COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State wasted no time Tuesday night, at least to start

Junior E.J. Liddell took his first possession of the game from the top of the 3-point line, throwing the ball inside to sophomore Zed Key, who floated the layup in for the first score less than a minute in.

As the Buckeyes transitioned back to defense, the student section behind the scorer’s table started a chant: “Start the buses, start the buses.”

It was over. It was over before warm-ups were complete.

But while Ohio State head coach Chris Holtmann viewed this game as a chance for his players to get in-game reps, while it seemed like a glorified practice for the less than 4,000 people in the stands at Value City Arena, the same struggles reared their heads, not solved by a game against the third-worst team in the country, according to KenPom.

The Buckeyes (12-4) earned the win against IUPUI (1-15), 80-37. The Buckeyes won convincingly, earning their first win in which it allowed less than 40 points for the first time since Nov. 21, 2016 when Ohio State allowed 38 against Western Carolina.

But it took awhile for the Buckeyes to get going, time that Big Ten opponents don’t usually give them.

Ohio State opened the game with nine makes on its first 13 tries, including three 3-point makes.

Then the offense went ice cold again, reminiscent of points in its last two games against Wisconsin and Penn State, making only one of its nine tries lasting nearly six minutes.

After taking a 9-0 run to start the game, the Buckeyes finished the half outscoring the Jaguars 28-24, leaving for the locker room with more confidence than it had before after a Liddell jumper and a Cedric Russell 3 gave the Buckeyes a 15-point lead at the break.

Those two makes were enough to ignite the Ohio State offense into the second half.

With senior forward and captain Justin Ahrens on the bench to start the final 20 minutes, the Buckeyes got its groove back, hitting six of its first seven attempts from the field, including three makes by sophomore guard Eugene Brown III, who secured a career-high in points with a wide-open dunk.

The Buckeyes used a 17-2 run to take a 31-point lead halfway through the final 20 minutes, ending the half shooting 66.7% from the floor and63.6X% from deep.

Brown led the way with 14 points, making four of his six attempts from the floor and four-of-five free throw attempts.

Liddell added 13 points and 10 rebounds, his seventh career double-double.

Redshirt senior forward Jimmy Sotos brought in a team-high nine assists, along with seven points.

Ohio State shot 57.1% from the field in its 46-point win.

Ohio State will return to Big Ten play Saturday against Nebraska. Tip off is scheduled for 2:15 p.m. on Big Ten Network.