Ohio State's Bruce Thornton Jumping Up All-Time Buckeyes Scoring List

Back-to-back-to-back 20+ point games have set Bruce Thornton up to continue climbing the Ohio State All-Time Scoring Leaders list.

Following an efficient 27 points on 9-of-18 from the field and 3-of-6 from beyond the arc that led to an 86-69 victory over the Wisconsin Badgers, Thornton has vaulted his way into third place in the all-time scoring rankings. He now trails just Herb Williams and Dennis Hopson.

His performance also helped him surpass 2,000 career points, becoming just the third player in program history to complete such a feat.

On the season, Thornton has been one of the lone bright spots for the program, averaging 19.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.9 assists a game. He's not at 50-40-90 status, but he isn't far away from it, putting up shooting marks of 54.6% from the field, 39.5% from three and 82.7% from the line.

In an 88-80 loss against Illinois earlier in the year, he posted a season-high 34 points with six rebounds and six assists. Not only is he leading the offense in scoring, but finding other ways to impact the game as well.

His level of play has quietly flown under the radar, but there's a real argument that he's one of the top players in the country and deserves to be seen as a lottery pick in the coming NBA Draft.

Bruce Thornton. 2️⃣

3rd on the all-time scoring list. pic.twitter.com/7dEv5gs1ea
— Ohio State Hoops (@OhioStateHoops) February 18, 2026

Thornton's Path To No. 2 and then No. 1

After the Buckeyes picked up the program's first ranked win of the 2025-26 campaign, the team has just five more games to go on the campaign. They'll take on ranked Michigan State and Purdue, with Iowa sandwiched in between the two. Then, they'll close out the year against the Penn State Nittany Lions and Indiana Hoosiers.

Each of these games is no easy feat, with the Buckeyes attempting to finish the campaign on a high note.

Thornton will have to play a major role in the team's success, and as long as he maintains his current form, he not only can help end this year with some big-time wins, but also snag personal accolades.

The four-time captain is exactly at 2,005 points, which is six points away from Williams' mark of 2,011 and 92 points away from Hopson's point total of 2,096. With five games to play, Williams' feat should be a near guarantee, with Hopson's taking a bit more of a push. He will have to average 18.4 points per game through the final games of the season to officially become the Buckeyes' all-time scoring leader.

Thornton's been one of the most loyal, home grown talents for the Buckeyes in recent memory, and being able to finish his career at the top of the scoring mountain would be a storybook ending.

The first chance to see him back on the court will be against Michigan State on Sunday, Feb. 22, at 1:00 p.m. EST from Breslin Events Center in East Lansing, Mich.