ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Chris Holtmann knew he would be asked about the final three-and-a-half minutes against Michigan.

The story couldn’t have been written any better really: one game after losing an eight-point lead on the road against Rutgers, the Ohio State head coach had the same opportunity against Michigan in the middle of a sold-out Crisler Arena Saturday night.

Holtmann’s been doing this too long to know how long three-and-a-half minutes truly is. He and his coaches didn’t say anything to their players. They knew what they were expected to do.

E.J. Liddell thought about it though. The passion of a recent heartbreak against the Scarlet Knights infused his timeout message to his teammates: “Get a stop. Get a stop. Play some defense.”

Liddell knows his role on the team: where he goes, Ohio State goes. So just by his individual play, he set Ohio State’s course in motion, one focused on stopping Michigan’s offense with aggressiveness and tenacity.

“It started with me,” Liddell admitted. “My effort is contagious and I feel like I had to keep getting better on that side of the ball and as I keep doing that, I will keep getting better.”

That’s why Holtmann was so passionate Saturday night.

He couldn’t help it, pounding on the plastic folding table, imploring everyone watching Big Ten basketball to wake up, to pay attention to what Liddell is doing.

“Will somebody please, somebody outside of the people that follow our program, start talking about E.J. as a player of the year in this league?” Holtmann pleaded. “He is deserving. He is deserving to be a part of that conversation as a player of the year. And I’m on him as much as everybody every day, every day. But I don’t hear his name mentioned. I don’t know why I don’t hear his name mentioned.

“Granted, we have to keep winning, we have to win more, whatever. But he’s got to be mentioned in that conversation. The year he’s had has been phenomenal.”

Liddell’s performance, the junior forward taking over all aspects of the Buckeyes’ first matchup against its rival, made those three-and-a-half minutes feel accessible.

Defensively, he was leading the charge, not backing away from the challenge 7-foot-1 center Hunter Dickinson or 6-foot-11 forward Moussa Diabate brought with their length, chasing down and using his vertical leap to block shots, each one providing a shot of momentum that the rest of the roster, from the bench to the court, could feel and capitalize on, holding Michigan to 34.5% shooting in the final 20 minutes.

Offensively, he was leading the charge, taking what he was given — one-on-one opportunities, something he says he never sees, especially in Big Ten play — to dominate the low post, shaking off the rust of a slow start for 28 points while no other member of the Ohio State roster had 12.

Saturday night, Liddell was just playing his game. It’s something he’s done all season, something that’s been underrated in the eyes of Holtmann in terms of the vast picture of Big Ten basketball.

But that’s just who Liddell is.

He’s confident, but not arrogant. He makes highlight-reel plays, but he’s not a showboat. He goes where Ohio State goes, and when Ohio State struggles, he goes under the radar.

Saturday night, Liddell had something to play for. It was those final three-and-a-half minutes lost against Rutgers, the stretch that Holtmann and Ohio State’s coaching staff didn’t mention when the Buckeyes found themselves in the situation again.

Liddell came out with bite, so the Buckeyes came out with bite. Liddell showed toughness, so Ohio State showed toughness.

He set the tone, encouraging everyone on the roster to follow his lead.

“Honestly, I just told everybody to play their ass off,” Liddell said. “No matter what happens, I can live with the results whether we win or lose, we go out there and play our butts off. Leave it all out on the court, emptying the tank.”

That’s what Liddell did against Michigan when Ohio State needed it most.

That’s why Holtmann was banging on a plastic folding table Saturday night.

“This year’s not over, he’s got to keep working,” Holtmann said, “but E.J. Liddell is deserving of being in the conversation of player of the year in this league.”