What Ohio State men's basketball must improve before starting Big Ten play

Ohio State head coach Jake Diebler joked that all he wanted for Christmas this year was for his team to get back to shooting at the level they’re capable of, an area that will be crucial before the Buckeyes go full throttle into Big Ten play.

The Buckeyes started the year shooting hot, but have since had some lulls, especially from three. Diebler is overall pleased with his team’s shot quality — the offense doesn’t look forced, it simply comes down to execution.

“You can choose to look at it and say hey, we’ve hung in some really tough games without shooting it anywhere near the level we’re capable of,” Diebler said. “The exciting thing for us is we have not offensively quite gotten to where we’re capable yet. And we’re gonna need that obviously in Big Ten play.”

In that sense, Diebler is right. Ohio State hasn’t executed its offense to its full capability and has still competed with some of the top teams in the country. In their one-point loss to No. 12 North Carolina, the Buckeyes shot 39.7% from the field and just 20% from behind the arc, a game that could have swung in Ohio State’s favor with more efficient shooting. In their one-point loss to Pitt, they again shot just 29.2% from three.

Right now, the most efficient offensive player has been senior guard Bruce Thornton. He leads the team with 21 points per game and he’s shooting 58.4% from the field and an elite 44.1% from three.

John Mobley Jr. has taken the most threes of anyone on the team with 78, nearly 20 more than Thornton, who ranks second on the team in attempts. He’s been finding his flow recently, including making five-of-eight attempts in the Buckeyes’ most recent victory over Grambling State.

Freshman Amare Bynum has also started to emerge offensively, making his second start of the season against Grambling State. Over the last three games, Bynum is averaging 13.3 points per game, including a 17-point performance against West Virginia.

“I love Amare’s energy,” Diebler said. “What’s so exciting about him is he doesn’t have to play a perfect game or near a perfect game to be productive. He’s productive on the glass, he’s productive with his points, he’s either typically getting a block or a steal.”

Ohio State opens the new year with a game at Rutgers on Friday, Jan. 2 at 8:00 p.m. before a packed slate of conference games throughout the month.