Ohio State Buckeyes: Worst 10 NCAA Heartbreaks

1961 National Championship Game: Cincinnati 70, Ohio State 65 (OT)

The 1960-61 Buckeyes were playing in the program’s third title game and trying to win back-to-back championships while the in-state Cincinnati Bearcats were in their first.

Prior to this season, the Bearcats were a national force led by Oscar Robertson–but now The Big O was gone. Surely the Buckeyes would capture the title, considering they featured two future NBA legends in Jerry Lucas and John Havlicek. The Bucks also had Larry Siegfried, who went on to the No. 3 overall pick of the NBA Draft after the season.

But Cincinnati had talent in their own right. Paul Hogue a 6-foot-9 center, would go to be the No. 2 overall pick in the NBA Draft after the Bearcats repeated in 1962. Forward Bob Wiesenhahn averaged 17.1 and 10.0 rebounds per game and became a second-round pick.

Wiesenhahn was a big reason the Bearcats won the game, as he guarded and outscored Havlicek, 17-4.

That Buckeye team went 24-1, with its only loss coming in the national final. Lucas averaged 22.4 for coach Fred Taylor that season, and was named the NCAA Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player.

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