Ohio State basketball to rely on freshmen more than ever

The Ohio State basketball team is looking to play deeper into the postseason this year after some recent disappointments. Freshmen will have to do the heavy lifting.

Last year, the Ohio State basketball team had to rely on two players for most of their production. E.J. Liddell was the best player on the team and was someone who could do a little of everything. He’s who the Buckeyes leaned on when they needed a bucket.

Malaki Branham was the other player that they went to. The freshman really bloomed once Big Ten play started and ended up being a surprised one-and-done. Both of those guys are gone now and the Buckeyes have to replaced their production somehow.

Enter a class of four freshmen. This is a class that Chris Holtmann is very excited about and said as much during media day today. He said that the freshmen are going to have to carry the load more than they ever have in his tenure in Columbus. They’re going to be young.

Justice Sueing and Zed Key are the only players who have been in this program before that have any experience playing significant minutes as a starter. Sueing is fully healthy now and is expected to play a big role, but it’s the freshmen who will be looked to for production.

Bruce Thornton, Brice Sensabaugh, Felix, Okpara, and Kalen Etzler will play a lot of minutes. These are all very talented players that can not only give the Ohio State basketball team a lot of points but defensive versatility as well. That’s something Holtmann has stressed.

It’s still a couple of months before the regular season starts, but the Buckeye basketball team is ready to get back to work. The work they do now can help them finally get to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.