Ohio State basketball: Jamison Battle has been X-factor for Buckeyes

This offseason for the Ohio State basketball team, head coach Chris Holtmann was very active in the transfer portal. He landed a total of three transfers from the portal. While all three have given great contributions in different games, one in particular has been a difference-maker for the Buckeye basketball team so far this season.

Forward Jamison Battle has been off to a tremendous start to the season after transferring from Minnesota to Ohio State. Through 12 games, Battle has provided a boost on offense for the Ohio State basketball team as the team's second-leading scorer averaging 14.1 points per game.

The senior wing has been showing off his shooting ability from all areas of the floor. He's currently shooting at splits of 45% from the field, 41.9% from three, and 90.9% from the free-throw line. An experienced forward that's capable of stretching the floor is exactly what the Buckeyes needed this season, and so far Battle has been that.

Standing at 6-7, Battle has been effective on the defensive end as well. He's pulled down nearly five rebounds a game through the midway point of the season. In past seasons, Ohio State basketball teams have struggled on the glass and were out-rebounded numerous times. Battle is long enough and strong enough to help with cleaning up on the boards. That alone has been huge as the Ohio State basketball team has statistically been a much better rebounding team than a year ago.

Battle has currently scored 12 or more points in seven straight games for the Buckeyes including a 25-point game against his former team, Minnesota, back in early December which earned Ohio State their first Big Ten win of the season. He also played a key role in another Buckeye win against UCLA in the CBS Sports Classic going for 14 points on 54.5% shooting and pulling down three rebounds.

Battle made one of the biggest shots of the game with less than a minute remaining when he drilled the team's only three-pointer of the day that put Ohio State up 62-56. After making their free-throws, the Buckeyes won the game 67-60 in a hard-fought game with the Bruins.

So far in this early part of the season, Jamison Battle has looked like an excellent grab from the transfer portal. His ability to stretch the floor has opened up driving lanes for Bruce Thornton and Roddy Gayle Jr as we have seen their games elevate as well. If Battle can keep up this level of play, the Buckeyes will be in a great spot to win some big games in conference play.

The Ohio State basketball team has one more big non-conference game before they begin Big Ten play. They will play West Virginia this Saturday from Cleveland. The Mountaineers are long and athletic and will be a game that Battle needs to be a factor in. Hopefully, the Buckeyes can add one more non-conference win against a Power 6 opponent to their resume before conference play.