Ohio State then-freshman forward Kaleb Wesson (34) looks to drive in the second half of the game against Penn State in the Big Ten tournament quarterfinals on Mar. 2 in Madison Square Garden. Ohio State lost 68-69. Credit: Jack Westerheide | Managing Editor for Design
Ryan Pedon pays attention to the national college basketball rankings.
The Ohio State men’s basketball assistant coach does not hide it from fellow coaches or his players either.
“I have a wall in my office that is dedicated to that, that is very important to me,” Pedon said. “I take meticulous care of this wall. The tape is perfectly placed on there, I’ve highlighted, I like to go back and update the highlights every now and again, just to keep it bright for where we we are being picked. I like players when they are in my office or swing by my office to be able to see that stuff.”
Ohio State sees the rankings. After the losses of forward Keita Bates-Diop and Jae’Sean Tate, Ohio State sees that it is not a part of the Top 25.
To head coach Chris Holtmann, this is no shock. He is upfront that his team has questions to answer, holes to fill going into the 2018-19 season.
“Our concerns last year were backcourt depth and how are we going to handle pressure and those kind of things,” Holtmann said. We had some some knowns there too with some guys that have produced. And we have some this year, but we have a lot of questions that we have to answer.”
Many of the questions revolve around filling the shoes that Tate and Bates-Diop left after last season, whether it’s offensively or, more importantly in Holtmann’s opinion, defensively.
Holtmann said Bates-Diop and Tate brought length and versatility defensively last year, something that Ohio State does not have in bulk heading into the head coach’s second season with the team.
However, Holtmann said he knows one thing for sure. He will have to rely on three returning players to set the tone for the team as a whole at the beginning of the season: senior guard C.J. Jackson, junior forward Andre Wesson and sophomore forward Kaleb Wesson.
For Jackson, taking more of a leadership role as the point guard of the offense, the biggest thing for Ohio State heading into the season is establishing consistent roles as early as possible.
“The biggest thing for guys is understanding their role and what they have to bring to the team every day,” Jackson said. “That’s a lot of what coach has emphasized since we started practice a month ago.”
On a roster of seven returning players, Holtmann highlighted Andre Wesson as one who has defined his role on the team early in preseason practice. The head coach said the older Wesson will have more consistent minutes this season, increasing his offensive output and staying in the regular rotation with his defensive versatility.
As a team, Ohio State may need to change its offensive identity, losing both of its leading rebounders from a season ago in Bates-Diop and Tate. Holtmann said he has a variety of players who have the ability to hit shots consistently from three-point range, including Kaleb Wesson.
That does not take away Ohio State’s need to play big in the post.
“We are still going to utilize our guys in there, particularly Kaleb and others that can score. Still going to continue to drive the ball,” Holtmann said. “But I do think our ability to make shots and shoot should prove over time to be good.”
Holtmann added there is a comfort level among the players that returned from last season’s team in the system he runs, saying the veteran players are thinking like they did last year and practicing in that mentality.
Andre Wesson said he knows what those players bring to the table. He said he hopes those players grow into their respective roles, growing from where they were last season.
However, there are still six players joining the roster for the 2018-19 season, including four freshmen.
In his first season as head coach, Holtmann brought in the No. 27 recruiting class in the nation, including two four-star recruits: guard Luther Muhammad and forward Jaedon LeDee.
Holtmann said he does not have an intention of redshirting Muhammad, LeDee, guard Duane Washington and forward Justin Ahrens this season, but he has not decided that for sure.
The freshmen may be the majority of the new players on the roster, but one new member in particular may have to spend less time adjusting to Ohio State and step up to be a leader.
Taking the role Andrew Dakich had in the rotation last season, redshirt senior guard Keyshawn Woods is expected to be that veteran presence in the locker room. Averaging 11.9 points and shooting 43.9 percent from the field last season for Wake Forest, Woods, according to Holtmann, has shown in practice he can perform at a high level.
With the combination of the newcomers and the veterans from last season, Andre Wesson said he is excited to see what can come from a team like this.
“We feel like we have a lot of pieces, a lot of versatile pieces that can play a lot of different positions, guard a lot of different positions,” Andre Wesson said. “So we are just excited to see what we can do this year.”
Holtmann has voiced his excitement as well. But also said he’s anxious.
Because he has seen the rankings as well. He has not seen his team in the Top 25. He has seen the Buckeyes finish near the bottom of the Big Ten in many preseason polls.
Holtmann, like Pedon, does not bring this up publicly to his team. But it’s something that drives him.
“Any time you have a team that is picked lower in their league, typically there are a lot of questions because maybe, there are not enough guys that have done it for extended periods,” Holtmann said. “We certainly have some guys that have shown the ability to make major contributions on a good team.”
Ohio State will begin the season with an exhibition game against UNC Pembroke at home at 7 p.m. Thursday.
