Game Day Essentials: Game #29 at Ohio State

Ohio State Info

Head Coach: Chris Holtmann 

Interim Head Coach:  Jake Diebler

Location: Columbus, OH
Conference: B1G
Nickname: Buckeyes

Mascot: Brutus Buckeye

Last time out: Beat Michigan St

Point Spread: Ohio St by 3.5

Typical Rotation Depth: 10+

KenPom rank: 58

Nota bene:  

• Chris Holtmann has been fired by Ohio St. The Buckeyes are 2-1 under interim head coach Jake Diebler including an impressive win over Purdue
• Dieber has opened up the rotation. 2024 Bench minutes under Holtmann: 23.2%. Under Diebler: 32.1%
• Nebraska has won their last 3 games vs Ohio St. Prior to that, Nebraska was 2-16 vs the Buckeyes since joining the B1G.
• Nebraska is seven 3pt makes away from breaking the school record for made 3s in a season (270) 
• Juwan Gary didn't play in the last game vs Ohio St.

KenPom most used lineups

Player to watch: Bruce Thorton

The sophomore PG leads the team in scoring, assists and steals and is a 3 level scorer as he is drawing 4.5 fouls per 40 minutes. Thorton has struggled from the field, especially from 3 as he's shooting 31.7% from deep

Player to watch: Roddy Gayle

The sophomore SG is a lot like Thorton where he's a lot better drawing contact in the lane than he is shooting from the outside. Watch for Gayle to be the player tasked with denying Keisei.

Player to watch:    Jamison Battle

The Minnesota transfer is a well known commodity in the conference and is shooting a white-hot 44% from 3 this season. WIth Thorton, Gayle, and Battle leading the Buckeyes in scoring, we'll see if Nebraska will give Battle more attention on the outside than the other guys.

Others to watch

Penn St transfer Evan Mahaffey isn't a huge threat to score but he'll kill you on the boards and is a plus defender. The Buck's have a two man center rotation with different skillsets though both are dominant rebounders. Felix Okpara is a rim protector who can run the court. Senior 6'8" 250# Zed Key is more of a bruiser down low on both sides. Dale Bonner, a 6'2" Senior combo guard from Baylor, fills in for both guards but is struggling even more from them to score.  6'6" freshman wing Scotty Middleton is shooting 36.7% from 3. 6'6" Freshman forward Devin Royal had a game vs Michigan St, scoring 14 points in 18 minutes. Freshman PG Taison Chatman might get some run. Heck, walk-on Bowen Hardman, the guy that Holtmann ran out to shoot 3s in Lincoln, could even see playing time in this one.

UNL Game Notes

Out indefinitely 

5   Ahron Ulis     6-3    190 lbs    Junior - Likely out for the season

Questionable 

15  Blaise Keita     6-11    257 lbs    Junior - Ongoing ankle injury recovery

Possible starters for Nebraska

4   Juwan Gary                   6-6    221 lbs    Junior

30   Keisei Tominaga           6-2    179 lbs    Senior

3     Brice Williams               6-7    213 lbs    Junior

53   Josiah Allick                 6-8    231 lbs    Senior

51    Rienk Mast                 6-10    248 lbs    Junior

Bench

10    Jamarques Lawrence  6-3    183 lbs    Sophomore

0    C.J. Wilcher                  6-5    214 lbs    Junior

1    Sam Hoiberg                 6-0    183 lbs    Sophomore

9    Jarron Coleman            6-5    213 lbs    Senior
11    Eli Rice                         6-8    213 lbs    Freshman
21    Matar Diop                 6-10    213 lbs    Freshman

35    Henry Burt                  6-7    216 lbs    RS Freshman

2    Ramel Lloyd Jr.             6-6    210 lbs    RS Freshman

31    Cale Jacobsen            6-4    200 lbs    RS Freshman

24    Jeffrey Grace III         6-3    197 lbs    Sophomore 

Hoiberg Presser

Shoutout from Fred to the impact Coleman and Ullis have had on the team

The Skinny: 

Nebraska comes into this one as hot as anyone in the county over the last few weeks and defense has been the calling card. The Huskers rank #1 in Bartorvik's adjusted defense since Jan 30th. They'll need that defense on the road against an Ohio St team on a bit of a run after changing coaches. With wins over Purdue and at Michigan State, the Buckeyes represent a Quad 1 win opportunity for the Huskers.

Ohio St tends to run people off the 3pt line though Nebraska countered that in Lincoln with Rienk Mast absolutely roasting the Buckeyes, going 6-8 from deep on his way to a career high 34 points. Offensively the Bucks do spread the ball around though they tend to focus inside as outside of Battle and Middleton they're quite bad from outside. 

If you look at Ohio St's performances throughout the year they've tended to yo-yo, following one bad performance with a a good. They're also a team that might think they're still in post-season contention.  Who knows what you'll get tonight from the Buckeyes.  Is this Nebraska team locked in?  Can they hold a lead in Columbus if they get one?

Prediction:  Nebraska 75 - Ohio St 71