Keeping the top talent in Ohio is vitally important for Ohio State’s success on the hardwood. Getting a commitment from the top-rated in-state player in 2019 is a great start. Now Chris Holtmann and company just need to keep the momentum going.
Buckeyes get PG of future in Florida State transfer CJ Walker
Even though he will have to sit out the 2018-19 season due to transfer rules, Walker still has two years of eligibility remaining. With starting point guard C.J. Jackson entering his fourth and final year of eligibility next winter, Walker will have a chance to take over the starting point guard role when he becomes eligible in 2019-20. For what it’s worth, incoming freshman Luther Muhammad and Duane Washington could possibly be competing for the starting point guard spot as well.
Basketball Buckeyes will feel effects of past recruiting mishaps in 2018-19
They were able to work it out this season, but Ohio State is missing virtually an entire senior class next winter due to recruiting failures at the end of Thad Matta’s time with the Buckeyes.
Thank You, Seniors
Ohio State’s seniors could have easily given up on their final season in Columbus, one that was supposed to be a rebuilding year following Thad Matta’s departure, but they did the complete opposite. For that, Buckeye Nation should be forever grateful.
Kam Williams stepped up when the Buckeyes needed him the most
Tied at 70, Kam Williams’ and-one three-pointer was the biggest shot of the season for Ohio State and was just what the Buckeyes needed to advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Survive and Advance: Ohio State outlasts South Dakota State, 81-73
It may have been ugly at times and Ohio State took to many three-pointers, but they got the win, and that’s all that matters in March. The Buckeyes will now take on No. 4 seed Gonzaga on Saturday, a rematch from earlier in the season.
Four former Buckeyes who transferred from program make NCAA Tournament
Although the Ohio State Buckeyes made the NCAA Tournament, it’s hard not to think “what if” if so many players didn’t transfer from the program during Thad Matta’s last couple years with the program. Among those transfers, four have also made the Big Dance.
Ohio State earns No. 5 seed in West region of NCAA Tournament
The Buckeyes are going dancing! Ohio State earns a No. 5 seed (in West Region) in Big Dance. They will open against No. 12 seed South Dakota State on Thursday.
Ohio State drops (again) to No. 17 in latest AP Poll
The Buckeyes are a lock to make the NCAA Tournament, but they have fallen (again) to No. 17 in the latest AP Top 25.
NCAA to experiment with four basketball rule changes in NIT
Much like they did in the 2017 NIT, the NCAA will experiment with four more rule changes in this year’s NIT. There will be four changes that they will test, including moving the three-point line back (again) and changing from halves to quarters, along with two others.
Ohio State’s Chris Holtmann named Big Ten Coach of the Year
To say that the Ohio State Buckeyes have exceeded expectations on the hardwood this season would be an understatement. Projected to finish 11th (out of 14) teams in the Big Ten by the conference’s media members prior to the season, the Buckeyes earned the No. 2 seed in the upcoming Big Ten Tournament. While the players have produced on the court, head coach Chris Holtmann’s role can’t go unnoticed. Luckily, it hasn’t.
Buckeyes rise to No. 13 in latest AP Poll
With a perfect 2-0 final week of the regular season and get back in the win column, including an incredible double overtime win at Indiana last Friday night, the Ohio State Buckeyes jumped three spots from No. 16 to No. 13 in the latest AP Top 25. This is the first time since the 2013-14 season that the scarlet and gray have finished the regular season as a Top 25 team. Four years ago, they ended the regular season ranked No. 24 in the country.
Keita Bates-Diop, Jae’Sean Tate, Kaleb Wesson earn All-Big Ten honors
The Ohio State Buckeyes’ success on the hardwood this season is due to their resilience, heart, teamwork, and their ability to always believe they will win no matter the situation, while also being led by a great group of coaches. While they have done very well as a team, there are three players that have led the scarlet and gray for much of the season. Forwards Keita Bates-Diop and Jae’Sean Tate and freshman Kaleb Wesson have been three of the team’s top players this season. With their success on the court, all three have earned all-Big Ten honors Monday night.
Ohio State secures No. 2 seed in Big Ten Tournament
Having already exceeded expectations this season, the Ohio State Buckeyes will be the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten Tournament, their best seed in the conference tournament since they were the No. 2 seed in 2013, the last time the Buckeyes won the Big Ten Tournament.. They will open play Friday night at 6:30 p.m. ET against either No. 7 seed Penn State or No. 10 seed Northwestern.
Buckeyes’ Keita Bates-Diop among best odds to win AP Player of the Year
One of the main reasons for the Buckeyes playing so well this year has been due to forward Keita Bates-Diop. For his efforts so far this season, the forward has been given the sixth-best odds (18-to-1) to win the Associated Press Player of the Year award at season’s end.
Ohio State drops to No. 16 in latest AP Poll after 0-2 week
For the first time since November, the Ohio State Buckeyes seem to be in a rut on the basketball court. Not only did they lose two consecutive games to Penn State and Michigan, but they also lost back-to-back games for the first time since early in the season. After going 0-2 last week, the Buckeyes fell from No. 8 to No. 16 in the latest Associated Press Top 25.
Michigan’s Austin Hatch put Sunday’s Senior Day, sports and life in perspective
In college basketball, there are plenty of moments that put life and sports in perspective. Jimmy V Week and Coaches vs. Cancer are two of the many things during the season that do just that. Sunday afternoon was another example not only to remind us that college basketball and sports are just games and entertainment, but that there are far more important things in life than sports.
Ohio State hires Taver Johnson to replace Kerry Coombs
Kerry Coombs will be tough to replace, but Urban Meyer seems to have made a home-run hire, bringing back former Ohio State cornerbacks coach and most recently Temple defensive coordinator Taver Johnson, who was the cornerbacks coach on Jim Tressel’s staff in Columbus from 2007-11.
Ohio State up to No. 8 in AP Poll
For the first time since January 6, 2014, the Buckeyes are ranked in the top 10, coming it at No. 8 in the AP Top 25 after upsetting Purdue and dominating Iowa last week.
Chris Holtmann, National Coach of the Year?
Chris Holtmann has turned a thin roster into one of the best teams in the country. He doesn’t (and didn’t) make excuses for the lack of depth or anything else, he has just done the best he can with what he was given. Even if it’s just mid-January through March (and April), Holtmann has turned Ohio State into a basketball school. The basketball Buckeyes are fun again, and for that, Holtmann deserves to be the National Coach of the Years in his first season in Columbus.