Ohio State basketball wins opener over Robert Morris

The Ohio State basketball season started on Monday night when the Buckeyes took on Robert Morris. It was our first look at this team this season and it gave us some insight as to what the team might look like once some real non-conference competition is faced.

Robert Morris was not hard competition. The Buckeyes easily dispatched them 91-53. It wasn’t smooth right out of the gate, but the talent of the Buckeyes eventually started to show in the second half and they pulled away. It was a solid performance for an opener.

It was good to see Justice Sueing back on the court. It was his first game since last November and he looked as good as ever. He had 20 points on 8/14 shooting including 2/3 from three. He looked good in his movements too and didn’t show signs of a hurt ankle that kept him out of the scrimmage against Chaminade.

Tanner Holden, one of the three new transfers into the program, was really solid in this one. In fact, he didn’t miss a shot. He finished 5/5 for 12 points and looks like every bit the scorer he was at Wright State. His offensive ability is really something to watch.

Everyone wanted to see what the freshmen looked like. Overall, I’d say pretty well. Felix Okpara is someone that is going to be able to block shots down low and protect the rim. Bruce Thornton has the talent to make everyone around him better as a point guard. Roddy Gayle might be the best pure shooter in the class. Brice Sensabaugh looks like the best pure scorer of the freshmen.

All in all, it was a good first game for the Ohio State basketball team. I know a lot of people couldn’t watch the game because it was on Big Ten plus, but this will be the only game on that platform. Thursday night, the game will be on Big Ten Network and everyone will get to see this team.

I liked what I saw, but the competition wasn’t very strong. We’ll see what this team looks like in a couple of weeks when they get to Maui.