Ohio State basketball: Can the guards win games for the Buckeyes in March?

The Ohio State basketball team has been seeking consistent guard play all season long. One night Cedric Russell is a walking flamethrower, the next night it’s Jamari Wheeler bringing the energy, and occasionally Meechie Johnson pitches in. It would be huge if one of the many guards on this Buckeye roster can be reliable in late March.

In March most of the games are won because of the guard play. Look at past champions or recent teams to make a run in the NCAA Tournament, they all have elite guards that can score, create, and control the pace of the game. It’s a big question mark on whether or not the guards for Ohio State can do that for how inconsistent they have been this season.

Jamari Wheeler provided a huge lift for the Buckeyes last night in the win over Michigan State. Wheeler poured in16 points in the game and connected on four threes. If he can continue to contribute at least eight to ten points per game for the rest of the season and dish out three to five assists, it would help this Buckeyes team out tremendously.

Cedric Russell has been a big gamble for this team on whether he can make shots. One night he’s making four threes, the next night he’s making one. What hinders Russell from producing consistently is that he rarely sees 20 minutes on the floor.

A guy that hasn’t been mentioned much this season is Jimmy Sotos. Sotos saw 23 minutes in the loss to Nebraska and I thought he did a great job dictating the pace of the game. I think Sotos can be a guy that can rotate into the revolving door of point guard production for how excellent he is at orchestrating the offense.

I’ll be honest, I’m not confident that the Buckeyes can rely on these guards in a late-game situation in the Big Ten or NCAA Tournament. E.J. Liddell and Malaki Branham have been the main guys here in the closing stretch of the regular season. I trust in Liddell producing, but if Branham has an off night it gets dangerous for this team on where the second scoring option will come from.

The Buckeyes have been looking for reliable guard play for a while now, since the Aaron Craft days. For how Duane Washington could score last year, it makes this team miss his presence a lot. If they can find a way to get consistent play by one of these guards, I think a Sweet 16 appearance could be forthcoming.