COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State had the attention of the country, facing Duke at home.

Facing head coach Mike Krzyzewski in his final season, the unranked Buckeyes had a chance to unseat the No. 1 Blue Devils in front of a Schottenstein Center crowd that was as full as it's ever been for an early-season basketball game.

And with that atmosphere, Ohio State kind of stepped up early. It was physical in the paint, aggressive, trying to keep up with forward Wendell Moore Jr., forward Paolo Banchero and one of the better offenses in the country.

But Ohio State remained in its own way.

It continued to miss from the free-throw line. It continued to turn the ball over.

Here’s the thing about Ohio State, though. The Buckeyes stayed within striking distance.

It was enough for redshirt senior Cedric Russell to bring Ohio State to within two points with 2:06 to go in the game, hitting his third 3-pointer of the game. In the next possession, Russell drew a foul, bringing the Buckeyes to within making one of two chances.

And after two free-throw makes by E.J. Liddell at the free-throw line, it was Russell who fought for the rebound against Williams.

All Liddell had to do was hit one fadeaway jumper, and the upset was theirs.

Ohio State downed No. 1 Duke, 71-66.

Madness ensued at the Schottenstein Center.

Ohio State earned its 10th win against a No. 1 team in school history and its eighth win in its last 10 meetings against No. 1 ranked opponents.

The Buckeyes ended a game with a 12-0 run, with Russell hitting six of the final 12 points.

Trailing by 11 early in the second half, Duke went ice cold, missing eight-straight attempts from the field, going nearly five minutes without a point. The Buckeyes never really took advantage of the run fully, but cut its deficit to six with a jumper by sophomore forward Zed Key and a 3 by Justin Ahrens.

As Ohio State tried to crawl its way back late, it consistently went to Key in the paint, scoring a career-high 20 points, along with three rebounds and an assist. He was physical, not playing scared against the bigger forwards Duke had at its disposal.

But the game seemed like it was Duke's to lose from the very start.

From Duke sophomore Mark Williams’ block of Key on a jumper near the rim, something the 7-foot-1 Blue Devils’ center didn’t even have to jump for, turning into a 3-point make by sophomore guard Jeremy Roach, it seemed like Ohio State was behind, even though it held a one-point lead.

Moore was dominant in the first 20 minutes, showing off his ability to score in the post, pass and rebound at will. Banchero took advantage of his matchup with Liddell, showing consistency from the field, but recording three fouls in 15 minutes of play in the first half.

In response, Liddell did what he always did: control every facet of the game for Ohio State.

He was one of the Buckeyes’ main offensive contributors, scoring 14 points on eight-of-15 shooting as one of the team's two double-digit scorers. He was the Buckeyes’ main attacker in the main, securing a double-double early in the second half with 14 rebounds — including three offensive boards — and three blocks.

But the Buckeyes stepped up in the second half, ending the game on a 14-1 run, with Duke missing each of its final six attempts from the field for the five-point victory.

Ohio State shot 48.1% from the field, making eight of 20 attempts from deep.

Ohio State will open Big Ten play at Penn State 7:30 p.m. Sunday.