Over the summer, the Ohio State Buckeyes garnered a lot of excitement. For the first time since the Thad Matta era, the Buckeyes have two five-star freshmen on the roster. In the first two games of the year, though, neither of them looked the part. Both Anthony Thompson and LJ Smith struggled.
In those two games, the two freshmen combined to shoot just 3-of-19. Against Marshall, Thompson changed that tune. He finally showed up and showed Ohio State basketball fans why this team's ceiling is higher than it has been at any point in the Jake Diebler era.
Ohio State freshman Anthony Thompson finally shows off his skills
Thompson is a starter, and he showed why he was a five-star recruit in the 2026 class. He had 10 points in the first half, knocking down two 3-point shots. While he struggled to shoot it quite as well in the second half, that first-half explosion was nice to see in the Buckeyes' 84-74 win.
Smith wasn't quite as good. He continues to struggle with his shot, as he was held scoreless, missing all four shots he attempted. His struggles are a little more understandable, since he should still be a senior in high school. Still, he needs to get on track for this team to hit its ceiling.
What would have been even nicer is if Ohio State had been able to pull away from the Thundering Herd more than they did. Defensively, they let Marshall make shots from wherever they wanted. That's the next evolution of the team as a whole: shutting teams down on that end.
Thompson has a nice wingspan, so he should develop into a good wing defender. As a young player, he needs to find a way to not let his offense dictate how he plays defense. If he's missing shots, he still needs to be able to defend at a high level.
Ohio State has a lot of growing to do
This Ohio State basketball team has a lot of new pieces. These pieces need time to develop chemistry with each other and learn how to play with each other. That takes time, although the schedule that Jake Diebler put together isn't doing his team any favors.
Ohio State's next game is on the road at fourth-ranked UConn. This is a team that played for a national title a year ago. This game will be a measuring stick for how good this young Buckeye team actually is. It will also show them just how far they need to go if they don't come out on top.
On the flip side, a win would give this young team a ton of confidence. Beating a top-five team on the road would show that this team can beat anyone on any given day. If that is going to ahve any chance of happening, the freshmen need to be locked in from the get-go.
Thompson can't have a scoreless half until making two free throws late, as he did against the Thundering Herd, if the Buckeyes are going to beat the Huskies. Still, it was a glimpse of the potential that he has for the rest of the year.
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