Let down. What let down? Ohio State came back from an impressive beat down of North Carolina earlier this week and had to welcome in a good Penn State team for its first conference game of the year.
It took a minute to get in sync, but once the Buckeyes did, they put on a clinic for the ages. The shots were falling, the defense was making stops, and Ohio State showed it can play a fast-paced game as a part of what it has in its tool chest as well.
This team is surprising everyone with blowing the roof off the expectations coming into the year, and who knows what the future holds. One thing is certain, the sky appears to be the limit.
Here’s three things we learned about the 106-74 blow out of the Penn State Nittany Lions.
Next … Weapons loaded
Ohio State can score from multiple spots
In the most recent of years, watching this Ohio State program on the offensive end could be more painful than a root canal. The defense has always been a hallmark of Chris Holtmann, and before that Thad Matta, but you often wondered where the offense would come from.
That’s not the case this year. The Buckeyes can get points from multiple players and multiple spots on the floor. Whether its the freshman coming into the game, the experienced upper classmen, guards, or big men, there’s now plenty of guys that can make a play when things bog down.
That’s awfully hard to game plan against when you’re trying to set up defensive game plans, and defensive stops down the stretch of a tight game.
Next … Kaleb Wesson’s improvement
Kaleb Wesson has more to his game this year
Big man Kaleb Wesson made himself eligible for the NBA draft after last season, worked out for a couple of teams, then got feedback that he wasn’t ready more or less. He’s taken it to heart.
Not only is Wesson much more slimmed down, he’s worked on his outside shot and conditioning. The result is that he’s not only on the floor more often, but he’s able to be more effective as well. He hits outside shots, can move on the defensive end more, and has shown quickness in going to the basket he didn’t have last year.
Ohio State is a very good team. It might just be one of the best teams in the country and have a shot at some really, really big things with Wesson doing his thing.
Next … Depth
It’s been a long time since Ohio State has had this much depth
It’s one thing to play deep into the bench when you play out of conference games against directional tech schools. It’s another thing when you see the Buckeyes go about ten deep or so against the North Carolinas and Penn States. And remember, this is without the services of the injured Musa Jallow.
When you can roll through that many guys and not have that big of a drop-off speaks volumes for how far this team can go. Staying fresh, scoring with interchangeable parts, and being able to play multiple styles goes directly with depth. Ohio State has it this year, and we haven’t seen that in the last few years.
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