CLEVELAND, Ohio -- No. 20 Ohio State made a successful return to the Buckeye State on Saturday, hanging on to defeat UCLA 77-70 in the CBS Sports Classic.

It was the Buckeyes’ seventh go-round in the event and 12th all-time meeting with the Bruins.

Sophomore forward E.J. Liddell returned to action on Saturday after missing two games with a non-COVID illness, and Chris Holtmann returned to a familiar starting lineup of Liddell, Justice Sueing, C.J. Walker, Duane Washington, and Kyle Young.

Harvard transfer Seth Towns also made his much-anticipated return to the court after being sidelined for over two seasons, playing two minutes for Ohio State.

Washington led Ohio State in scoring for the third time this season, scoring 14 points but struggling to shoot the ball.

Though he played limited minutes, Liddell made his return to the court in style, burying a three in the game’s opening seconds to get things started. The sophomore finished with nine points, but struggled to stay on the court with foul issues.

“Had E.J. not fouled out, our medical staff would’ve had a conversation with me about the number of minutes I was gonna play him," Holtmann said. "I’m saying that somewhat in jest, but we were gonna continue to roll with him.”

Ohio State found success on offense early, going up 17-12 with 12 minutes remaining in the first half behind seven made field goals from six different players.

However, UCLA had an answer for each Ohio State scoring run in the first half. The Buckeyes found themselves up five or more on four separate occasions in the period only for the Bruins to quickly close the gap.

Mick Cronin’s side took its first lead of the night on a Zed Key goaltend that made the score 26-25. Neither team put itself up by more than one possession for the remainder of the first half.

Ohio State took a 39-38 lead into the locker room behind seven points apiece from Liddell and Musa Jallow. Johnny Juzang and Jules Bernard each scored eight for UCLA in the opening frame.

Ohio State entered the break shooting 55.6 percent. UCLA wasn’t far behind, shooting 48.1 percent from the floor and attempting nine more free throws in the first half than the Buckeyes. The Bruins did not make a field goal in the final 2:34 of the half.

Young scored three of Ohio State’s first five points of the second half before exiting the game with an apparent head injury.

“He got popped in the jaw really good. He really got popped," Holtmann said. "That’s how he plays. We all know this about Kyle, it’s why we love Kyle Young. He sticks his nose in those spots. Not many players are willing to do that.”

Following the injury, the Bruins went on a quick 5-0 run capped by a Jaime Jaquez three-pointer to take a 49-44 lead with just under 15 minutes remaining-- the biggest lead for either team in over 10 minutes of game time.

Liddell picked up his fifth foul with 7:21 remaining and Ohio State still trailing, 60-59.

With the score knotted at 63, Key blocked a Jalen Hill shot and fellow Ohio State freshman Eugene Brown knocked down two consecutive three-pointers to give the Buckeyes a 69-65 lead with 4:27 remaining.

The pair of first-year Buckeyes made a notable impact in their minutes, combing for 20 points on six-of-seven shooting off the bench.

"I thought Zed was terrific," Holtmann said. "Our two freshmen were outstanding."

The combination of Hill and Cody Riley hurt Ohio State inside all evening long. As a team, UCLA hung around by outscoring the Buckeyes 32-24 in the paint and grabbing 18 offensive rebounds.

Still, Ohio State maintained a healthy lead following Brown’s scoring explosion, using two Washington free throws to go up 75-68 with under one minute remaining.

The Buckeyes sealed the deal at the line-- Walker added two more free throws that gave Ohio State a lead it would not give up.

“[Holtmann] made it clear that we did not play with enough poise late-game," Brown said of Ohio State's ability to bounce back after a loss to Purdue. "Coming into today’s game-- it was obviously a different situation because we had the lead late-- but I feel like it definitely translated, the way we handled situations, slowed it down on offense, figured certain things out.”

Riley led the Bruins with 15 points and five rebounds. Juzang added 13 points, but the Buckeyes' significant advantage shooting the ball proved to be the difference in this game. Ohio State shot 50 percent from the field, compared to just 40 percent from UCLA.

For Ohio State, Washington led the way in the scoring column, followed by Brown and Key. Walker added 10 and Jallow scored eight in a balanced outing for the Buckeyes.

Ohio State hosts No. 23 Rutgers next; the contest will tip off at 4:30 p.m. on Dec. 23.