With all that went into Sunday's final home game of the season, interim coach Jake Diebler made one thing clear.

Yes, senior day would be emotional. Of course, Ohio State was hoping to continue its late-season surge with flickering hopes of a stunning NCAA Tournament appearance.

Make no mistake, though: this game was against Michigan, and the Buckeyes would prepare accordingly. Playing the part of a team feeling like it has everything to play for against one counting the minutes until the offseason, Ohio State lived up to Diebler's vow.

The Buckeyes toyed with the Wolverines for a while, opened the second half with a 10-0 run and blew it wide open by the end, cruising to a 84-61 win at Value City Arena.

Ohio State (18-12, 8-11 Big Ten) never trailed against the last-place Wolverines (8-22, 3-16), who have now lost seven straight, 12 of their last 13 and 17 of their last 19 games, with one of those wins coming against the Buckeyes on Jan. 15.

"We lost to them at their place," Ohio State senior Zed Key said. "All week leading up to this game we knew we had to come out with aggressiveness and fire because they’re going to come out with the same. We had great practices leading up to the game today. Guys bought in and we got the ‘W.’ "

The win snaps Ohio State’s three-game losing streak to the Wolverines. It also moves them to 4-1 with interim coach Jake Diebler at the helm and marks a three-game winning streak as the Buckeyes now face a week off before concluding the regular season March 10 at Rutgers.

Diebler handled pregame senior day festivities and then gave a nod to the four players who were honored by including them in the starting lineup. Sophomore Bruce Thornton returned to the lineup after missing the Nebraska game with a migraine, the first time he’s not started a game since arriving on Ohio State’s campus.

That meant walk-on center Owen Spencer, who had not played this season and had battled a foot injury for the first half of the year, made his season debut as well as his first career start. He stayed on the court for the first 63 seconds and was replaced by Roddy Gayle Jr. after fouling Tarris Reed on Michigan’s second possession of the game.

Spencer started alongside Jamison Battle, Dale Bonner, Key and Thornton. He returned to the game with 3:31 left and Ohio State ahead by 24 points as Diebler went with his starters plus freshman Scotty Middleton.

He then subbed out Key, Battle and Bonner with 2:46 left. Key made heart hands to the crowd as he reached the bench with Ohio State ahead 82-53.

Bonner finished with 10 points, his first double-digit game since New Orleans on Dec. 21. Key had 9 points and Battle had 8 as Ohio State closed out the game with a lineup that included walk-on Colby Baumann and seldom-used sophomore Kalen Etzler.

"This game means a ton," Diebler said. "You can throw the records out the window and expect a real battle. That’s what makes this rivalry so good is there’s a level of respect, and some other feelings and emotions towards them certainly."

Ohio State outscored Michigan 22-2 in fast-break points, shot 71.4% (15 for 21) during the second half and forced the Wolverines into 18 turnovers the Buckeyes turned into 27 points.

"Defensively, they got into us," Michigan coach Juwan Howard said. "That’s what caused a lot of those turnovers."

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Key, scoreless in Thursday’s win against Nebraska, got the Buckeyes on the board with the first four points of the game including a powerful drive and right-handed slam dunk on the first field goal of the game that had the scarlet-clad lower bowl raising the roof in celebration just as when he was recognized pregame. It got Ohio State started as they eked out a 10-2 lead after Thornton hit two free throws with 13:09 left while Michigan missed six of its first seven shots and turned it over four times.

While the Buckeyes were able to keep their rivals at arm’s length, they weren’t much better. A 7-0 Michigan run made it 10-9 with 10:53 left as Ohio State was 3 for 12 from the floor with four turnovers to that point. Key broke a scoring drought with a turnaround jumper at the end of the shot clock on a challenging offensive possession with little ball movement, and it started a run of five straight possessions with points for the Buckeyes as they opened up a 21-13 lead when Key hit two free throws with 7:37 left.

Ohio State led 32-27 at the half when Michigan’s Dug McDaniel scooped up a George Washington III 3-point miss and laid it in with about two seconds left, capping a half where Michigan was 10 for 25 from the floor with nine turnovers and Ohio State was 12 for 27 with seven turnovers.

Incoming athletic director Ross Bjork took in the game from a suite alongside retiring athletic director Gene Smith. It was Bjork’s first men’s basketball game.

Marcus Johnson, a five-star guard in the 2026 class from Garfield Heights, Ohio, was in attendance, as was 2024 signee Colin White from Ottawa (Ohio) Ottawa-Glandorf.

So was Jerry Lucas, whose No. 11 jersey hangs in the rafters, along with former captains Michael Redd and CJ Walker. Redd watched the final seconds of the game seated alongside Bjork.

ajardy@dispatch.com

@AdamJardy

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State takes down Michigan on senior day for third straight win