and we're going to take a look at who the Buckeyes will have to beat to defend their crown.

Looking at the non-conference schedule, a few games stand out. The Buckeyes have their share of what should be easy wins, but there are a few games that should provide a challenge. Duke will visit Value City Arena as part of the B1G/ACC Challenge, and Ohio State will also face two SEC teams: Florida and South Carolina. Their biggest non-conference game should be a great one, as they will travel to Allen Fieldhouse to play the Kansas Jayhawks.

Like every team in the Big Ten, Ohio State will play only four teams once instead of twice. Those home games are against Purdue and Penn State, while those road games will be against Minnesota and Iowa.

The first part of the conference schedule shouldn't provide much of a challenge for the Buckeyes. In the first eight games, Illinois and Penn State are the only ones that made the NCAA tournament last year (and Penn State is not expected to be good this year).

From that point on, the schedule is pretty rough. Other than road games against Minnesota and Northwestern (neither of which will be easy), all of the games are against teams that finished in the top half of the conference last season: Michigan (twice), Wisconsin (twice), Purdue, Michigan State (twice), and Illinois. The Buckeyes will either be worn down by the time the NCAA tournament starts, or the high level of competition will have them peaking at just the right time.

Click on to see Ohio State's full schedule with TV information.

2010-11 Ohio State Buckeyes Basketball Schedule