As one team after another bites the dust in March Madness, more and more college basketball fans will forget what all transpired in the first Round of 64 game on Thursday... No, it was not a good look for Jake Diebler and the Ohio State Buckeyes at all. Bruce Thornton's college basketball career came to an end after one of the worst play calls out of a timeout you could possibly every see in that spot.
So Diebler finished his second full season in charge of the Buckeyes with a respectable 21-13 mark. While Ohio State has gotten better under him each season, especially during league play, Thursday afternoon does feel like a bit of an inflection point for him and the program. Again, Thornton is gone. Diebler, or whomever, will have to pick up the pieces. What if there is a better candidate to be had?
For the sake of argument, let's turn out attention over to the main man in Saint Louis, Josh Schertz. In two years at Saint Louis, Schertz has amassed a 48-21 record overall and a 26-10 mark in A-10 play. While they were no match for Michigan in their Round of 32 game, the Billikens beat the absolute snot out of a favored Georgia team in the first round on Thursday night. Schertz has won other places, too.
He holds a 451-130 all-time coaching mark with Saint Louis, Indiana State, and at Lincoln Memorial.
Ohio State can potentially upgrade from Jake Diebler with Josh Schertz
If Ohio State wants to buy out Diebler, it will cost somewhere in the vicinity of $3 to $5 million, based on when Ross Bjork decides to pull the plug. While he may be a full decade younger than Schertz, can you put a price on getting the most out of your talent and resources? Although the A-10 has long had a reputation for being a great league come tournament time, Ohio State is a behemoth in the Big Ten.
Truth be told, Schertz may really like where he is at. He is thriving in a major metroplex at the helm of one of the most underrated basketball leagues out there in the sport. The guy can flat-out coach! Could Ohio State afford Schertz? Oh, absolutely! But would he come? That remains to be seen... Keep in mind that his star player over the last four years in Robbie Avila just exhausted all of his eligibility...
At this time, Ohio State has a big decision to make. Should they give Diebler another crack at it next season or not? The smart and pragmatic thing to do is let him continue to build upon a breakthrough season. That being said, if Ohio State regresses and Saint Louis continues to move forward around a new cast, people will start to talk. An upgrade over Diebler is out there to be had, but do they want it?
Right now, we should expect for Ohio State to roll it back with Diebler because he is the safer option.