The Ohio State basketball program is determined to break its streak of not making the NCAA Tournament this season. For the last three seasons, under both Chris Holtmann and Jake Diebler, the Buckeyes have failed to make the Big Dance. It's the longest such streak in over 25 years.
This year, Diebler has been able to get his team to play well on offense against some inferior opponents. They have played just one P4 opponent so far, and they won that game by one against Notre Dame. On Tuesday night, the Ohio State Buckeyes crushed Mount St. Mary's 113-60
Ohio State should be able to beat teams like this, and they absolutely destroyed them. With that kind of win, Ohio State should be considered a contender to not just make the NCAA Tournament, but finish in the top four in the Big Ten at the end of the year.
Massive Ohio State basketball win shows the team's potential
Beating a team by 53 points, even one as bad as Mount St. Mary's, the Buckeyes showed how good they can be. John Mobley Jr. was the leading scorer, pouring in 26 points on 10-15 shooting. This was by far the best game that Mobley Jr. has had so far this year.
If Mobley is going to be able to pour in points like this, the Buckeyes are going to be hard to beat. Bruce Thornton has established himself as perhaps the best player in the Big Ten. Stopping him is hard enough for teams, but adding Mobley to the fray in the backcourt makes them even deadlier.
This team will learn a lot more about how good they might be when they face off against Pitt on Friday night. That is the first road game that Ohio State has played so far this season, and that will give fans a bit of a better sense as to whether or not this team will be able to make the NCAA Tournament.