Ohio State Basketball: Buckeyes move to 3-0 without Wesson

The Ohio State mens basketball team remains undefeated with a win over Texas Southern.

I watched the Ohio State basketball team take on Texas Southern Thursday night and the Buckeyes were without freshman center Kaleb Wesson. Wesson was suspended by coach Chris Holtmann for one game for breaking team rules. Sophomore Center Micah Potter saw an increase in minutes as a result of Wesson’s absence and stepped up tremendously.

The Buckeyes won 82-64 to raise their record to 3-0 and I believe it was the best team win they have had this season. Scoring was spread out and the passing was much more efficient. It was Ohio State’s best assist-turnover ratio so far this season and the Buckeyes found great looks on offense.

True Freshman Musa Jallow also stepped up his game after earning his first career start. Jallow finished the game with 13 points as well as 6 rebounds and was disciplined on the defensive side of the ball. I look to see Jallow’s minutes increase as the season moves along as he is a threat from anywhere on the court.

Jae’Sean Tate, Micah Potter, and Keita Bates-Diop each finished the night with 17 points leading the team offensively.

However, Texas Southern didn’t give into the Buckeye’s pressure inside and were waiting to make a run. In the second half the Bucks led by as many as 17 but the Tigers cut the lead to just two.

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In the end though, it was the transition game of the Bucks that let them ease away from the Texas Southern run. In the fast break game, the Buckeye wings were able to get out wide and find their way to the basket, and they had a good night finishing around the rim.

Keita Bates-Diop was again the most impressive player on the court, tallying his 3rd straight double-double to start the season. Keita has shown he is the true leader for this team on offense and is going to take the most shots. If he can continue to attack the lane the way he has been doing, the three-point shot for the Buckeyes should open up more often, which right now seems non-existent.

The Buckeyes will have their next test Sunday when they host Northeastern. This will be their final game before an extremely tough four game stretch vs Gonzaga, Clemson, Wisconsin, and Michigan.

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Ohio State will need all the reps they can get before those matchups and hopefully they will take another step forward Sunday as they did tonight.