The last time Ohio State didn't make the NCAA Tournament was 2008, and the Buckeyes went on to win the NIT championship.

The Buckeyes still have a chance to repeat history, but it won't be easy after struggling to beat Akron 72-63 in overtime on Tuesday night in an NIT opener at Value City Arena in Columbus.

Ohio State outscored the Zips 10-1 in overtime, with Kam Williams and Marc Loving each scoring four in the extra period.

It is unlikely the game would have gotten into overtime if the Zips, specifically Isaiah Johnson, could have made their free throws.

Johnson, who led Akron with 16 points, went 5-for-10 from the foul line in regulation. To make matters worse, he made only one of six in overtime.

Loving, Williams and JaQuan Lyle led Ohio State with 18 points each. Williams got the surprise start for an ailing Keita Bates-Diop, the Buckeyes' second-leading scorer who watched the game from the bench.

Akron, the nation's leader in 3-point attempts, hoisted up 42 shots from beyond the arc and connected on only nine. The Zips' game plan did open up the low post against the taller Buckeyes, who didn't have an answer for Johnson, a 6-foot-9, 290-pound junior who corralled 12 rebounds.

With the score tied at 62-62 and more than two minutes left in the second half, neither team was able to score.

Ohio State had the final chance in regulation, but Lyle's off-balance attempt was off the mark.

Loving opened overtime with a jumper 13 seconds in. In Akron's next two possessions, Johnson made only one of four free-throw attempts to open the door for Ohio State.

Williams connected on a pair of layups to give the Buckeyes their largest lead of the game at 68-63.