Did Jake Diebler do enough to keep the Ohio State basketball job?

The Ohio State basketball program likely fell just one game short of getting an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament after losing to Illinois on Friday. It's a loss that's tough to swallow based on how bad the referees in that game were. The foul disparity was out of control.

Regardless, Ohio State's season is over, at least for now. They will likely accept an NIT bid if one is extended. Jake Diebler had this team playing its best basketball at the end of the year. They had won six of seven games heading into that Illinois game on Friday.

If the Buckeyes do accept the NIT bid, Diebler will have a few more games to add to his resume. He is trying to prove that he deserves to lead the Ohio State program next year and beyond. The question now is whether or not he's done enough in the last month to earn that opportunity.

Personally, I think it's about 50/50. I love that Diebler has brought the juice back to this program after it was dead and lifeless. Fans will come back to support the team in NIT games and next season as well. The changes he made allowed the Buckeyes to be the most dangerous team in the Big Ten.

On the other hand, I'm a big Dusty May fan. What he's done at FAU is incredible. If he can take that team to the Final Four, imagine what he can do in Columbus with access to NIL money and higher-level recruits. The Buckeyes would have a high ceiling.

Reports have emerged that it's down to Diebler and May. Right now, I'm leaning toward bringing Diebler back. It's really hard to see how well the team played for the last month and tell the guy who led the team to go away.

No matter what happens, Buckeye fans should applaud what Diebler has done.