Ohio State basketball: E.J. Liddell out indefinitely

The Ohio State basketball team got some awful news today. E.J. Liddell will be out indefinitely with a non-COVID related illness.

The Ohio State basketball team has looked really good so far this season. A big reason for that has been the play of E.J. Liddell. He was the Buckeyes’ best player at the end of last season and might be again this year. It is either him or Justice Sueing this season.

Now it will be up to Sueing to carry the load for a while. Apparently, Liddell is out indefinitely with a non-COVID related illness. With him gone, the Buckeyes lose their leading scorer and rebounder. This is a massive blow for Chris Holtmann’s squad.

Liddell has really come into his own as a premier post player. He is someone that the Buckeyes can lean on to get a bucket in a tough situation, as they did against Notre Dame. Without him, Ohio State doesn’t really have a dominant post presence and will now likely have to rely on better three-point shooting.

Ohio State has already been without Seth Towns all season. It’s unclear as to when he could finally make his Buckeye debut, but it probably won’t be until later this month at the earliest. This is a really bad time to not have both of them available because the schedule is getting tough.

After Saturday’s game against Cleveland State, the Buckeyes’ next three opponents are Purdue, North Carolina, and Rutgers. Those are three really good teams. Not having your best player is going to be a major problem for them in those contests.

It’s still unclear what illness Liddell has. We will try our best to find out what it is. Holtmann needs the rest of his guys to step up in his absence, most notably Sueing, Duane Washington, and freshman Zed Key. Key will likely be taking Liddell’s spot in the starting lineup.

Key is now going to be the low-post guy. He reminds me a lot of early Kaleb Wesson. He can use his body well in the post but isn’t very athletic. It’ll be interesting to see how he responds.