Ohio State basketball: Zed Key’s season is over
By Ryan Stano
The Ohio State basketball team continues to take blows on and off the court. They are probably the worst team in the Big Ten right now even though Minnesota is below them in the standings. In fact, Minnesota’s only Big Ten win is over Ohio State.
Losing out is a real possibility for the Buckeyes. That possibility got even bigger today after learning that Zed Key‘s season is over. According to Chris Holtmann, Key will be having season-ending surgery on his shoulder soon and will be done for the remainder of the year.
Key first hurt his shoulder in Maui and then re-injured it worse against Purdue. After missing some time, he came back and then promptly hurt it again at Iowa. That was the last time he saw the court. He won’t be playing again for the Ohio State basketball team until next season.
This is the right course of action for Key’s long-term health. He has nothing left to play for this season, so the best thing for him is to get as healthy as he can for next season. This also just solidifies that the Buckeyes are likely losing the rest of the games on their schedule.
That’s because Feliz Okpara will have to start at center now for the rest of the season. He’s extremely raw and has a lot of work that needs to be done. These last few games might actually help his development because he can make mistakes without the fear of being yanked.
Perhaps this extended amount of playing time makes him a true force next year when he will need to be used more frequently. I feel bad for Key though. He seems like a nice kid that tries hard and plays the game the right way. I hope he’s at full strength next year.