Ohio State coach Thad Matta has been through enough surgeries and other issues with his lower back in his adult life, he said, that whenever someone on his basketball team encounters a back problem, “I sit in there and I listen and I feel, at that point, like I’m Dr. Thad,” he said.

So, when the test results on Jared Sullinger’s sore back came in yesterday, and Matta found himself saying, “That’s good, that’s good, that’s good, that’s good,” he was buoyed by the feeling that “nothing was out of line” with his All-America center and that, barring complications, Sullinger should be back on the court when the No.2-ranked Buckeyes play at No.15 Kansas on Saturday.

“That’s kind of my mind-set,” Matta said. “We’ll re-evaluate him (next week) and see where he is.”

Most of the questions Matta fielded after Ohio State defeated Texas-Pan American 64-35 today in Value City Arena concerned not the game -- and his 300th career win, by the way -- but the health of the 6-foot-9 Sullinger, the team’s top scorer and rebounder and a leading contender for national player of the year.

The Buckeyes (8-0) overcame chilly shooting -- 39.7 percent -- by scoring half their points off Broncos turnovers.

Deshaun Thomas and Sullinger’s substitute in the starting lineup, Evan Ravenel, led Ohio State with 11 points apiece as Sullinger rooted them on from the bench.

Jared Maree led Texas-Pan American (2-7) with 13 points.

Broncos coach Ryan Marks said he wanted to “make the pace annoying” for Ohio State, and it seemed he succeeded in that respect.

“It kind of reminded me of playing Northwestern a little bit,” guard Aaron Craft said. “It was a big mental toughness game to concentrate for 35 seconds on defense. We were fortunate enough to force some turnovers, and I think that helped some. But it didn’t help that we weren’t making very many shots.”

But if there was a game for Sullinger to miss, this was it.

Ohio State announced Friday night that Sullinger was being held out because of back spasms he experienced during the game against Duke on Tuesday night. But Matta said he decided Wednesday not to risk aggravating the area further by playing him in a game the Buckeyes could win without him.

“We were going to see how it felt,” Matta said, “but I was like, ‘I want to give this time to rest, knowing we had another week” before the next game against Kansas.

Matta said Sullinger, who was not made available for comment after the game, underwent a magnetic resonance imaging scan Friday afternoon. The results showed “an aggravated disk” but not one that is damaged.

“What happens there is, the muscle tightens around that area. Things just have to calm down,” he said.

“We’ll take a look at him Monday (or) Tuesday and (re)assess. But he’s feeling better every day, so that’s a great sign.”

Sullinger’s father, Satch, has said the spasms may be caused by plantar fasciitis that Jared has had in his right foot since practice began in October. But Matta said he had not heard that diagnosis from team trainers or doctors.

He said he does not envision the spasms becoming a chronic issue for Sullinger this season.

“I think once we get past this, it’ll be over. I hope so,” Matta said.

“The big thing is, just through the therapy and stretching, you can really strengthen that area and make it a non-issue.”

bbaptist@dispatch.com