College Hoops Top 50

Last Year: 16-19; Thirteenth (5-15) in the Big Ten Conference, No Postseason

Head Coach: Chris Holtmann (Seventh Year; 123-75 at Ohio State with four NCAA Tournament appearances)

Projected Starting Lineup

PG Bruce Thornton – 6’2″, 215 – Sophomore

SG Roddy Gayle – 6’4″, 210 – Sophomore

SF Jamison Battle – 6’7″, 220 – Senior

PF Zed Key – 6’8″, 235 – Senior

C Felix Okpara – 6’11”, 235 – Sophomore

Projected Starters’ 2022-23 Stats

Bruce Thornton: 10.6 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 2.6 apg, 0.8 spg – 37.5% 3FG

Roddy Gayle: 4.6 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 0.9 apg, 0.6 spg – 42.9% 3FG

Jamison Battle: 12.4 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 1.7 apg, 0.6 spg – 37.1% FG @ Minnesota

Zed Key: 10.8 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 0.8 apg, 1.0 bpg – 55.0% FG

Felix Okpara: 4.0 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 1.3 bpg, 0.4 spg – 58.7% FG

Experienced Reserves

G Dale Bonner – 6’2″, 175 – Senior (5th)

W Evan Mahaffey – 6’6″, 200 – Sophomore

Experienced Reserves’ 2022-23 Stats

Dale Bonner: 4.7 ppg, 1.2 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.4 spg – 37.2% 3FG @ Baylor

Evan Mahaffey: 2.8 ppg, 1.7 rpg, 0.4 apg, 0.3 spg – 56.9% FG @ Penn State

Freshmen

G Taison Chatman – 6’4″, 175 – Freshman – Consensus Top 50 recruit

W Scotty Middleton – 6’7″, 190 – Freshman – Consensus Top 100 recruit

F Devin Pickering – 6’6″, 210 – Freshman – Consensus Top 100 recruit

C Austin Parks – 6’10”, 250 – Freshman – consensus Top 200 recruit

Sometimes, you have to go back to the drawing board a couple of times in the same year. After a season which saw 19 losses, Ohio State head coach Chris Holtmann is still Ohio State’s head coach, and he has reworked most of his roster – and brought in a highly rated freshman class. After a season which featured both five and nine-game losing streaks which had the coach’s seat smoldering, something had to change. 

The Buckeyes have changed quite a lot.

Just four significant players return from last year’s rotation, and around them Holtmann has added even former foes in an attempt to bring the Buckeyes back towards the top of the Big Ten. There was this young fella named Bronny who many Ohio State fans had pinned some hopes on, but he won’t be playing in Scarlet and Gray this fall. Plenty of other ballyhooed talent will be, though. And while change has been a bit of the norm – but not necessarily the salvation – for the past three teams in Columbus, the hope is that Holtmann has got it right this time. 

Zed Key leads the Buckeyes’ returnees in scoring average and rebounding, and had been a pillar of last year’s team until a shoulder injury first sapped Key of much of his brawny effectiveness and then prematurely ended his season. Key had been averaging 13.4 points, 8.4 boards and 1.3 blocks on 64% shooting at the time of his injury – he even started making three’s – but fell off to 8.8/7.2/0.6 on 45% shooting upon trying to play through the injury. It was the start of a breakout season for the rising big man, and now that Key is healthy, he’s ready to pick up where he left off and finish 2023-24 with a resounding statement. The New York native is a genuine Big Ten big man; he’s an ox-strong, wide-framed dude who does his best work near the basket, using his hips and great lower body strength to get good position and then go to work on the block. 

The New York native is a genuine Big Ten big man; he’s an ox-strong, wide-framed dude who does his best work near the basket

This season, he’s hoping to be quicker after attacking his rehab with a vengeance and also losing nearly 20 pounds this summer. “I was at 253 (pounds) last year, and losing this much weight, I feel better on the court,” Key told Buckeyes Now. “It definitely has helped me for the better. I still feel strong. I didn’t lose muscle, I just moved it around basically, moved the fat around and put it to muscle.” While he’s not as tall as most classic pivots, Key compensates with long arms and a non-stop motor. A terrific offensive rebounder, Key converted 27 putbacks of friendly misses in his 25 games played, and finished 8th in the conference in offensive boards despite missing six conference games. It is possible for players like Purdue’s Zach Edey to conquer Key with overwhelming size, but that can be said about nearly all players. If Key can get back to the skilled bully-ball he was playing to start the year, Holtmann is confident that the rest of his frontcourt will fit nicely into place. And if he’s able to play the 4 spot for the bulk of his minutes, Key should start exploiting new mismatches and providing the Buckeyes the chance to play a bigger lineup than at almost any point last season. 

The Buckeyes also return Bruce Thornton, who acquitted himself well as a freshman starter at the point last year. A big, strong guard, Buckeyes fans have already heard more than a few times about how Thornton looks like he could play for the football team. A physical guard who loves to take the ball right into the paint and the heart of the action, Thornton can finish at the rim or create good shots for his friends on the way there. Despite playing almost 31 minutes a game immediately for a team that was borderline desperate at times last year, Thornton only coughed up 46 turnovers all year, and showed that he can make the smart play even as he gets downhill, attacking the paint with abandon. Thornton showed a tight handle even in traffic last year, and his 42 triples and 37.5% rate from deep were a vital support for a team which finished 246th nationally in 3FG made, and now loses its top two outside threats. Now a comparatively veteran presence, Thornton has assumed a captaincy for the Buckeyes, and is growing as a leader. “I think Bruce has led the way there,” Holtmann praised his point guard. “The consistency of his work and his approach I think has been a really good thing to see, and it’s also certainly been contagious, but that’s the first thing you’re looking for is.”

With Brice Sensabaugh gone to the NBA, the Buckeyes may need a new leading scorer. Holtmann found a great option with whom his program is quite familiar, in former Minnesota star Jamison Battle. With 257 career made threes already, Battle seems just what the Buckeyes need in trying to replace Sensabaugh and marksman Sean McNeil; so long as he recovers from the funk he was in last season. Coming into last year, Battle had averaged 15 points over three seasons, and hit 36.4% of his triples. Last season, he shot 31% from three and just 37% overall, in what was a rough season for Minnesota. Battle missed the Gophers’ first four games last season following foot surgery, and is looking to be 100% this season and get back to being a star shooter and dangerous scorer. “Jamison Battle is obviously a proven multi-dimensional wing, guard-forward who has been able to score in the Big Ten for the past couple of seasons,” Holtmann said in October. “So we’re excited about his shooting and scoring that he is going to provide.”

Roddy Gayle had a fairly up-and-down rookie year, but he ended on quite a high. While Gayle arrived in Columbus with a reputation as one of the more versatile and college-ready scorers of his class, he struggled to earn consistent minutes through much of the season, and came into the Big Ten tourney averaging 3.7 points on 32% shooting from deep. During Ohio State’s four tournament games, Gayle averaged 12 points and shot an absurd 82% from three. Gayle went for a career-high 20 points against #1 seed Purdue, and showed that big moments weren’t too big for him despite his inexperience. “Next man stepped up. Roddy stepped up,” Holtmann said during Ohio State’s B1G Tournament run. “We have a lot of players on this team that can step up to the plate. Roddy did it.”

While the chances of Gayle keeping up that 80% pace from deep over a full season are not worth analyzing, his tourney performance hints at the type of high-impact scoring potential Gayle has yet to fully tap. And being that he is a solid defender with good size, Gayle should earn all of the minutes he needs to fully flesh out his offensive game due to his ability to get stops on the other end. At the Big Ten Tournament, Gayle leveled up both physically and mentally. He told reporters that his “performance just basically gave me even more confidence than I had, knowing that my teammates and my coaches have the same belief or even more confidence in me. Like I just really just stayed aggressive and try to play aggressive and play the best winning basketball.” This winter, Holtmann is counting on Gayle to continue being that confident, winning player. 

While Gayle is looking for the chance to prove that his end to the season was for real, Dale Bonner has also arrived to play a significant role. And, after having been one of many excellent guards at Baylor, Bonner is hoping that he can show that he can be a serious scorer, too. While at Division II Fairmont State, Bonner was a big-time scorer. He averaged 19 points over fifty career games there, and shot 40% from deep. While at Baylor, though, Bonner averaged less than four points per game. While he wasn’t able to keep up his scoring pace, Bonner did hit 37% of his triples last season, and proved himself as a great, disruptive defender and a strong playmaker. With the quick and lithe Bonner and explosive power from Thornton, Holtmann feels like he’s got a great duo of playmakers. “Dale Bonner gives us really something that we haven’t had maybe in our entire time at Ohio State in terms of his quickness, his ability to shoot the ball and how dynamic he can be,” Holtmann told reporters this fall. “It just gives us a different element. Certainly you can play he and Bruce together, and we plan to do that pretty consistently.”

Five Stats Which Tell The Tale (with national ranks)

.432 – Assists Per FG Made (348th)

36.8% – Team 3FG Percentage (38th)

6.8 – 3FG Made Per Game (231st)

.266 – Free Throw Attempts Per FG Attempt (326th)

10.7 – Turnovers Per Game (35th)

At least three freshmen are expected to play a lot this year, and there are minutes available on the wing. Taison Chatman is considered to have one of the most mature overall repertoires of any incoming freshman guard in the country, and Holtmann is hoping that he can step immediately into a key role. A good passer as well as a strong shooter both inside the arc and out past 25 feet, Chatman can play on or off the ball. “Chatman’s game is about substance over style,” Adam Finkelstein of 247 Sports praised the young guard. “He’s an excellent pull-up shooter, has good balance in the lane, some crafty lay-up making ability, and sneaky bounce given a chance to rise up.”

Though not explosively athletic, Chatman can get to the rim with his dribble or pull up and stick jumpers off the bounce. He will need to get stronger, but Chatman is a clever and high-effort defender as well. Unfortunately, he won’t be available until potentially the new year. “Taison is out four to six weeks with a minor knee procedure,” Holtmann updated reporters at Big Ten Media Day. It’s a big setback for Ohio State to have to start without Chatman, but he’ll be a huge addition once he’s able to play. 

While Chatman is comfortable with the ball in his hands, Scotty Middleton is a less polished offensive player. He doesn’t yet shoot it well from the outside, but Middleton is a big, athletic wing who may soon be one of the most feared defenders in the Big Ten. With long arms, quick hands, and terrific lateral quickness, Middleton can guard almost anyone but large post players. Middleton is developing as a spot-up shooter, and has shown a bit of range. He still doesn’t have great confidence in his handle, but Middleton can cut to the rim and finish, while his long arms help him get to plenty of rebounds. While it may be that he never becomes a primary scoring option,  Middleton will have the chance to develop his offensive skills because his defense will buy him plenty of minutes. 

Five Out-of-Conference Games to Keep an Eye on

vs Texas A&M – November 10

N – UCLA – December 16

N – Alabama – November 24

N – Oregon / Santa Clara – November 25

N – West Virginia – December 30

Devin Royal is a more finished offensive product, and should provide help in a variety of roles as he gains experience. Like Key, Royal doesn’t have prototype size in the post, but he makes up for it with physicality and an aggressive attitude. Royal is a good passer and defender who renounds well at both ends, complimenting his strong play in the post. He’s also developing good range on his jumper, though he will look to clean up his form a bit as Royal refines his skills. Austin Parks is the fourth member of Holtmann’s impressive class, a home-grown center from Saint Marys, Ohio. Though not as highly-rated as his fellow freshmen, Parks is a consensus Top 200 recruit and held offers from Illinois and Michigan State before choosing to stay in Ohio. Parks has a nose for the rim and doesn’t shy away from contact inside. Unfortunately, he’s been dealing with back spasms this fall, but unlike Chatman, Holtmann has said that he expects Parks to be ready in early November. 

Felix Okpara and Evan Mahaffey are two young veterans who have played in the Big Ten already, and Ohio State’s coaches are expecting each player to take a significant step forward this winter. Mahaffey is coming over from Penn State, where he was one of the few non-guards to receive legitimate run on last season’s veteran Nittany Lions squad. A Cincinnati product, Mahaffey has good size on the wing and won’t hesitate to go hard for the rim if offered a path. Mahaffey was tremendously efficient as a rookie, and Holtmann would love to see him continue shooting almost 57% from the floor. “Evan has just spent a year in college,” Holtmann said this fall. “I think he is a growing, developing player.” Reports say that Mahaffey has also shown confident range shooting out beyond the three point arc this fall in the Buckeyes’ practices. If he can knock down open jumpers and continue to finish effectively around the lane, Mahaffey will find himself playing nearly double the 9.4 minutes he averaged last year. 

Okpara played for the Buckeyes last year, and started 11 games at the pivot. There were times when he very much looked like a freshman, but down the stretch, Okpara started to figure some things out and showed off the potential which made him a consensus Top 100 recruit just a year ago. He started each of Ohio State’s final nine games, averaging 5.8 points, 4.4 boards and two blocks per game over those contests, making 63% of his shots from the floor. As a freshman playing in the middle at just over 200 pounds, Okpara got bagged around and consistently bruised, but he kept at it and us hoping that the experience pays off this winter. “I feel like, in this league, when the season starts, little injuries go a long way,” Okpara said. “I just got to try and keep my body good and try and get it ready for the season.” A potentially excellent defender, Okpara has demoralizing length and quickness around the rim. He gets to rebounds outside of his area and changes just as many shot attempts as he blocks. “Felix, if a guy can control the game with scoring less than 10 points, he’s a prime example,” says Holtmann. The Big Nigerian product showed that he will shoot a deep jumper if left open as the year came to a close, and has worked to make opponents pay consistently this winter. With a more lithe Key to play the 4 spot, the way is open for Okpara to play 20+ minutes in the middle in his second season, and to grow into his excellent potential. 

Last Year, the Buckeyes were the third-unluckiest team in America according to Ken Pomeroy, but they still held together and finished strong. It was enough to convince enough people around the program that, combined with the exciting incoming freshmen, it was worth keeping Holtmann as coach and letting him try to continue the run that began in March. 

“We were not efficient enough like we had been really the bulk of our time at Ohio State,” Holtmann reflected on last year’s struggles. “So we made some adjustments, and I think we’ve got a group that in some ways there’s an element where you lose a guy that has the ability to kind of go get a bucket at any time that presents some challenges and then it’s also going to present some opportunities for some other guys.”

The Buckeyes’ young core took advantage of those opportunities, and proved that they will play their tails off for their coaches, program and one another – no matter how tightly their backs are pressed against the wall. “I’m really proud of these guys. I feel like we’ve still got so much to show and so much work to do,” Thornton said during Ohio State’s B1G tourney run. This winter, the returning core is looking to finish what they’ve started. And, when March of 2024 rolls around, to return Ohio State to its usual place in the NCAA Tournament.