Dennis Gates first year head coach at Missouri (my wife is an alum) is an example of how a coach/leader can potentially hold a program back. They are 14-4 and middle top of SEC standings and have played really good basketball pretty much all season. He has mostly all Cuonzo Martins players and they look like a different group than just one year ago. What does that tell you? Coach Martin just wasn’t working. They were 12-21 last season. So a change was made and their culture seems really strong in a matter of 10 months. It can be done does not have to set us back 5 years. It’s a shame that we extended coach H, I felt that was premature but what do I know?
Comparing Coach Holtmann to Cuonzo Martin. Smh. Cuonzo went 12-21 at Missouri last yr, meanwhile Holtmann has won 20+ games EVERY SINGLE YEAR at OSU.
Holtmann has NEVER missed the NCAA Tournament, and NEVER won less than 20 games during his OSU tenure… yet we have people comparing him to a bottom-dwelling coach who finished dead last in the SEC last year. Lol.
It’s takes like this that make no sense, but pass for common logic on this site. Morons leading the charge & getting cheered on by other morons. Plz downvote & flame this post, I take criticism from fools as a compliment.
That means he's had a top 40ish program year over year. Is that the goal? Typically 6-8 Big Ten teams make the dance. Finishing just above average (12-8) in the Big Ten is enough to qualify for the dance most years.
For the record I am A-OK with missing the tournament every few years if we make Sweet 16 runs the other years. Consistent mediocrity does nothing.
and NEVER won less than 20 games during his OSU tenure…
That means he went .500 against DI Major programs. Is that the goal? .500 basketball?
I'd sure hope 20 wins and a middle of the pack Big Ten season is NOT the goal.
The football equivalent to these goals would be consistently finishing 7-5 and touting bowl eligibility year over year as an accomplishment.
20 win seasons in large part to beating all the cupcakes. Holtmann seems to be a quality person but is in over his head and should be relieved of his position. He is paid very nicely and is producing very sub par product. OSU is a sports entertainment product and Holtmann is the ceo. His failures are obvious with a long track record. Calling people morons because they can no longer support his leadership is your brand of moronic.
So you’re the guy who downvotes any honest criticism of Holtmann lol
he hasn’t won anything in the big ten or march in 6 years. Let it go. It’s over
under Thad
from 2004 to 2017
Four Big 10 Championships
Five Big Ten tournament titles
two Final Four appearances (2007 and 2012),
and the 2008 NIT Championship
Funny how you have 12 downvotes and 4 upvotes. Good to see 11 other people think your response to my post is negative. I’m not sure why you feel the need to be rude, I’d hate to see how you treat people daily if this is how you like to respond to a stranger who simply posted an opinion. Perhaps being a little nicer could help you be happier in life.
Maryland provided the smoke that something was wrong.
Minnesota made it obvious the house was on fire.
Nebraska just exposed this as an inferno.
This isn’t new. Holtmann has lost to Big Ten bottom dwellers that fail to win 15 games at a rate of 3 per season. Year 1 was the exception. Sure his teams can play with a top 10 team but they can lose to a last place team as well. Ultimately that means a Big Ten title is never going to be a reality under him…which is sad bc we led the conference with 22 when he arrived.
Time to turn the page and start the next chapter in OSU basketball immediately
I think he's a quality individual. But Ohio State needs a skilled basketball coach that gets the most out of his players. I have seen nothing over the last few years that suggests Holtmann was the right guy. Giving him an extension was one of the worst moves Gene Smith has made in his career.
agree but that means we need to find a young coach and take a chance on him because no successful / established coach is going to come in here. need a young assistant coach out of a successful program who can relate to the players and has an idea of what it takes to build a championship program. we have not won a national championship since 1960 and have struggled since Thad Matta left. Time to move on from Holtman.
If you look at where the last 3 coaches were in years 3-4 ish of their respective careers and yes I’m even including Randy Ayers even though he was a dumpster fire at the end, all 3 of them were ahead of where Holtmann is. The man seems like as solid of an individual as it gets but it just doesn’t seem to be working. He belongs at a missouri valley school. It just is what it is. He’s not a big ten level coach
I'm sure sure is a great 'guy' but. He has proven he is good enough (or bad enough) to lose every close game OHIO STATE is in! Sad state of affairs IMHO...
Holtmann is a loser. I don't like to be associated with losers. He never seemed to be an Ohio State guy. I admit I can't explain what that means, but pay the guy to move on. Please.
For years, any criticism of Holtmann was met with downvotes and insults. It didn’t even have to be mean..you could simply point out that the man had underperformed with the talent on the roster and you’d be public enemy #1 and told you didn’t understand basketball or weren’t a real fan.
This is the result of having such a mixture of expectations for the program. Some people are happy to finish 7th in the Big 10, while others expect a championship every year. No one could define how successful he was until now when it’s blatant the man is failing.
I like Holtmann as a person. Got to meet him and he was really nice. But his performance is not what OSU should be expecting from its basketball program.
I took on those 'rose colored glasses' fans that attacked anyone that pointed out deficiencies in the program. Those 'rose colored glasses' are 'Settlers' & are still around. Maybe they get their wish & a turnaround occurs but I doubt it. At least, they should remain silent for now.
I think we are all starting to realize that Holtmann just isn’t it but I’m also now thinking this roster just isn’t nearly as good as we thought it was. These guys can’t even make a god damn layup.
The “why” doesn’t really matter to me anymore, it’s year 6 and the entirety of this program right now is flat out embarrassing. I don’t care if it’s really the players who suck not the coaches because who recruited these guys? Exactly.
I feel bad for the 17 people who bought tickets to the Iowa game this Saturday. I feel bad for all of us who follow this program
I still like our players. But we have a coach who seems like he should be good at coaching a div 2 or 3 team. But he has no idea how to coach with nba quality guys. He’s had them before and failed this is just the latest edition.
Unless this team wins ten games in a row, there is ZERO chance at a tournament berth. What's our best win? Rutgers? A blown double digit lead against UNC? Holtmann isn't the guy and it's time to move on. Six years in and we've never even gotten within shouting distance of a Sweet 16 or a B1G title. This should not be acceptable at Ohio State, especially given Holtmann's alleged recruiting prowess.
This is looking so similar to the end of the Matta era. The obvious difference is that Matta made deep tournament runs and won multiple Big Ten titles. Holtmann's only accomplishments are wasting elite talents like Branham, Liddel and Washington, and losing a Big Ten tournament championship game. After 6 years, that's nowhere close to good enough.
Nah. By the end of the Matta era we had a shortage of scholarship players. Guys quitting etc,,, This year is Holtman’s best group of recruits imo. Seems like they are sticking together too.
Matta had the ability to be a very good coach. Holtman hasn’t shown anything close to Matta’s best years.
I believe this year’s incoming frosh were a top 5 recruiting class.? All of which says the imbalance between recruiting and results is Holtmann-Esque. And my other point was At least Matta had good years and an inexplicable crash. CH doesn’t yet have a peak to crash from.
This feels like when they SHOULD have moved on from Matta. He got an extra few years and completely screwed the program. He couldn’t leave his office to recruit and couldn’t get 12 scholarship players on the roster
I wonder if Holtmann views transfers the same as Day does. Will the player "fit"? It seems like there is a lack of chemistry, much more so than lack of talent. Just wondering.
I hit the panic button two years ago after the loss to Oral Roberts in the tourney, watching Holtmann team's now is like taking the business end to a one-sided contest of Roshambo. What's even more disappointing is this was a promising/talented team, but as mentioned in the article the January collapes are a problematic trend every year. Maybe instead of sending fraudulent/cryptic tweets; Brian Schottenstein should put his money where his mouth is and ask Geno how much money will it take to send Holtmann packing
Just watching a Holtmann coached team is torture. They are never in control of the game no matter how big of a lead they have and you just wait for the other team's run that is going to put them in the lead. Watching a Holtmann coached team is a task that is Sisyphussian at best!
UNC loss took something out of this team but the Purdue loss crippled them. Haven’t looked the same since that game. Maryland, Minnesota and Nebraska are all bad losses where osu showed very little effort and energy.
This roster has talent but Sueing to me is a big issue why they are struggling. Can’t make shots. Doesn’t defend. Turns it over at a high rate. But he continues to get heavy minutes. Team looks defeated and cooked.
The all access thing really proved how bad holtmann is as an in game coach. Unfortunately don’t see things getting turned around anytime soon.
I really wonder if Holtmann is wedded to Sueing because he did rehab and come back for 1 more year? Is he rewarding his loyalty even if his play is kind of sucking at this point.
Third game in a row shooting under 38%, is that on the coach, the players, the system, I'll venture it is a combination of all three. The system doesn't push tempo so trying to create space and trying to get the defense out of position. Nope, let's walk the ball up the court all night and run the same sets all night long. The Nebraska center gets in foul trouble yet they can't modify the offense to exploit that mismatch. Far too many defensive breakdowns yet again.
Another slow start on the offensive end with pathetic shooting, maybe they need to revisit the pregame routine, change up something because what they are doing now is not getting them off to a good start. In some respects they have been lucky that they are not playing against good teams or they would be run out of the building in the first ten minutes.
Sensabaugh misses his first eight shots but keeps shooting and leads the team in scoring yet again. Thornton is in a severe shooting slump for the entire month, the best foul shooter on the team misses half his foul shots. The so called team leader Justice Sueing has a hideous game, 1-6 shooting for 4 points, credited with four turnovers but actually had more than that. His pass to the wing was at the teammates feet and fumbled away yet the other player gets credited with the turnover. He had two bad offensive fouls as well on drives near the foul line. At least he did make a nice pass to Sensabaugh in the corner for a made three pointer late in the game.
Holden looked a little better, actually getting to the foul line however he also had his share op lapses. Okpara has done nothing to speak of since the Purdue game. Likekele, Gayle and Brown are basically on the court so there are five guys on the floor at the same time.
I see no emotion on this team, just going through the motions, watching Sensabaugh trying to do it all on one end of the court.
Another game that is in doubt with less than a minute to play and they can't close it out, odd game management, why was Sensabaugh on the court in a must foul situation, letting 17 seconds drain off the clock then fouling, having a lineup with Brown playing center while both Key and Okpara are on the bench, still playing the same basic defense, not using your athletes to create pressure and tempo.
Don't pick on Okpara, You're right he's done nothing since the Purdue game (31mins), but not his fault, it is because coach has played him only 12, 7, 15 and 5 minutes since that game.
Any time you give a man something he doesn't earn, you cheapen him. Our kids earn what they get, and that includes respect - Woody Hayes
He played 5 minutes last night. Patrick Ewing could get schooled if he only played 5 minutes. It's how you respond to your opponents strength that differentiate the good ones from the bad. We know how he did againt Zach Edy after gaining some experience. there's only one way to get experience, and 5 minutes a game is not going to do it.
Any time you give a man something he doesn't earn, you cheapen him. Our kids earn what they get, and that includes respect - Woody Hayes
1. There are no offensive sets and no strategy. A good offense should be getting a guy like McNeil who is a great shooter when open open looks. That offense should be finding Sensabaugh the ball in position to make a play. That offense should adjust to personnel changes (e.g. a center being out). And most importantly that offense should have sets with screens to get open looks in the last couple minutes when te game is on the line.
2. These lineups are baffling. At Rutgers, our NBA round 1 talent was riding the pine. OSU failed to score for those 5 minutes. Sueing brings nothing positive yet Holtmann rewards him with minutes like he’s the best player on the team. Okpara needs more time at Zed’s expense. The reality is BOTH are projects, not just Okpara.
3. Who motivates this team?? If not the head coach that needs to be an energetic assistant coach. That all access game made it obvious it’s not Holtmann but the rest of the staff was quiet as well. It’s painfully obvious they start games flat and don’t come out with a string mindset against inferior opponents.
4. Holtmann has never stated his expectations (calling it a must win game, adamantly saying “we had no business losing to that team”, or saying we need to win this next game. He just kind of floats along, praising piss poor teams for their play against us and saying we need to do better. It’s fair to say “we’re learning” in November. But conference play is time to shit or get off the pot. This is what you spend the off-season for. Yet Holtmann acts like the season entails 3 months of learning opportunity scrimmages.
I love the game but am far from a basketball coach. These flaws are just so blatantly obvious that even a novice like me can see them.
This is what jumps off the screen to me when watching OSU BB. I'm not a basketball expert. I didn't play it at a high level -- much less one remotely similar to the B1G. So I know I don't have a trained eye when it comes to this stuff (the opposite is true for me when it comes to football).
But the OSU offense just seems so lethargic and random to me. Really looks like a bunch of 40-something guys who get together to play at the Y every Tuesday. Any off-ball motion is just extremely vanilla. That's been a noticeable contrast to me against some of OSU's opponents this year -- I want to say it was the UNC game where just a simple pick and motion gave them like 20 uncontested points in the paint. But then you see the advanced analytics guys (who are usually right) consistently put OSU's offensive figures way above what I'd expect. Maybe someone with more knowledge can explain what's going on there.
As for Holtmann, I doubt he's going anywhere this year because of the recent extension and Gene's apparent love for the guy. But, in my perfect world, he's coaching for his job the rest of the season. I get that this year and next year are great recruiting classes. But I'd really, really like to see some growth by the team down the stretch.
I don't think having Sensabaugh being the 6th man is necessarily a bad thing - there have been notable 6th men all across the NBA - Lou Williams, Manu Ginobili, etc. My issue is more that we're still figuring out what the starting lineup is and it's almost Feb.
I keep checking to see if there is an 11W post stating that "Holtmann has been relieved of his duty". Seems like the proper move regarding the basketball program. It didn't work out so it's time to move on.
If this team were to suddenly go on an 8-2 run, I’d be even more upset that we squandered games against Minnesota, Maryland, and Nebraska, knowing the pieces to compete for a Big Ten title were in place.
Holtmann has shown for 5 straight years that he is incapable of navigating a Big Ten season without giving up 3 games a year to the Big Ten bottom feeders.
Good points. Makes me wonder - suppose we finish strong and do well in the B1G tournament, maybe even March Madness - will Gene Smith say let's give him another year?
If we struggle at all, it's a much easier decision.
The players don’t play to their strengths, whatever they are.
Whether he lasts the season I don’t know but you can see them stall and you know they’re not getting out of it. Sign of a good coach is getting ONE bucket out of a timeout. He never does.
sounds like a comment on mgoblog. last national championship was 1960. no one looks at this program as a blue blood program anymore. cant hang your reputation on shit that happened 60+ years ago. been over a decade since they made it out of the second round of the NCAA tournament. big time recruits are not looking to come here. will need to build a roster with mid level players that will stay at least 3 years so you can build chemistry which will allow this team to compete every 3-4 years.
I don't think that pointing out that Ohio State is "no blue blood" is the thing that interests me at this point. I ask the question, "why?" Why aren't we relevant? Matta had us relevant. We are now not. With OSU's resources, why couldn't it be a blue blood?
last relevant success was over a decade ago and for a program that has been around for 124 seasons that is not good. and this is with a shitty BIG basketball conference. dont try to shine up a turd son.
I’m sorry, but that is just defeatist bullshit. Matta had no problem attracting the bluest of blue chip recruits here during his peak, and the program was nationally relevant…at the same time that we also had a great football program, nonetheless. To act like this program’s ceiling is basically Wisconsin is a bunch of crap. It can be done here, and has been done here relatively recently- it just requires the right coach and a bigger investment in the program.
This.........^^^^^^.............x10............this dumpster fire should be pinned on ol' Geno Smith...right where it belongs.....This team has good talent and went toe to toe with some dam good teams.....I think that PURDUE loss started the snowball effect and they can't seem to get it out of their heads......Time to snap out of it guys.........you're playing WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYY too tight..........Loosen up and have some fun..........and please take better care of the rock........and Brice, you're not Meadowlark......what's with the BS dribbling anyway......?.......
So sick of hearing this. The Big Ten is trash and its teams have consistently under-performed in the tournament for years, and the conference is especially down this year with a bunch of bad teams, a few that are just "okay' and then Purdue. You can't just say the Big Ten is "deep" when OSU is losing to Minnesota and Nebraska who are objectively awful teams.
OSU also lost to every decent team they played out of conference, and "decent" is an overstatement because SDSU, Duke and UNC are no longer in the top 25. That "big" win over Texas Tech is now a win over a 10-8 team that has lost 6 straight.
The concern to me was the talk on one of the game threads that no player was listening to what Holtmann was telling them to do and that he has lost the team. If that is true, he needs to go.
Ohio State botched this whole situation up from the time they fired Thad to the hiring of guy in Holtman who never won ANYTHING of note while at Butler. Someone mentioned if OSU doesn't get rid of Holtman the program could be set 5 year. Well I got news for you the program has already been set 5 year's. This was bad hire from jump and most if not all the blame belongs on Gene Smith who btw gave Holtman an extension, thus doubling down his idiotic decision.
Time to move on and try to salvage the recruiting class he had coming in next year. Not sure what happened, but they have looked like crap ever since the Purdue loss.
Just a thought: maybe Holtman's early success was with the assistants he brought with him. Now that they are gone to other endeavors, his basketball teams' lack of success is on him. Great assistants can make any head coach look good.
Speaking with one of Holtmann's former players, the first thing the kid said was that Holtmann relies on his assistant coaches ALOT. So your theory is most likely 100% spot on.
Has Holtmann ever watched his own team play on TV? I ask, because I can't sit through yet another lackluster performance with no adjustments, terrible decisions and sloppy play. I'd rather get a root canal.
How can someone who is supposed to be a decent coach keep putting up the same mediocre product year after year? He keeps recruiting better players that never develop.
I've moved on. I hope OSU does the same.
Alcohol will not solve any of your problems, but then again, neither will milk or water.
Sueing isn't the same player after the injury and the team doesn't hustle or seem to have an plan at either end of the court. Zed's regressed and too many pieces are just out of whack. Th. comparison to the Ayers years is the closest I've seen. This team has no juice.
Hey guy in charge. Do you know your team ? Do you have any explanation ? Do you have a clue about your next steps ? Questions are constantly there. Any answers ?
Billy Donovan at Florida took a total freshman team to a national championship. Same year Florida beat us in football championship game. So maturity is not always a player it’s coaching and recruiting reliable talent. Of course early NBA was not as easy then and no transfer portals to contend with either.
What? No he didn't. The UF team was famous for having all of it's experienced players return for another run at a championship. They were all juniors and seniors. OSU was the team with all the freshman.
What are you going to know tomorrow about Chris Holtmann that you don’t already know today? If you change nothing nothing’s going to change. Fire the clown now.
This reminds me of how I felt in John Cooper's final game, the disastrous Outback Bowl game, when an unranked South Carolina team absolutely dominated the Buckeyes 24-7. As the debacle unwound and OSU players started getting hit with 15 yard unsportsmanlike penalties, I was jumping up and down cheering, knowing OSU now HAD to fire him and find a suitable replacement.
I will never root against a Buckeye team, but for the future of this program, they may need to bottom out even more to force Gene to make the change.
"I will never root against a Buckeye team, but for the future of this program, they may need to bottom out even more to force Gene to make the change."
I say fire Holtmann AND Gene Smith......he's the one most responsible for this dumpster fire..........
Because the Men's Hoops team lost to Nebraska? LOL
Just curious, have you researched how many new DC Hires took a team from #54 to #14 Total Defense in just 1 season? (I mean that was all scheming because it wasnt his players)
I agree with you Im not satisfied either, but I do see tangible progress.
Here’s one thing I love to hate about 11w… someone in the forums starts a thread about firing Holtman and everyone down votes them into oblivion. But if a 11wer staffer writes about how bad of a coach he is and calls for his job everyone in the comments is all like “yes!” “Here here!” Pretty funny.
Everyone do yourselves a favor, stop paying attention to the basketball team and give your time and ticket money and merch money to coach Tom Ryan and the wrestling Buckeyes. Your investment will be rewarded in a much more complete manner.
The Excellence of Execution, the Best there is, the Best there was, the Best there ever will be!
Might want to recheck the temperature in the forums. After the Minny game, someone started the Fire Chris Holtmann Tonight thread. I mean that is as drastic as you get, and that was before the next 2 losses! And last I saw, it was +20 something upvotes.
Crazy thing to me is...in some weird alternate universe, the Bucks should at worse be 15-3 and around the top 10. Never should have blown those late game leads against UNC and Purdue. That's on coaching at the end of those games. Then, there's no excuse to lose to all 3 of the bottom feeders of the league. Only game that was borderline acceptable was @Rutgers, and even that was a winnable game in regulation.
When the margins are this close to being what they are (10-8) and what they could be (15-3/16-2). That's where coaching matters, and it just isn't happening.
Agree 100 percent. Good coaching can get you a few easy baskets that propel you to a win late in a close game.
What is discouraging is how fundamentally bad (especially in late game situations in close games) this team is. Very poor offensive sets and execution, not a lot of defense, missed free throws and not getting rebounds.
Guys just seem to stand around like they don’t want to be there.
This team exposes the lie in every fan talking about a new roster who says things like "I know we gonna take some lumps" or "I don't care about wins and losses" but "I just want to see a team who competes."
Well, this team competes. It has either blown out every cupcake or been right in it against every power conference team it has played. And it has lost almost every single close game. Pretty frustrating and miserable.
Holtmann's resume and track record up to this point is a lot more solid than some of our fanbase cares to recognize, but he seems lost with this team at this point. And unfortunately losing too much in basketball affects the mentality of your players and eventually even can infect your culture. Once guys stop believing a coach can help them win, they stop executing.
Bad situation for the program and its future right now.
This offense is a hot mess. If Brice isn't shooting, they have no clue. It's like all of a sudden every team figured out that they need to switch every screen and stop the penetration, and the offense just stalls. There are very few easy baskets or plays that get open looks or guys freed up to draw a defender and dish under the basket.
At this point, I would take Sean Miller in a heartbeat. You gotta think he would love to get back to a bigger stage. Watched X last night and even though they lost, the offense and energy were impressive.
The road to getting fired is paved with five-game losing streaks. I'm a Holtmann fan, but it just can't be ignored. The team still has everything in front of them, but if they can't turn the corner, it's probably a sign that this just isn't working.
What bothers me the most is losing every game that is close at the end. Both the defense and offense struggle at the end of close games. While I like a lot about Sueing, he seems always make the key turnover, bad play at end of games. Matta was let go because he lost his ability to recruit. Holtman is just the opposite. He seems to be able to recruit (except for big guys), but his game day coaching is lacking.
I don't understand why he does not give Roddy Gayle more playing time. He needs to get more of Sueing's playing time because he's is making a lot of mistakes when he got the ball in his hands and plays lazy defense. Gayle came into the game hit a Jumper and a minute later he's back on the bench. I wish they would give some of the other players a shot (Etzler or Hardman), Hardman has a sweet stroke. Teams know that OSU only has two shooters (McNeil and Sensabaugh) cover those two and make the other guys take the shot, they are easy to defend. Tanner Holden played well last night with the minutes he got and Sueing hardly ever comes out the game. How can he not see that.
This is the worst team in the conference. They would be completely screwed without Sensabaugh, who will probably be off the NBA after this season. 6 years in, it is time to cut bait and bring in a new coach.
To me the problem is Sueing is not a leader as the elder statesman of the team. He’s a nice complementary player. We are counting on Freshmen to be the leaders and that’s hit a wall
And our Xs and Os and not getting the job done either
No movement on offense resulting in contested shots. Lackluster defense. Poor passing. Talent problem or laziness (or both). Poor coaching = unmotivated team. Holtman needs to go, Now!
I've watched bits of the last few games, one observation is Sueing is playing too many minutes. Bad passes, terrible shots and a big time lack of effort. I would rather see a lesser talented player on the court that hustles. When he's out there his body language reads that he doesn't give a shit.
Holtman is a good guy and a decent recruiter, but after watching the "all access" the other night, his in game coaching and motivating is not good.
I have been on of the folks who has been off the Holtmann band wagon for some time.
I do not expect national titles nor do I expect a B10 title every year.
That said, I do expect OSU to be far more often than not in the top of the B10 and to win a title here and there and maybe a couple Sweet 16 runs in a decade
To that end Holtmann has failed
Starting with the collapse down the stretch of his first year when he went 2-2 to finish the regular season, his record against B10 teams is 47-44 or barely .500 in his last 91 conference regular season games. Matta in his last 91 regular season conference games was 53-38, Won B10 regular season title, won a conference tourney title, went to a Final 4 and an Elite 8
Even in Matta's last 3 years as it started to fall apart he went 29-25 in conference or 4 games over .500 while Holtmann's in just 3 games over in his last 91 games.
He is not a terrible coach. But we are paying him what is equal to the 2nd highest contract in the conference to get 5th-8th place finishes
Ohio State is one of the biggest and wealthiest colleges, having a decent basketball team is an issue? Should not be in this position ever. Should be a top 15 program every year.
Let sensabaugh walk. You want to see a guy really struggle? Watch a guy like that try in his rookie season. The one caveat that trumps everything, though, is that he will be making a few million to struggle. There are very few team players left in college basketball like a Drew Timme or someone of that caliber. It’s instant gratification. It’s even more difficult now than when Matta was here. But that’s not to excuse Holtmann. He’s had more than enough time and it isn’t working. Cut bait while you still are in the competition
When telling the truth becomes a revolutionary concept, it’s wise to join the revolution
I've seen plenty of teams on the playground play better help defense. It's insane how many drives against OSU end up one on one. That is on the coaching staff, PERIOD!!!!!!!!!!! And by all means, never ever switch up your defense. Just continue to play M-T-M when they clearly can't.
Problem is Holtmann is not a great recruiter. Basketball recruiting at Ohio State is a tough sell. Come to Ohio State where you’ll always be in the football teams shadow. Also, most NIL money is going towards the football team. Given how tough it is, our fan’s expectations are very high. We’re not a basketball school and never will be. Thad Matta was the best recruiter we’ve ever seen. We’ll probably never have that level of a recruiter again. Thad was the exception.
Jake Diebler, however, is a very good recruiter. He bears a lot of the credit for bringing in the 2022 and 2023 classes, which are T10 classes and the best classes that OSU has landed since the Tate/Russell/KBD class (sorry, no, I am not going to count the Lyle/Harris/Mitchell/Grandstaff/Giddens class).
Half the problem with this team right now is confidence and not executing on offense with the same energy and purpose like they were earlier in the season. They've lost the buy-in because the losing has got to their heads. And Holtmann doesn't seem to know what to do or what buttons to push or what rotations to play to get them out of that funk.
I would not be opposed to a situation either this season or next season where Gene asks Holtmann to step down and then gives Diebler the interim coach role to see if he can muster up better energy and execution from the players that he convinced to come to Ohio State.
"Half the problem with this team right now is confidence and not executing on offense with the same energy and purpose like they were earlier in the season"
Part of the reason this supposed execution looked better earlier in the year was due to playing a bunch of mediocre OOC teams
Robert Morris 8-12, Charleston Sou 8-12, E Ill 7-13, Texas Tech 10-8, St Francis 7-11, Maine 6-12, Bama A&M 6-12
Yes the UC win looks pretty good and Texas Tech is about the same as OSU ie 10-8, But neither they nor the losses to UNC, Duke or SDSU are against teams currently ranked.
So we have a win over a decent but not great UC, a mediocre T Tech team, a decent NW team and a bad call win over Rutgers
You don't think football is more popular at Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, MSU, etc. as well?? There's a reason their stadiums are all 70k+
The only schools where basketball is the far and away spotlight are Kentucky, KU, Duke, UNC, and those that don't have a football team.
We don't need to out-recruit the blue bloods. We just need to out-recruit Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Purdue, etc.
With our athletic department budget, facilities, being one of the top athletic programs in the country, and being the prominent D1 basketball school in a state the size of Ohio (with only Cincinnati and Xavier offering any relevant competition), this should be a breeze.
Holtman and the players know the writing is on the wall. Holtman will just go through the motions so he can be fired and collect on the unpaid salary. The players will play with just enough pride to make some games interesting. I realize TheOSU is supposed to be a football school but there is no reason we shouldn't have a very competitive basketball team also.
Here's a name to keep an eye on, Dusty May currently at Florida Atlantic, 17-1, winners of 16 in a row and have the program in the 25 for the first time ever. Probably not ready for a B1G job but he ha taken a doormat to top of Conference USA.over the course of five years
When hiring a mid-major guy all the way up to the level of a program like OSU, I don't know, I think you need to see a little more proof of concept than, oh, hey, his team has beat a bunch of bad teams this season (and barely squeaked by several of those bad teams).
Not trying to look down on your idea, just expressing my own personal feelings of caution about making a hire like that. The list is endless of similar hires that power conference programs have tried to make that didn't work out at all. Heck, guys like John Groce and Archie Miller had pretty significant success to their names at Ohio U. and Dayton (much moreso than Dusty May has so far) and look how well those two worked out in the B1G at programs with huge AD and fanbase support.
So far it seems that Alabama struck gold with Nate Oats, but he had showed that he could lead Buffalo to some big wins (like @WVU and @Cuse) in the regular season as well as dominate the MAC and then notched a couple wins in the Big Dance two seasons in a row. And at Bama he's turned out to be a fantastic recruiter, something that is really difficult to project until you see the guy recruiting with those power conference school resources and name behind him.
With guys like Dusty May and Pat Kelsey, yeah, they have done some good things at the level that they are at (particularly Kelsey between what he did at Winthrop and now his current season at CoC), but it is a gamble. You don't know how well they will recruit, you don't know if their coaching and systems and roster management will cut it in a conference like the B1G, you haven't seen anything about how they could do in the Dance -- it's just a very big risk. That said, if things keep going the way they are with Holtmann right now, then we're getting closer to closer to the point of having not much to lose in trying something different.
We are already past that point. Bring in any of them, it will be an upgrade. Just watch the Minny game again to see what a clueless cheerleader Holtmann is. Run his ass out now!
Or we could hire someone who would actually be a good fit and help this program take the next step.
I am sorry, I just have no tolerance for the "hire anyone" rhetoric. I would prefer this program not get caught in a cycle where we are all bitterly complaining about the state of things every season.
Fire the guy to get the right guy, not just so you can keep firing guys every few years.
I thought I was pretty clear when I said that May was a guy to keep an eye on but probably not ready for a B1G job. I agree that he needs to build his resume against with more games against higher quality opposition and sustain it. One problem that a team like FAU runs into, in past years they have been a easy win paycheck game, now he is building a good team and the better teams may not want to schedule them and risk a close game or loss at home.
We don't see Holtmann scheduling tough non conference games at home with any regularity, the better opponents come in as part of a conference vs conference competition.
You were clear, I guess I was just commenting in terms of time frame. How much longer will we keep Holtmann vs. how much more can May do to prove himself before we theoretically fire Holtmann?
Maybe May is the guy we hire after we fire the guy who replaces Holtmann and stinks it up for a couple years.
Toward the end of the game are point guard brought the ball down the floor gave it Justin Sueing and Then went to corner opposite side to stand . Naturally we turned the ball over I will never understand what we are doing on offense . Even we lose a recurring class you have to pull the trigger on this and make a change.
A real gut check for sure, we'll see if the team can get fired up and play with more intensity, pride and passion the rest of the season.
Coaching is a very "precarious" career, you can be a good human being and have good X's and O's knowledge, good success at one point in your career, but things may just not work out for one reason or another.
I'd love Gene Smith to come out and proclaim "we are going to go full bore on being a top basketball program" and make facility, infrastructure, and sadly, coaching changes to bear that out. But, right now he's struggling to get enough NIL money in reserve to keep the football program at elite levels, there is no easy answer.
Go bucks and hope everyone has a great day.
The will to win is not as important as the will to prepare to win. -- Woody Hayes
Holtmann is absolutely clueless. In the Columbus Dispatch today, he was asked why Sensabaugh was on the floor when he picked up his 5th foul.
“We just needed his offense out there,” Holtmann said when asked why he kept Sensabaugh in the game there. “That was (the reason).”
How stupid can you be? It's an offense/defense situation. You're fouling on first touch. The man continues to make dumb decisions but never owns it. Please fire him!
I watched the 2nd half of our game vs. Nebraska. Buckeyes were bad, really bad. We actually had a player (Zed Key) run into our point guard and cause a turnover. Our fundamentals were pathetic. Players can’t dribble with their off-hand. We throw away the ball. Run into each other. Jeez.
I don’t know very much about basketball. But OMG we’re bad. Time to watch the women play. They’re pretty good.
I quit caring / paying attention ten plus years ago when the Lighty and Diebler team moved on. That’s the last bunch that played hard and played sound. Now I just accept that we are a football school. I don’t have the bandwidth in my advancing years to worry about everything. Football and Cleveland Guardians is enough. I gave up watching basketball and almost all the NFL and every other college football except the Buckeyes. It’s been much better these last ten or more years.
Holtmann is in a bind here, and what he does probably depends a lot on what conversations Gene Smith is having with him behind the scenes. The ceiling for this team is probably squeaking into the NCAA tourney and losing in the first round vs maybe winning a close one and losing the second game. If Gene has assured him he’ll be around next year no matter what happens, but then results matter next year, he’d be better off playing the young guys and letting them take their lumps this year, especially since Sueing and Likekele are done next year anyway (I think). If players like Gayle and Okpara don’t get meaningful minutes down the stretch, I could see one or both of them leaving after the season and then we are back in the same boat of trying to bring in transfers (that he doesn’t play or don’t pan out) or relying on the freshman class again. And we all know how that works out. If, on the other hand, Gene has told him this year’s finish matters, I could see him riding the veterans (and Sensabaugh) to try and salvage the season and next year be damned.
To me Thornton is the key to how the balance of the season plays out. His game has fallen the fastest of anyone on the team, could it be injuries that he is trying to play through, hit the freshman wall or teams have him figured out by now, I have a feeling it is a combination of all three. Sensabaugh is going to shoot, he is going to try and create his own offense, he is also the second best rebounder by numbers. Him and Zed should be in double double range nearly every game. Sensabaugh can create his own shot from nearly anywhere on the court.
They also have to figure out how to keep McNeil involved, he has good range and can get a shot off by himself at times. The team still has a negative assist to turnover ratio in the conference. Team defense has to improve as well, far too many breakdowns by individuals leading to easy shots.
Three games in a row shooting under 38% won't win you many games either.
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It's time to hit the panic button on the future of the program, not just this season. Holtmann has to go before he sets us back 5yrs.
“Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” - Will Rogers
Dennis Gates first year head coach at Missouri (my wife is an alum) is an example of how a coach/leader can potentially hold a program back. They are 14-4 and middle top of SEC standings and have played really good basketball pretty much all season. He has mostly all Cuonzo Martins players and they look like a different group than just one year ago. What does that tell you? Coach Martin just wasn’t working. They were 12-21 last season. So a change was made and their culture seems really strong in a matter of 10 months. It can be done does not have to set us back 5 years. It’s a shame that we extended coach H, I felt that was premature but what do I know?
Year 1 can be deceptive. Holtman elevated Matta's boys in his first year....now look at us.
Comparing Coach Holtmann to Cuonzo Martin. Smh. Cuonzo went 12-21 at Missouri last yr, meanwhile Holtmann has won 20+ games EVERY SINGLE YEAR at OSU.
Holtmann has NEVER missed the NCAA Tournament, and NEVER won less than 20 games during his OSU tenure… yet we have people comparing him to a bottom-dwelling coach who finished dead last in the SEC last year. Lol.
It’s takes like this that make no sense, but pass for common logic on this site. Morons leading the charge & getting cheered on by other morons. Plz downvote & flame this post, I take criticism from fools as a compliment.
That means he's had a top 40ish program year over year. Is that the goal? Typically 6-8 Big Ten teams make the dance. Finishing just above average (12-8) in the Big Ten is enough to qualify for the dance most years.
For the record I am A-OK with missing the tournament every few years if we make Sweet 16 runs the other years. Consistent mediocrity does nothing.
That means he went .500 against DI Major programs. Is that the goal? .500 basketball?
I'd sure hope 20 wins and a middle of the pack Big Ten season is NOT the goal.
The football equivalent to these goals would be consistently finishing 7-5 and touting bowl eligibility year over year as an accomplishment.
He's like the High School Basketball Coach that goes 14-6 every year, third in his conference and wins the sectional championship. Meh!
He won't be winning 20 games this year or making the dance, is it acceptable to wonder at that point?
Sani
20 win seasons in large part to beating all the cupcakes. Holtmann seems to be a quality person but is in over his head and should be relieved of his position. He is paid very nicely and is producing very sub par product. OSU is a sports entertainment product and Holtmann is the ceo. His failures are obvious with a long track record. Calling people morons because they can no longer support his leadership is your brand of moronic.
So you’re the guy who downvotes any honest criticism of Holtmann lol
he hasn’t won anything in the big ten or march in 6 years. Let it go. It’s over
under Thad
from 2004 to 2017
Four Big 10 Championships
Five Big Ten tournament titles
two Final Four appearances (2007 and 2012),
and the 2008 NIT Championship
under Holtmann
…..,……….
…..,……….
…..,……….
…..,……….
…..,……….
Funny how you have 12 downvotes and 4 upvotes. Good to see 11 other people think your response to my post is negative. I’m not sure why you feel the need to be rude, I’d hate to see how you treat people daily if this is how you like to respond to a stranger who simply posted an opinion. Perhaps being a little nicer could help you be happier in life.
Maryland provided the smoke that something was wrong.
Minnesota made it obvious the house was on fire.
Nebraska just exposed this as an inferno.
This isn’t new. Holtmann has lost to Big Ten bottom dwellers that fail to win 15 games at a rate of 3 per season. Year 1 was the exception. Sure his teams can play with a top 10 team but they can lose to a last place team as well. Ultimately that means a Big Ten title is never going to be a reality under him…which is sad bc we led the conference with 22 when he arrived.
Time to turn the page and start the next chapter in OSU basketball immediately
I’ve tried to stay supportive of Holtmann as long as I can. I’ve met him and he’s a great guy, I just don’t think he’s fit to run this program anymore
I think he's a quality individual. But Ohio State needs a skilled basketball coach that gets the most out of his players. I have seen nothing over the last few years that suggests Holtmann was the right guy. Giving him an extension was one of the worst moves Gene Smith has made in his career.
Agree. And Gene gets way too much unwarranted hate, but that was a bad move
agree but that means we need to find a young coach and take a chance on him because no successful / established coach is going to come in here. need a young assistant coach out of a successful program who can relate to the players and has an idea of what it takes to build a championship program. we have not won a national championship since 1960 and have struggled since Thad Matta left. Time to move on from Holtman.
Big B
If you look at where the last 3 coaches were in years 3-4 ish of their respective careers and yes I’m even including Randy Ayers even though he was a dumpster fire at the end, all 3 of them were ahead of where Holtmann is. The man seems like as solid of an individual as it gets but it just doesn’t seem to be working. He belongs at a missouri valley school. It just is what it is. He’s not a big ten level coach
I’m assuming the DVs are from folks who forget that Holtmann wasn’t our first choice and we couldn’t even get Greg McDermott here.
Hire Aaron Craft! I don’t care if he’s never coached he’ll win!
Because I couldn't go for three
I'm sure sure is a great 'guy' but. He has proven he is good enough (or bad enough) to lose every close game OHIO STATE is in! Sad state of affairs IMHO...
GO BUCKEYES!
1-2 sucks!
(Angry rant)
Hmm
Holtmann is a loser. I don't like to be associated with losers. He never seemed to be an Ohio State guy. I admit I can't explain what that means, but pay the guy to move on. Please.
For years, any criticism of Holtmann was met with downvotes and insults. It didn’t even have to be mean..you could simply point out that the man had underperformed with the talent on the roster and you’d be public enemy #1 and told you didn’t understand basketball or weren’t a real fan.
This is the result of having such a mixture of expectations for the program. Some people are happy to finish 7th in the Big 10, while others expect a championship every year. No one could define how successful he was until now when it’s blatant the man is failing.
I like Holtmann as a person. Got to meet him and he was really nice. But his performance is not what OSU should be expecting from its basketball program.
I took on those 'rose colored glasses' fans that attacked anyone that pointed out deficiencies in the program. Those 'rose colored glasses' are 'Settlers' & are still around. Maybe they get their wish & a turnaround occurs but I doubt it. At least, they should remain silent for now.
I think we are all starting to realize that Holtmann just isn’t it but I’m also now thinking this roster just isn’t nearly as good as we thought it was. These guys can’t even make a god damn layup.
The “why” doesn’t really matter to me anymore, it’s year 6 and the entirety of this program right now is flat out embarrassing. I don’t care if it’s really the players who suck not the coaches because who recruited these guys? Exactly.
I feel bad for the 17 people who bought tickets to the Iowa game this Saturday. I feel bad for all of us who follow this program
"We didn't play with enough force tonight"
I still like our players. But we have a coach who seems like he should be good at coaching a div 2 or 3 team. But he has no idea how to coach with nba quality guys. He’s had them before and failed this is just the latest edition.
Ohio State is looking like a “Women’s Basketball School”.
Easy now.
Well female athletes can make more than the men in NIL.
Get the collective on that!
These men don’t deserve a stick of bubble gum for the results they’ve never produced
Not just basketball. To be fair though there are other men's sports that are doing well. Only basketball is really stinking it up.
I don't buy one goddam drop of gas in the state of Michigan!
Unless this team wins ten games in a row, there is ZERO chance at a tournament berth. What's our best win? Rutgers? A blown double digit lead against UNC? Holtmann isn't the guy and it's time to move on. Six years in and we've never even gotten within shouting distance of a Sweet 16 or a B1G title. This should not be acceptable at Ohio State, especially given Holtmann's alleged recruiting prowess.
We can't stop here; this is bat country...
This is looking so similar to the end of the Matta era. The obvious difference is that Matta made deep tournament runs and won multiple Big Ten titles. Holtmann's only accomplishments are wasting elite talents like Branham, Liddel and Washington, and losing a Big Ten tournament championship game. After 6 years, that's nowhere close to good enough.
We can't stop here; this is bat country...
Nah. By the end of the Matta era we had a shortage of scholarship players. Guys quitting etc,,, This year is Holtman’s best group of recruits imo. Seems like they are sticking together too.
Matta had the ability to be a very good coach. Holtman hasn’t shown anything close to Matta’s best years.
How many scholarship players did we bring back from last year? Two?
I believe this year’s incoming frosh were a top 5 recruiting class.? All of which says the imbalance between recruiting and results is Holtmann-Esque. And my other point was At least Matta had good years and an inexplicable crash. CH doesn’t yet have a peak to crash from.
This feels like when they SHOULD have moved on from Matta. He got an extra few years and completely screwed the program. He couldn’t leave his office to recruit and couldn’t get 12 scholarship players on the roster
I wonder if Holtmann views transfers the same as Day does. Will the player "fit"? It seems like there is a lack of chemistry, much more so than lack of talent. Just wondering.
I hit the panic button two years ago after the loss to Oral Roberts in the tourney, watching Holtmann team's now is like taking the business end to a one-sided contest of Roshambo. What's even more disappointing is this was a promising/talented team, but as mentioned in the article the January collapes are a problematic trend every year. Maybe instead of sending fraudulent/cryptic tweets; Brian Schottenstein should put his money where his mouth is and ask Geno how much money will it take to send Holtmann packing
Silver Bullets
Just watching a Holtmann coached team is torture. They are never in control of the game no matter how big of a lead they have and you just wait for the other team's run that is going to put them in the lead. Watching a Holtmann coached team is a task that is Sisyphussian at best!
UNC loss took something out of this team but the Purdue loss crippled them. Haven’t looked the same since that game. Maryland, Minnesota and Nebraska are all bad losses where osu showed very little effort and energy.
This roster has talent but Sueing to me is a big issue why they are struggling. Can’t make shots. Doesn’t defend. Turns it over at a high rate. But he continues to get heavy minutes. Team looks defeated and cooked.
The all access thing really proved how bad holtmann is as an in game coach. Unfortunately don’t see things getting turned around anytime soon.
Stay gold, Ponyboy.
It's funny because people here actually said Sueing's absence was the reason last year's team struggled.
Let me never fall into the vulgar mistake of dreaming that I am persecuted whenever I am contradicted.
I really wonder if Holtmann is wedded to Sueing because he did rehab and come back for 1 more year? Is he rewarding his loyalty even if his play is kind of sucking at this point.
*WASH*RINSE*REPEAT
Third game in a row shooting under 38%, is that on the coach, the players, the system, I'll venture it is a combination of all three. The system doesn't push tempo so trying to create space and trying to get the defense out of position. Nope, let's walk the ball up the court all night and run the same sets all night long. The Nebraska center gets in foul trouble yet they can't modify the offense to exploit that mismatch. Far too many defensive breakdowns yet again.
Another slow start on the offensive end with pathetic shooting, maybe they need to revisit the pregame routine, change up something because what they are doing now is not getting them off to a good start. In some respects they have been lucky that they are not playing against good teams or they would be run out of the building in the first ten minutes.
Sensabaugh misses his first eight shots but keeps shooting and leads the team in scoring yet again. Thornton is in a severe shooting slump for the entire month, the best foul shooter on the team misses half his foul shots. The so called team leader Justice Sueing has a hideous game, 1-6 shooting for 4 points, credited with four turnovers but actually had more than that. His pass to the wing was at the teammates feet and fumbled away yet the other player gets credited with the turnover. He had two bad offensive fouls as well on drives near the foul line. At least he did make a nice pass to Sensabaugh in the corner for a made three pointer late in the game.
Holden looked a little better, actually getting to the foul line however he also had his share op lapses. Okpara has done nothing to speak of since the Purdue game. Likekele, Gayle and Brown are basically on the court so there are five guys on the floor at the same time.
I see no emotion on this team, just going through the motions, watching Sensabaugh trying to do it all on one end of the court.
Another game that is in doubt with less than a minute to play and they can't close it out, odd game management, why was Sensabaugh on the court in a must foul situation, letting 17 seconds drain off the clock then fouling, having a lineup with Brown playing center while both Key and Okpara are on the bench, still playing the same basic defense, not using your athletes to create pressure and tempo.
Don't pick on Okpara, You're right he's done nothing since the Purdue game (31mins), but not his fault, it is because coach has played him only 12, 7, 15 and 5 minutes since that game.
Any time you give a man something he doesn't earn, you cheapen him. Our kids earn what they get, and that includes respect - Woody Hayes
That’s mind-blowing
Okpara was getting schooled by glasses guy last night.
I miss him in my rec league team...also the Asian dude was awesome on trivia night.
Justice delayed is justice denied....#FTP
He played 5 minutes last night. Patrick Ewing could get schooled if he only played 5 minutes. It's how you respond to your opponents strength that differentiate the good ones from the bad. We know how he did againt Zach Edy after gaining some experience. there's only one way to get experience, and 5 minutes a game is not going to do it.
Any time you give a man something he doesn't earn, you cheapen him. Our kids earn what they get, and that includes respect - Woody Hayes
My concerns in order:
1. There are no offensive sets and no strategy. A good offense should be getting a guy like McNeil who is a great shooter when open open looks. That offense should be finding Sensabaugh the ball in position to make a play. That offense should adjust to personnel changes (e.g. a center being out). And most importantly that offense should have sets with screens to get open looks in the last couple minutes when te game is on the line.
2. These lineups are baffling. At Rutgers, our NBA round 1 talent was riding the pine. OSU failed to score for those 5 minutes. Sueing brings nothing positive yet Holtmann rewards him with minutes like he’s the best player on the team. Okpara needs more time at Zed’s expense. The reality is BOTH are projects, not just Okpara.
3. Who motivates this team?? If not the head coach that needs to be an energetic assistant coach. That all access game made it obvious it’s not Holtmann but the rest of the staff was quiet as well. It’s painfully obvious they start games flat and don’t come out with a string mindset against inferior opponents.
4. Holtmann has never stated his expectations (calling it a must win game, adamantly saying “we had no business losing to that team”, or saying we need to win this next game. He just kind of floats along, praising piss poor teams for their play against us and saying we need to do better. It’s fair to say “we’re learning” in November. But conference play is time to shit or get off the pot. This is what you spend the off-season for. Yet Holtmann acts like the season entails 3 months of learning opportunity scrimmages.
I love the game but am far from a basketball coach. These flaws are just so blatantly obvious that even a novice like me can see them.
This is what jumps off the screen to me when watching OSU BB. I'm not a basketball expert. I didn't play it at a high level -- much less one remotely similar to the B1G. So I know I don't have a trained eye when it comes to this stuff (the opposite is true for me when it comes to football).
But the OSU offense just seems so lethargic and random to me. Really looks like a bunch of 40-something guys who get together to play at the Y every Tuesday. Any off-ball motion is just extremely vanilla. That's been a noticeable contrast to me against some of OSU's opponents this year -- I want to say it was the UNC game where just a simple pick and motion gave them like 20 uncontested points in the paint. But then you see the advanced analytics guys (who are usually right) consistently put OSU's offensive figures way above what I'd expect. Maybe someone with more knowledge can explain what's going on there.
As for Holtmann, I doubt he's going anywhere this year because of the recent extension and Gene's apparent love for the guy. But, in my perfect world, he's coaching for his job the rest of the season. I get that this year and next year are great recruiting classes. But I'd really, really like to see some growth by the team down the stretch.
We'll see...
I don't think having Sensabaugh being the 6th man is necessarily a bad thing - there have been notable 6th men all across the NBA - Lou Williams, Manu Ginobili, etc. My issue is more that we're still figuring out what the starting lineup is and it's almost Feb.
I keep checking to see if there is an 11W post stating that "Holtmann has been relieved of his duty". Seems like the proper move regarding the basketball program. It didn't work out so it's time to move on.
Robert M
Holtmann got a fair shake, it just hasnt worked out. Unless he leads the bucks on a tear to close out this season it's time to move on.
No unless…
Its simply time to move on.
If this team were to suddenly go on an 8-2 run, I’d be even more upset that we squandered games against Minnesota, Maryland, and Nebraska, knowing the pieces to compete for a Big Ten title were in place.
Holtmann has shown for 5 straight years that he is incapable of navigating a Big Ten season without giving up 3 games a year to the Big Ten bottom feeders.
Good points. Makes me wonder - suppose we finish strong and do well in the B1G tournament, maybe even March Madness - will Gene Smith say let's give him another year?
If we struggle at all, it's a much easier decision.
He recruits the players.
The offense has no flow.
The players don’t play to their strengths, whatever they are.
Whether he lasts the season I don’t know but you can see them stall and you know they’re not getting out of it. Sign of a good coach is getting ONE bucket out of a timeout. He never does.
The Big10 is the deepest BB conference in the country and OSU is no blue blood...few people care anyway.
Bodene
Buckeyes tied for Fifth All-Time with 10 Final Four appearances.
sounds like a comment on mgoblog. last national championship was 1960. no one looks at this program as a blue blood program anymore. cant hang your reputation on shit that happened 60+ years ago. been over a decade since they made it out of the second round of the NCAA tournament. big time recruits are not looking to come here. will need to build a roster with mid level players that will stay at least 3 years so you can build chemistry which will allow this team to compete every 3-4 years.
Big B
I don't think that pointing out that Ohio State is "no blue blood" is the thing that interests me at this point. I ask the question, "why?" Why aren't we relevant? Matta had us relevant. We are now not. With OSU's resources, why couldn't it be a blue blood?
You Got Barbecue Back There!?!?!?!
Final Fours in 1999, 2007, 2012.
Of our 22 Big Ten titles, we won in 2000, 2002, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2011, 2012.
That’s not exactly ancient history, Socrates.
He’s 12 years old , it is for him
last relevant success was over a decade ago and for a program that has been around for 124 seasons that is not good. and this is with a shitty BIG basketball conference. dont try to shine up a turd son.
Big B
I’m sorry, but that is just defeatist bullshit. Matta had no problem attracting the bluest of blue chip recruits here during his peak, and the program was nationally relevant…at the same time that we also had a great football program, nonetheless. To act like this program’s ceiling is basically Wisconsin is a bunch of crap. It can be done here, and has been done here relatively recently- it just requires the right coach and a bigger investment in the program.
This.........^^^^^^.............x10............this dumpster fire should be pinned on ol' Geno Smith...right where it belongs.....This team has good talent and went toe to toe with some dam good teams.....I think that PURDUE loss started the snowball effect and they can't seem to get it out of their heads......Time to snap out of it guys.........you're playing WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYY too tight..........Loosen up and have some fun..........and please take better care of the rock........and Brice, you're not Meadowlark......what's with the BS dribbling anyway......?.......
This one is for me tho..............
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh....
Saban on a cart eating cold pizza
And he gets credit for our football tens and the NUMEROUS teams that are ranked in other sports? That’s just hating “Geno”
So sick of hearing this. The Big Ten is trash and its teams have consistently under-performed in the tournament for years, and the conference is especially down this year with a bunch of bad teams, a few that are just "okay' and then Purdue. You can't just say the Big Ten is "deep" when OSU is losing to Minnesota and Nebraska who are objectively awful teams.
OSU also lost to every decent team they played out of conference, and "decent" is an overstatement because SDSU, Duke and UNC are no longer in the top 25. That "big" win over Texas Tech is now a win over a 10-8 team that has lost 6 straight.
Truer words were never spoken--IIRC, the B1G conference hasn't won a title since Sparty in 2000, right? 'nuff said
Faster, tougher, and more violent...
The concern to me was the talk on one of the game threads that no player was listening to what Holtmann was telling them to do and that he has lost the team. If that is true, he needs to go.
Ohio State botched this whole situation up from the time they fired Thad to the hiring of guy in Holtman who never won ANYTHING of note while at Butler. Someone mentioned if OSU doesn't get rid of Holtman the program could be set 5 year. Well I got news for you the program has already been set 5 year's. This was bad hire from jump and most if not all the blame belongs on Gene Smith who btw gave Holtman an extension, thus doubling down his idiotic decision.
GO BUCKS
I’m not panicking.
Because Ive set my expectations properly, I realized after the Oral Roberts game, Holtmann’s ceiling is the 1st weekend of the NCAAs.
Sadly the floor could be the basement of the Big Ten. Have not seen that since the last Randy Ayers days.
I don't buy one goddam drop of gas in the state of Michigan!
Time to move on and try to salvage the recruiting class he had coming in next year. Not sure what happened, but they have looked like crap ever since the Purdue loss.
Just a thought: maybe Holtman's early success was with the assistants he brought with him. Now that they are gone to other endeavors, his basketball teams' lack of success is on him. Great assistants can make any head coach look good.
libera
Speaking with one of Holtmann's former players, the first thing the kid said was that Holtmann relies on his assistant coaches ALOT. So your theory is most likely 100% spot on.
Has Holtmann ever watched his own team play on TV? I ask, because I can't sit through yet another lackluster performance with no adjustments, terrible decisions and sloppy play. I'd rather get a root canal.
How can someone who is supposed to be a decent coach keep putting up the same mediocre product year after year? He keeps recruiting better players that never develop.
I've moved on. I hope OSU does the same.
Alcohol will not solve any of your problems, but then again, neither will milk or water.
Sueing isn't the same player after the injury and the team doesn't hustle or seem to have an plan at either end of the court. Zed's regressed and too many pieces are just out of whack. Th. comparison to the Ayers years is the closest I've seen. This team has no juice.
Wish Sueing was our 6th tight end and not playing basketball anymore
Hey guy in charge. Do you know your team ? Do you have any explanation ? Do you have a clue about your next steps ? Questions are constantly there. Any answers ?
Watched last night sure was some disjointed offense.
Mark May is a mental midget
It's amazing how things change. Thad Matta brought The Buckeye Nuthouse (and the general fanbase) to epic fever pitch atmosphere.
Holtmann? Cheerleading in a suit, and a straight jacket for the team and fanbase.
I guess we're all here for the wake.
Billy Donovan at Florida took a total freshman team to a national championship. Same year Florida beat us in football championship game. So maturity is not always a player it’s coaching and recruiting reliable talent. Of course early NBA was not as easy then and no transfer portals to contend with either.
Rich1977
What? No he didn't. The UF team was famous for having all of it's experienced players return for another run at a championship. They were all juniors and seniors. OSU was the team with all the freshman.
What are you going to know tomorrow about Chris Holtmann that you don’t already know today? If you change nothing nothing’s going to change. Fire the clown now.
Try not to suck
This reminds me of how I felt in John Cooper's final game, the disastrous Outback Bowl game, when an unranked South Carolina team absolutely dominated the Buckeyes 24-7. As the debacle unwound and OSU players started getting hit with 15 yard unsportsmanlike penalties, I was jumping up and down cheering, knowing OSU now HAD to fire him and find a suitable replacement.
I will never root against a Buckeye team, but for the future of this program, they may need to bottom out even more to force Gene to make the change.
"I will never root against a Buckeye team, but for the future of this program, they may need to bottom out even more to force Gene to make the change."
I say fire Holtmann AND Gene Smith......he's the one most responsible for this dumpster fire..........
Saban on a cart eating cold pizza
FIRE "Big Play" Knowles!
OH-IO Goodbye Columbus.
Because the Men's Hoops team lost to Nebraska? LOL
Just curious, have you researched how many new DC Hires took a team from #54 to #14 Total Defense in just 1 season? (I mean that was all scheming because it wasnt his players)
I agree with you Im not satisfied either, but I do see tangible progress.
Faster, tougher, and more violent...
Here’s one thing I love to hate about 11w… someone in the forums starts a thread about firing Holtman and everyone down votes them into oblivion. But if a 11wer staffer writes about how bad of a coach he is and calls for his job everyone in the comments is all like “yes!” “Here here!” Pretty funny.
Everyone do yourselves a favor, stop paying attention to the basketball team and give your time and ticket money and merch money to coach Tom Ryan and the wrestling Buckeyes. Your investment will be rewarded in a much more complete manner.
The Excellence of Execution, the Best there is, the Best there was, the Best there ever will be!
Might want to recheck the temperature in the forums. After the Minny game, someone started the Fire Chris Holtmann Tonight thread. I mean that is as drastic as you get, and that was before the next 2 losses! And last I saw, it was +20 something upvotes.
Tomorrow the wrestle bucks will be available to watch on big 10 plus at 7pm against Maryland!
Because I couldn't go for three
You're damn right, and the match-up with Penn State is two weeks from tomorrow! Let's go!
The Excellence of Execution, the Best there is, the Best there was, the Best there ever will be!
Crazy thing to me is...in some weird alternate universe, the Bucks should at worse be 15-3 and around the top 10. Never should have blown those late game leads against UNC and Purdue. That's on coaching at the end of those games. Then, there's no excuse to lose to all 3 of the bottom feeders of the league. Only game that was borderline acceptable was @Rutgers, and even that was a winnable game in regulation.
When the margins are this close to being what they are (10-8) and what they could be (15-3/16-2). That's where coaching matters, and it just isn't happening.
Agree 100 percent. Good coaching can get you a few easy baskets that propel you to a win late in a close game.
What is discouraging is how fundamentally bad (especially in late game situations in close games) this team is. Very poor offensive sets and execution, not a lot of defense, missed free throws and not getting rebounds.
Guys just seem to stand around like they don’t want to be there.
Stay gold, Ponyboy.
NO leaders on this team from the coach to the players. Coach is nothing but a cheerleader and the Captains are just lazy
This team exposes the lie in every fan talking about a new roster who says things like "I know we gonna take some lumps" or "I don't care about wins and losses" but "I just want to see a team who competes."
Well, this team competes. It has either blown out every cupcake or been right in it against every power conference team it has played. And it has lost almost every single close game. Pretty frustrating and miserable.
Holtmann's resume and track record up to this point is a lot more solid than some of our fanbase cares to recognize, but he seems lost with this team at this point. And unfortunately losing too much in basketball affects the mentality of your players and eventually even can infect your culture. Once guys stop believing a coach can help them win, they stop executing.
Bad situation for the program and its future right now.
the empire never ended
This offense is a hot mess. If Brice isn't shooting, they have no clue. It's like all of a sudden every team figured out that they need to switch every screen and stop the penetration, and the offense just stalls. There are very few easy baskets or plays that get open looks or guys freed up to draw a defender and dish under the basket.
At this point, I would take Sean Miller in a heartbeat. You gotta think he would love to get back to a bigger stage. Watched X last night and even though they lost, the offense and energy were impressive.
The road to getting fired is paved with five-game losing streaks. I'm a Holtmann fan, but it just can't be ignored. The team still has everything in front of them, but if they can't turn the corner, it's probably a sign that this just isn't working.
What bothers me the most is losing every game that is close at the end. Both the defense and offense struggle at the end of close games. While I like a lot about Sueing, he seems always make the key turnover, bad play at end of games. Matta was let go because he lost his ability to recruit. Holtman is just the opposite. He seems to be able to recruit (except for big guys), but his game day coaching is lacking.
buckjunky
As Ive seen all year, we will be ahead at the half, we have better athletes. Then the other schools better coaches adjust and win the game.
Basically any game in last couple of years, most other teams coaches would be able to take our players and beat Holtmann and his team with them.
Win, lose, or draw, your hatred towards Holtmann is WELL documented.
I don't understand why he does not give Roddy Gayle more playing time. He needs to get more of Sueing's playing time because he's is making a lot of mistakes when he got the ball in his hands and plays lazy defense. Gayle came into the game hit a Jumper and a minute later he's back on the bench. I wish they would give some of the other players a shot (Etzler or Hardman), Hardman has a sweet stroke. Teams know that OSU only has two shooters (McNeil and Sensabaugh) cover those two and make the other guys take the shot, they are easy to defend. Tanner Holden played well last night with the minutes he got and Sueing hardly ever comes out the game. How can he not see that.
HB
Sueing pisses me off, that kids out there acting like he is playing at the YMCA, way too casual.
This is the worst team in the conference. They would be completely screwed without Sensabaugh, who will probably be off the NBA after this season. 6 years in, it is time to cut bait and bring in a new coach.
To me the problem is Sueing is not a leader as the elder statesman of the team. He’s a nice complementary player. We are counting on Freshmen to be the leaders and that’s hit a wall
And our Xs and Os and not getting the job done either
No movement on offense resulting in contested shots. Lackluster defense. Poor passing. Talent problem or laziness (or both). Poor coaching = unmotivated team. Holtman needs to go, Now!
I've watched bits of the last few games, one observation is Sueing is playing too many minutes. Bad passes, terrible shots and a big time lack of effort. I would rather see a lesser talented player on the court that hustles. When he's out there his body language reads that he doesn't give a shit.
Holtman is a good guy and a decent recruiter, but after watching the "all access" the other night, his in game coaching and motivating is not good.
I have been on of the folks who has been off the Holtmann band wagon for some time.
I do not expect national titles nor do I expect a B10 title every year.
That said, I do expect OSU to be far more often than not in the top of the B10 and to win a title here and there and maybe a couple Sweet 16 runs in a decade
To that end Holtmann has failed
Starting with the collapse down the stretch of his first year when he went 2-2 to finish the regular season, his record against B10 teams is 47-44 or barely .500 in his last 91 conference regular season games. Matta in his last 91 regular season conference games was 53-38, Won B10 regular season title, won a conference tourney title, went to a Final 4 and an Elite 8
Even in Matta's last 3 years as it started to fall apart he went 29-25 in conference or 4 games over .500 while Holtmann's in just 3 games over in his last 91 games.
He is not a terrible coach. But we are paying him what is equal to the 2nd highest contract in the conference to get 5th-8th place finishes
Ohio State is one of the biggest and wealthiest colleges, having a decent basketball team is an issue? Should not be in this position ever. Should be a top 15 program every year.
What happens next year hen Sensabaugh goes to the NBA? Who scores?
You Got Barbecue Back There!?!?!?!
Casper the Ghost
“I just roke up” - Daniel Larson
Let sensabaugh walk. You want to see a guy really struggle? Watch a guy like that try in his rookie season. The one caveat that trumps everything, though, is that he will be making a few million to struggle. There are very few team players left in college basketball like a Drew Timme or someone of that caliber. It’s instant gratification. It’s even more difficult now than when Matta was here. But that’s not to excuse Holtmann. He’s had more than enough time and it isn’t working. Cut bait while you still are in the competition
When telling the truth becomes a revolutionary concept, it’s wise to join the revolution
I've seen plenty of teams on the playground play better help defense. It's insane how many drives against OSU end up one on one. That is on the coaching staff, PERIOD!!!!!!!!!!! And by all means, never ever switch up your defense. Just continue to play M-T-M when they clearly can't.
Problem is Holtmann is not a great recruiter. Basketball recruiting at Ohio State is a tough sell. Come to Ohio State where you’ll always be in the football teams shadow. Also, most NIL money is going towards the football team. Given how tough it is, our fan’s expectations are very high. We’re not a basketball school and never will be. Thad Matta was the best recruiter we’ve ever seen. We’ll probably never have that level of a recruiter again. Thad was the exception.
This defeatist attitude is disgusting
Jake Diebler, however, is a very good recruiter. He bears a lot of the credit for bringing in the 2022 and 2023 classes, which are T10 classes and the best classes that OSU has landed since the Tate/Russell/KBD class (sorry, no, I am not going to count the Lyle/Harris/Mitchell/Grandstaff/Giddens class).
Half the problem with this team right now is confidence and not executing on offense with the same energy and purpose like they were earlier in the season. They've lost the buy-in because the losing has got to their heads. And Holtmann doesn't seem to know what to do or what buttons to push or what rotations to play to get them out of that funk.
I would not be opposed to a situation either this season or next season where Gene asks Holtmann to step down and then gives Diebler the interim coach role to see if he can muster up better energy and execution from the players that he convinced to come to Ohio State.
the empire never ended
"Half the problem with this team right now is confidence and not executing on offense with the same energy and purpose like they were earlier in the season"
Part of the reason this supposed execution looked better earlier in the year was due to playing a bunch of mediocre OOC teams
Robert Morris 8-12, Charleston Sou 8-12, E Ill 7-13, Texas Tech 10-8, St Francis 7-11, Maine 6-12, Bama A&M 6-12
Yes the UC win looks pretty good and Texas Tech is about the same as OSU ie 10-8, But neither they nor the losses to UNC, Duke or SDSU are against teams currently ranked.
So we have a win over a decent but not great UC, a mediocre T Tech team, a decent NW team and a bad call win over Rutgers
Ridiculous.
You don't think football is more popular at Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, MSU, etc. as well?? There's a reason their stadiums are all 70k+
The only schools where basketball is the far and away spotlight are Kentucky, KU, Duke, UNC, and those that don't have a football team.
We don't need to out-recruit the blue bloods. We just need to out-recruit Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Purdue, etc.
With our athletic department budget, facilities, being one of the top athletic programs in the country, and being the prominent D1 basketball school in a state the size of Ohio (with only Cincinnati and Xavier offering any relevant competition), this should be a breeze.
Fritzie, I disagree. Alabama has a top 10 football team and currently a top 5 basketball team. No excuses why TOSU can't do the same.
After reading all of the above, let me conclude "its bad basketball"
TC
I just don't see what Gene Smith sees in Holtmann.
Knowledge isn't free, you have to pay attention
Holtman and the players know the writing is on the wall. Holtman will just go through the motions so he can be fired and collect on the unpaid salary. The players will play with just enough pride to make some games interesting. I realize TheOSU is supposed to be a football school but there is no reason we shouldn't have a very competitive basketball team also.
Don't push the panic button! The assistant coaches finally found Holtmann's basketball playbook!
Just play. Have fun. Enjoy the game. -- Michael Jordan
Wow one game away from being in last place.
HB
In due time my friend
Here's a name to keep an eye on, Dusty May currently at Florida Atlantic, 17-1, winners of 16 in a row and have the program in the 25 for the first time ever. Probably not ready for a B1G job but he ha taken a doormat to top of Conference USA.over the course of five years
https://www.palmbeachpost.com/story/sports/college/basketball/2023/01/13...
He got his start as a manager for Bobby Knight in his IU days, not a bad guy to have as an early mentor
When hiring a mid-major guy all the way up to the level of a program like OSU, I don't know, I think you need to see a little more proof of concept than, oh, hey, his team has beat a bunch of bad teams this season (and barely squeaked by several of those bad teams).
Not trying to look down on your idea, just expressing my own personal feelings of caution about making a hire like that. The list is endless of similar hires that power conference programs have tried to make that didn't work out at all. Heck, guys like John Groce and Archie Miller had pretty significant success to their names at Ohio U. and Dayton (much moreso than Dusty May has so far) and look how well those two worked out in the B1G at programs with huge AD and fanbase support.
So far it seems that Alabama struck gold with Nate Oats, but he had showed that he could lead Buffalo to some big wins (like @WVU and @Cuse) in the regular season as well as dominate the MAC and then notched a couple wins in the Big Dance two seasons in a row. And at Bama he's turned out to be a fantastic recruiter, something that is really difficult to project until you see the guy recruiting with those power conference school resources and name behind him.
With guys like Dusty May and Pat Kelsey, yeah, they have done some good things at the level that they are at (particularly Kelsey between what he did at Winthrop and now his current season at CoC), but it is a gamble. You don't know how well they will recruit, you don't know if their coaching and systems and roster management will cut it in a conference like the B1G, you haven't seen anything about how they could do in the Dance -- it's just a very big risk. That said, if things keep going the way they are with Holtmann right now, then we're getting closer to closer to the point of having not much to lose in trying something different.
the empire never ended
We are already past that point. Bring in any of them, it will be an upgrade. Just watch the Minny game again to see what a clueless cheerleader Holtmann is. Run his ass out now!
Or we could hire someone who would actually be a good fit and help this program take the next step.
I am sorry, I just have no tolerance for the "hire anyone" rhetoric. I would prefer this program not get caught in a cycle where we are all bitterly complaining about the state of things every season.
Fire the guy to get the right guy, not just so you can keep firing guys every few years.
the empire never ended
I thought I was pretty clear when I said that May was a guy to keep an eye on but probably not ready for a B1G job. I agree that he needs to build his resume against with more games against higher quality opposition and sustain it. One problem that a team like FAU runs into, in past years they have been a easy win paycheck game, now he is building a good team and the better teams may not want to schedule them and risk a close game or loss at home.
We don't see Holtmann scheduling tough non conference games at home with any regularity, the better opponents come in as part of a conference vs conference competition.
You were clear, I guess I was just commenting in terms of time frame. How much longer will we keep Holtmann vs. how much more can May do to prove himself before we theoretically fire Holtmann?
Maybe May is the guy we hire after we fire the guy who replaces Holtmann and stinks it up for a couple years.
the empire never ended
Toward the end of the game are point guard brought the ball down the floor gave it Justin Sueing and Then went to corner opposite side to stand . Naturally we turned the ball over I will never understand what we are doing on offense . Even we lose a recurring class you have to pull the trigger on this and make a change.
A real gut check for sure, we'll see if the team can get fired up and play with more intensity, pride and passion the rest of the season.
Coaching is a very "precarious" career, you can be a good human being and have good X's and O's knowledge, good success at one point in your career, but things may just not work out for one reason or another.
I'd love Gene Smith to come out and proclaim "we are going to go full bore on being a top basketball program" and make facility, infrastructure, and sadly, coaching changes to bear that out. But, right now he's struggling to get enough NIL money in reserve to keep the football program at elite levels, there is no easy answer.
Go bucks and hope everyone has a great day.
The will to win is not as important as the will to prepare to win. -- Woody Hayes
Holtmann is absolutely clueless. In the Columbus Dispatch today, he was asked why Sensabaugh was on the floor when he picked up his 5th foul.
“We just needed his offense out there,” Holtmann said when asked why he kept Sensabaugh in the game there. “That was (the reason).”
How stupid can you be? It's an offense/defense situation. You're fouling on first touch. The man continues to make dumb decisions but never owns it. Please fire him!
He’s not the brightest bulb in Division I coaching, I’ll say that
When telling the truth becomes a revolutionary concept, it’s wise to join the revolution
I watched the 2nd half of our game vs. Nebraska. Buckeyes were bad, really bad. We actually had a player (Zed Key) run into our point guard and cause a turnover. Our fundamentals were pathetic. Players can’t dribble with their off-hand. We throw away the ball. Run into each other. Jeez.
I don’t know very much about basketball. But OMG we’re bad. Time to watch the women play. They’re pretty good.
Class of ‘71
I’m not panicking.
Because I know OSU is a football school!
"Stats are for losers, touchdowns are for winners" -- Johnny Unitas
We haven’t won a big ten title or national title in years
What's hilarious to me is people are *just now* pressing the panic button LOOOOL
"The minute I think I'm getting mellow, I'm retiring. Who ever heard of a mellow winner?" - WWH
shoot for 2 forget 3, score 80 always and you win. !!! but we pass the ball well.
big buck!
I quit caring / paying attention ten plus years ago when the Lighty and Diebler team moved on. That’s the last bunch that played hard and played sound. Now I just accept that we are a football school. I don’t have the bandwidth in my advancing years to worry about everything. Football and Cleveland Guardians is enough. I gave up watching basketball and almost all the NFL and every other college football except the Buckeyes. It’s been much better these last ten or more years.
Michael
If it's panic button time, it's time to develop this talented freshman class. My starting five would be:
Key
McNeil
Sensabaugh
Gayle
Thornton
I'd rotate Okpara with Key and have a sub-rotation of some type with Brown, Holden, and Sueing--probably in that order off the bench.
Holtmann is in a bind here, and what he does probably depends a lot on what conversations Gene Smith is having with him behind the scenes. The ceiling for this team is probably squeaking into the NCAA tourney and losing in the first round vs maybe winning a close one and losing the second game. If Gene has assured him he’ll be around next year no matter what happens, but then results matter next year, he’d be better off playing the young guys and letting them take their lumps this year, especially since Sueing and Likekele are done next year anyway (I think). If players like Gayle and Okpara don’t get meaningful minutes down the stretch, I could see one or both of them leaving after the season and then we are back in the same boat of trying to bring in transfers (that he doesn’t play or don’t pan out) or relying on the freshman class again. And we all know how that works out. If, on the other hand, Gene has told him this year’s finish matters, I could see him riding the veterans (and Sensabaugh) to try and salvage the season and next year be damned.
OSUCOM 2008 Graduate. Go Bucks!
To me Thornton is the key to how the balance of the season plays out. His game has fallen the fastest of anyone on the team, could it be injuries that he is trying to play through, hit the freshman wall or teams have him figured out by now, I have a feeling it is a combination of all three. Sensabaugh is going to shoot, he is going to try and create his own offense, he is also the second best rebounder by numbers. Him and Zed should be in double double range nearly every game. Sensabaugh can create his own shot from nearly anywhere on the court.
They also have to figure out how to keep McNeil involved, he has good range and can get a shot off by himself at times. The team still has a negative assist to turnover ratio in the conference. Team defense has to improve as well, far too many breakdowns by individuals leading to easy shots.
Three games in a row shooting under 38% won't win you many games either.