COLUMBUS, Ohio >> It was a hostile homecoming for Roddy Gayle Jr.

The ex-Buckeye turned Wolverine was greeted with a chorus of boos every time he touched the ball during Sunday’s rivalry clash at Value City Arena. No matter if he was grabbing a rebound, making a pass or shooting free throws, the Ohio State faithful let him have it.

But it was Gayle who got the last laugh against his former team, scoring the go-ahead basket with 1:45 remaining in an 86-83 triumph that pushed Michigan’s win streak to six and kept the Wolverines atop the Big Ten standings.

“It’s a storybook ending for me,” Gayle said. “I’m just happy to be in these situations and be able to make plays.”

Ahead of his return, Gayle recalled “the hate” he received, primarily on social media, when he made the decision to transfer to Michigan after two seasons with the Buckeyes.

After disappointing Ohio State fans once, it seemed fitting he found a way to let them down again, this time with a move he made on the court instead of off it.

Coming out of a timeout with the game tied at 80 with 1:54 to go, Michigan coach Dusty May dialed up a play where Gayle received a pass from Tre Donaldson near the top of the key and hesitated for a second before he blew by one Ohio State defender, shot faked another and finished at the rim.

“That was option No. 1,” May said. “We felt like we had been riding Danny (Wolf) and just as if we’re coming out of timeouts anticipating what we might see, we felt like they were going to do something, whether it was trap Danny. They were going to do something out of a timeout to take away what had been our bread and butter. We tried to create an advantage for Roddy getting downhill and he made a big-time play.”

Gayle, who came off the bench for the third straight game, tallied nine points and was 3-for-9 from the field but had two clutch baskets in the final four minutes, with his last one being the biggest. He added eight rebounds, including three of Michigan’s 19 offensive boards.

While Gayle said it’s “all love” between him and his former Ohio State teammates, Wolf commended Gayle for staying on an even keel amid the rollercoaster of emotions he went through.

“Roddy is the ultimate competitor. He’s the ultimate teammate, and I think this game meant more for him than anyone else,” Wolf said. “He went to war with those guys, just like he did us. When you have…15,000, 18,000, 20,000 (fans) all chanting obscenities and obscurities about a person — and behind the scenes you guys don’t even know what goes on.

“He just stuck with it. Obviously, he had a few tough games (recently). He came out of his shell against Purdue and tonight made huge plays down the stretch. I’m so happy and so proud of him.”

Wolf wasn’t the only one. After the win, the Wolverines celebrated in the locker room with chants of “Roddy! Roddy!”

It was a postgame moment Gayle said “felt great” because he knows he has an “unbelievable amount of support” from everyone on the team, from the players to the coaches to the rest of the staff.

“If you step in that arena now as a modern athlete, there’s certain things that come with it,” May said. “It’s more difficult on people that are great human beings, like Roddy Gayle. He’s a son. He’s a brother. He’s a lot of things other than just a Michigan or Ohio State basketball player.

“It’s tough at that age, but it’s part of it. He handled this situation with grace, with dignity, with class, and he played a really good basketball game in a tough environment. He’ll be better for this because he powered through it.”

Let’s play two

While Ohio State’s Jake Diebler and May are both in their first full year coaching their respective programs, they can agree on one thing: The Wolverines and Buckeyes should be playing a home-and-home series every season.

May said Diebler approached him during Big Ten meetings in California this past offseason about making two rivalry games a regular occurrence.

“It’s what’s good for the game. It’s what’s good for the sport. It’s what’s good for our players,” May said. “It’s less travel. It’s big for TV. It’s big for our fan bases. We both agree that even though it might not be as fun as it could be — it’s gut-wrenching preparation and anticipation for the game because of how much it means — we both agreed that going forward, we’d like for that to happen.”

Since the 2017-18 campaign, Michigan and Ohio State have squared off twice in the regular season every other year. Sunday’s meeting is the only one on the schedule this season.

With the Big Ten expanding to 18 teams this season — with the addition of Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington — and keeping a 20-game conference slate, each team has a home-and-home series with three opponents.

There are protected rivalries, like Michigan and Michigan State, that guarantee certain teams will play twice. Diebler would like to see something similar happen with Michigan and Ohio State.

“I love being a part of this game, so much so that I was asking anybody that would listen to make this a doubleheader every single year when we were out in California,” Diebler said. “I know there’s a lot that goes into that, but I think our fans deserve that, both schools deserve that. I love being in this game. This game means a lot.

“This rivalry is bigger than any single story line. It’s bigger than any story line going into this game. I think it’s bigger than any story line coming out of this game, outside of let’s play this game twice a year if we can make that work. This was a great atmosphere. Our fans deserve to have this game here every single year, and I think (Michigan’s fans) as well.”