The Ohio State basketball team has rounded out its coaching staff
By Ryan Stano
![Feb 25, 2022; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Northwestern Wildcats assistant coach and former Penn State Nittany Lions guard Talor Battle (right) looks on from the bench during the first half against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Bryce Jordan Center. Penn State defeated Northwestern 67-60. Mandatory Credit: Matthew OHaren-USA TODAY Sports Feb 25, 2022; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Northwestern Wildcats assistant coach and former Penn State Nittany Lions guard Talor Battle (right) looks on from the bench during the first half against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Bryce Jordan Center. Penn State defeated Northwestern 67-60. Mandatory Credit: Matthew OHaren-USA TODAY Sports](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_4076,h_2292,x_0,y_0/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/151/01hzgeyb0k7af7g903ay.jpg)
The Ohio State basketball program has been trying to fill out its coaching staff for a few months now. Ever since the Buckeyes were eliminated from the NIT, that has been one of Jake Diebler's priorities. He wants to fill out his staff so they can work on some game-planning and recruiting.
Diebler has now completed that task. He hired the last member of his staff on Monday, hiring an old foe of the Buckeyes. Many of you will recognize him from his playing days at Penn State. He also coached at Penn State and most recently at Northwestern.
That of course is Talor Battle. Battle played with the Nittany Lions from 2007-2011. He coached with them for a year and has spent the last three seasons as an assistant with the Wildcats of Northwestern. He now joins the Diebler and the Buckeyes for this year.
Diebler has done a good job of mixing his staff with some very experienced assistants and some young guys like Battle. As a first-time head coach, he knows that he's going to need help navigating the landscape of the game, especially if the Ohio State basketball team makes the postseason.
We know that Diebler can coach on the court. We saw that once he took over for Chris Holtmann. How he sustains his message with an almost entirely new roster is another challenge. It's a challenge that Buckeye fans expect him to navigate right away. This team is still good enough to make the NCAA Tournament.
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When he took the job, Diebler knew that the bare minimum expectation every season is to make the NCAA Tournament. He has his sights set on more, but he will need time to get his kind of players into the program. Still, his new assistants should be able to help him and this team play in the Big Dance next year.