COLUMBUS, Ohio- Ohio State is a completely different team than when it first faced Iowa in the third Big Ten conference game in the season. As the No. 14 team in the nation, the Buckeyes have wins over No. 1 Michigan State and No. 3 Purdue and are at the top of the standings in the conference.

However, even with the long-term success that head coach Chris Holtmann has had in his first season with Ohio State, especially in conference play, he know the challenge that this Iowa team brings.

“They have always been a team that you look at and say, probably the deepest or one of the deepest teams in the Big Ten,” Holtmann said. “I just have had great respect for how difficult they are to guard and then their length and size makes it difficult for you to score on them.”

The Buckeyes saw that in their first meeting with the Hawkeyes on January 4th. Coming out of halftime with a 46-32 lead, Ohio State allowed Iowa to score 49 points in the second half, allowing four makes from three in 10 attempts.

Even though Ohio State left Iowa City with an 11-point win, Holtmann said he wants his team to understand going into the second matchup that they Hawkeyes have the ability to outperform the Buckeyes, especially on the offensive side of the ball.

Iowa has been showing that all season. The Hawkeyes come as the No. 3 team in the Big Ten in scoring offense, averaging 80.7 points per game while shooting 48 percent from the field. The Hawkeyes have four players that average more than 10 points per game, with forward Tyler Cook leading the way averaging 15.7 points per contest.

In a way that is very reminiscent of the only Big Ten team that his Ohio State team has lost to this season, Holtmann said that if his team does not come in ready to play on Saturday, the Buckeyes will be subject by a quick offensive run that may be difficult to overcome.

“I think you do reflect back on Penn State, even though, again, I don’t want to take anything away from Penn State, but they came at us like I know Iowa will, in such a way that we were on our heels really from the first five minutes on,” Holtmann said.

This will be the first time for an opponent to get a second look at Ohio State this season, as the Buckeyes will take on Iowa, Penn State, Michigan, Rutgers and Indiana twice each this season. However, with not new teams left on the schedule, the preparation does not change for the players.

“I think, when you play a team twice, you kind of know each other a little bit better, so the pressure and preparation is pretty much the same because they haven’t changed their playing style,” forward Keita Bates-Diop said. “But in the game, everyone knows what you are going to do, so you have to adapt on the fly.”

In the Buckeyes’ win over Iowa earlier this season, Bates-Diop was a major factor, recording 27 points and 13 rebounds for his seventh double-double of the season. For the team as a whole, Ohio State was very consistent offensively, shooting 53 percent from the floor with double-digit point performances from Bates-Diop, Jae’Sean Tate, Kaleb Wesson, C.J. Jackson and the now-suspended Kam Williams, whose status is unknown heading into Saturday’s game.

However, even with the prior successes against the Hawkeyes, Bates-Diop said that Iowa is still brand new for this Ohio State team.

“That was a long time ago,” Bates-Diop said. “We were two totally different teams, but, like I said, they are a better team than they were then and so are we.”

No. 14 Ohio State will take on Iowa on February 10th at Value City Arena. Tip off is scheduled for 6 pm.