Ohio State Basketball Continues Targeting 2022 Center Shawn Phillips Jr.
In his fourth year as head coach at Ohio State, Chris Holtmann is increasingly proving that he can recruit the Buckeye state. With a 2021 class that is ranked first in the Big Ten and fourth in the country, the Buckeyes have commits from three top-90 players nationally (Malaki Branham, Meechie Johnson, Kalen Etzler) who also represent the state of Ohio.
Looking to build on the homegrown success on his recruiting trail, Holtmann has already locked up three-star shooting guard Bowen Hardman from Cincinnati Princeton for the class of 2022. The Buckeyes now turn their attention to another 2022 Ohio product from the Dayton area, Shawn Phillips Jr.
The 6-foot-10 center from Belmont High School is the second-ranked player in Ohio according to 247 Sports Composite rankings and sits as a top-65 player in the country.
Phillips has a growing list of schools interested right now and has already received offers from Ohio State, Indiana, Cincinnati, Xavier, Auburn, North Carolina State and others.
Earlier this summer, the Buckeye target (primarily recruited thus far by assistant Ryan Pedon) made headlines as he announced he would be transferring schools and competing with Michigan State commit and top-ranked phenom Emoni Bates.
The two will be playing for Ypsi Prep Academy, a brand-new school created by Elgin Bates (Emoni’s father) in Ypsilanti, Mich. The school, which will play a national schedule, is a satellite campus to Aim High Academy near Farmington Hills.
Ohio State does not yet have a true big man secured in the 2021 class, as both Branham and Johnson are guards while the 6-foot-8 Etzler is listed as a power forward but can routinely step out on the perimeter and bury shots.
The Buckeyes have currently offered at least two other centers for the 2022 cycle in top-40 player Dereck Lively II (Norristown, Pa.) and Joe Hurlburt (Enderlin, N.D.) Ohio State is currently scheduled to start its hoops season on November 11 vs. Oakland.
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