page_title: Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball
section_title: Thad Matta era (2004–2017)
hierarchical_section_title: Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball / Team history / Thad Matta era (2004–2017)
caption_attribution_description: English: Thad Matta Michigan vs. Ohio State Crisler Arena Ann Arbor, MI January 17, 2009
context_page_description: The Ohio State men's basketball team represents The Ohio State University in NCAA Division I college basketball competition. The Buckeyes are a member of the Big Ten Conference. The Buckeyes share a classic rivalry with the Michigan Wolverines, in which OSU has a 99–78 series lead.
  The Buckeyes play their home games at Value City Arena in the Jerome Schottenstein Center in Columbus, Ohio, which opened in 1998. The official capacity of the center is 19,200. Ohio State ranked 28th in the nation in average home attendance as of the 2016 season.
  The Buckeyes have won one national championship, been the National Runner-Up four times, appeared in 10 Final Fours, and appeared in 27 NCAA Tournaments.
  Thad Matta was named the head coach of Ohio State in 2004 to replace coach Jim O'Brien, who was fired due to NCAA violations which cost Ohio State over 113 wins between 1998 and 2002. On June 5, 2017, after consecutive years of missing the NCAA Tournament, the school announced Matta would not return as head coach after 13 years and 337 wins at Ohio State. On June 9, the school hired Butler head coach Chris Holtmann as head coach.
context_section_description: Thad Matta, former head coach at Butler and Xavier, was hired by Ohio State in July 2004.
  During Matta's first season at Ohio State, the Buckeyes compiled a 20–12 record, highlighted by a win in the final game of the season over top-ranked Illinois, which was undefeated up until that game. Ohio State was defeated by Wisconsin in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals, and the team was ineligible for further postseason due to self-imposed sanctions related to Jim O'Brien's time at the school. The 2005–06 season opened with the Buckeyes 11–0 heading into Big Ten play. Ohio State ended the season with a 26–6 record and 12–4 record in conference, the Buckeyes' first outright Big Ten championship since the 1991–92 season. Ohio State lost to Iowa in the Big Ten Tournament championship game, but received a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament. After a first round win, the Buckeyes lost to No. 7 seed Georgetown 70–52 in the second round.
  Matta's 2006–07 Ohio State team entered the season with the second-rated recruiting class in the nation, headed by Greg Oden and Mike Conley, Jr., and ranked No. 4 in the preseason polls. Ohio State entered conference play with an 11–2 record, with the only defeats coming at No. 6 North Carolina and at No. 4 Florida. Ohio State's loss against No. 4 Wisconsin on January 9, 2007 was the last loss of the regular season as the Buckeyes won 14 straight games to end the season with a 27–3 record. Ohio State defeated No. 20 Tennessee and No. 2 Wisconsin during this winning streak and ended the season as the top-ranked team in the nation. Ohio State won the Big Ten Tournament, defeating Wisconsin 66–49 in the championship game, and entered the NCAA Tournament as the overall No. 1 seed. Ohio State advanced to the Sweet Sixteen for the first time under Matta after an overtime victory against Xavier, which Matta had previously coached. A one-point victory over Tennessee and a 92–76 victory over No. 2 Memphis advanced the Buckeyes to the Final Four. Ohio State defeated Georgetown 67–60 in the semifinal game, but lost to Florida 84–75 in the National Championship game. Oden and Conley both would enter the NBA Draft following the season, with Oden being drafted number one overall and Conley going fourth.
  The 2007–08 season was a rebuilding one. Ohio State ended the season with a 19–12 record, finishing fifth in the Big Ten. It lost to Michigan State in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals and missed out on the NCAA Tournament. The Buckeyes did receive a No. 1 seed in the National Invitation Tournament, where Ohio State would defeat Massachusetts 92–85 in the championship to take the NIT title.
  Ohio State began the 2008–09 season with a 9–0 record and would finish 20–9. Ohio State defeated Wisconsin and No. 7 Michigan State to advance to the Big Ten Tournament championship, where the Buckeyes lost to No. 24 Purdue. They received a bid to the NCAA Tournament as a No. 8 seed, where they lost to No. 9 Siena in the first round.
  The 2009–10 season marked Matta's sixth at Ohio State, with the team entering the season ranked No. 17 in the nation.  The Buckeyes had compiled a 7–1 record before Evan Turner, who was averaging 20.6 points and 12.9 rebounds per game, was injured. Turner returned later in the season and help finish the season with a 24–7 record and a share of the Big Ten regular season championship. A victory over Minnesota in the Big Ten Tournament gave Matta his second Big Ten Tournament title and the Buckeyes a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Ohio State advanced to the Sweet Sixteen before losing to No. 6-seeded Tennessee 76–73. Turner was named the National Player of the Year and entered the NBA Draft, where he was selected second overall.
  Matta's recruiting class heading into the 2010–11 season was highly regard and the Buckeyes returned some key seniors such as David Lighty and Jon Diebler. Ohio State was ranked No. 4 in the preseason polls and entered Big Ten conference play undefeated at 13–0, defeating No. 9 Florida and moving up to No. 2 in the nation. Ohio State continued to dominate the oppositio
caption: Former head coach Thad Matta, whose 337 wins is most in school history.
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