Ohio State Basketball: Buckeyes are built for an impressive run in the NCAA Tourney

The Ohio State Buckeyes came up short in the Big Ten Tournament once again.

First of all, congratulations to the Buckeyes on a great regular season. Ohio State finished with 24 wins which is the most the team has accrued since 2014. With that, they earned a second place finish in the conference and lost only three games within the Big Ten. The Buckeyes haven’t placed second or higher since 2012.

It was very refreshing to see the Buckeyes finally put the puzzle together this season after playing like a bunch of detached pieces in past years. The team also went from dispassionate to passionate in a very short amount of time. It was clear from the beginning that the Buckeyes believed in one another far more than anyone else could.

However, it was much more surprising how Ohio State achieved such great success so quickly. The Bucks are just one year removed from missing the postseason entirely. The coaching change from Thad Matta to Chris Holtmann ended up being far smoother than anticipated.

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The Buckeyes cut their losses in half in Holtmann’s first season and almost captured a piece of the Big Ten regular season title for the first time since 2011. This was very impressive considering none of the players on this season’s roster are his own. Interestingly enough, almost every player in this season’s successful lineup were also contributors toward last season’s failure.

The spectacular rebirth of Buckeye basketball has led to immediate success and big hopes for the future but there is still one thing that has remained unchanged. The Buckeyes have whiffed once again in the Big Ten Tournament.

Last season, the Buckeyes lost to a lowly Rutgers team in the first round (though the Buckeyes weren’t necessarily much better). The Buckeyes had even received an early bye for their efforts during the regular season and still ended up leaving the Big Ten Tournament without a win. The last time the Buckeyes won a postseason game was when D’Angelo Russell was leading the squad in 2015.

Will the disappointment of that early exit in the Big Ten Tournament linger into the NCAA Tournament?

There’s a lot to like about the Buckeyes’ losses this season. In fact, analyzing their losses is almost more enlightening than gushing over their wins. One of the most important things that have changed about the Buckeyes this season is their ability to win all of the games that they should win.

For example, Ohio State did not lose to any team that was outside the Power Five conferences. This has been a problem for the Bucks the past two seasons as they let slip a couple ugly losses. Also, the Buckeyes did not take a loss to any team who finished worse than .500 in Big Ten play. All eight of the Buckeyes’ losses have been against solid teams.

The big kicker is that three of those eight losses have come against the same opponent. Penn State beat the Buckeyes twice in the regular season and put the final nail in their coffin in the conference tournament. Of every team in the Big Ten the Buckeyes could have played in their first match up of the tournament, Ohio State had the misfortune to play Penn State.

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Many speculated that there was no way Penn State could beat the Buckeyes twice in a row let alone three times. Especially since their third match up was at a neutral site. It was believed the first match up between the two teams was a fluke because Penn State had hit a half-court bank shot at the buzzer to beat the Buckeyes in Columbus.

This was false as anyone who was watching the whole game could attest to the fact that the Nittany Lions had played very well the entire game. The Buckeyes’ second loss to Penn State occurred on their home floor.

Of course, this was shrugged off by many as they claimed it was just the Nittany Lions’ home court advantage. The Nittany Lions have not been respected at all in the Big Ten this season mostly due to the fact that they lost a few games they shouldn’t have.

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The Nittany Lions quietly have one of the most solid teams in the conference and almost made some serious noise toward the end of the conference tournament had they not fell just short of beating Purdue. It’s a shame they may not have done enough to squeeze into the NCAA Tournament because they had the chemistry and firepower to take down some big names early.

The rest of the Buckeyes’ losses have come to either some of the best teams in the country or teams that have beat the best teams in the country.

The five other losses were to #17 Gonzaga, Butler (OT), Clemson, #5 North Carolina, and #22 TTUN. Butler has beaten current Big East champion and #2 team in the country Villanova. Clemson has beaten ACC runner-up and #12 team in the country North Carolina. TTUN went on to win the Big Ten Championship.

So as far as real concern goes, there isn’t much after taking a look at how they’ve managed their schedule. Losing to a tough conference foe three times in a row hurts but they should fare better against foes who are less familiar.

The Buckeyes have hurt their tournament seeding graces quite a bit since they’ve now lost four of their last 10 games. This could be a blessing in disguise as it is unknown how a team like the Buckeyes with little NCAA Tournament experience on their roster would fare playing as a high seed.

Being seeded too highly would just increase the Buckeyes’ chances of getting upset twofold. The only players on this Buckeyes’ roster who have played in the NCAA Tournament are Jae’Sean Tate and Kam Williams.

Beating teams of higher caliber is already something the Buckeyes have conquered anyway as they’ve already taken down previously #1 Michigan State and #3 Purdue on the road. Playing as the underdog would very much so favor the Buckeyes in the position they’re in.

Holtmann has experience in the NCAA Tournament. He coached Butler to the NCAA Tournament in all three of his seasons there and made it passed the first round in each of those years. Holtmann also coached the Bulldogs to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen in his final season there.

Though they have a relatively tournament inexperienced roster, the Buckeyes have the resume to make a run. This roster has the chemistry and the competitive spirit that’s required for any team to be successful in March. If the Buckeyes can get passed the first round, their confidence will continue to build as their place as the underdog will give them leverage over the unbalanced higher seeds.

Ohio State will be just fine moving forward as their recent losses have been either on the road against near-rival opponents or due to them looking ahead. In fact, their early exit may be what they needed in order to gather themselves for tournament play.

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This Buckeyes’ team has played against some of the very best teams in the country so there’s no doubt they’ll be prepared for whatever the tournament throws at them. All the Buckeyes need to do is play each game with their usual toughness and grit to be successful.