Ohio State lost its first game of the Big Ten season Thursday night to Penn State, and while there is no need for panic, there are areas of concern for the Buckeyes.
For starters, Chris Holtmann has already acknowledged that his team needs to improve its three-point defense, especially after allowing the Nittany Lions to shoot a blistering 11-of-14 in an upset 82-79 win over the Buckeyes. In addition, Holtmann wants his team to play more physical, especially defensively.
While it hasn't been an issue for most of the season, another area of concern has arisen in recent games for Ohio State that will likely need to change if the Buckeyes are going to make a run at the Big Ten title. In its last two games, the OSU bench has been outscored 21-8 by the Penn State and Nebraska benches. Against the Nittany Lions, Ohio State's bench shot just 2-of-8 in 55 combined minutes of game action.
The bench production hasn't been all bad, as the Buckeye reserves have given Ohio State quality minutes on the defensive end, especially Andre Wesson.
Also known for his defensive abilities, Musa Jallow has struggled to find his offensive stroke as well. The freshman guard hasn't scored in Ohio State's last seven games, but has still provided the Buckeyes with some quality minutes and highlight plays, including an impressive block against Minnesota.
Musa Jallow just sent this shot into orbit pic.twitter.com/m90eBLkoIV
— Land-Grant Holy Land (@Landgrant33) January 20, 2018
Since the turn of the calendar year, Ohio State has had just two double-digit scoring games from bench players. Micah Potter dropped in 13 points against Northwestern, while Andrew Dakich scored 11 in a win over Maryland.
If Ohio State is going to play a more physical brand of basketball moving forward, the bench production could be even more crucial. During a two-minute, 30-second stretch in the second half against the Nittany Lions, Holtmann was forced to sit both Keita Bates-Diop and Jae'Sean Tate due to foul trouble. During that time, the Buckeyes were outscored 10-2, with the lone points coming from starting point guard C.J. Jackson.
| PLAYER (PTS) | IOWA | MSU | UMD | RUT | NU | MINN | NEB | PSU |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ANDRE WESSON | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| ANDREW DAKICH | 2 | 3 | 11 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| MICAH POTTER | 6 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 13 | 4 | 0 | 2 |
| MUSA JALLOW | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| KYLE YOUNG | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | DNP | 2 | 0 | DNP |
Where Ohio State needs offensive production from its bench, it needs defensive production from its best player. Holtmann hinted that the Buckeyes need Bates-Diop to step up defensively if OSU is to get back on track.
"He is so important for us, but we need him to be great for us offensively and defensively. I thought offensively some of the shots he hit late were sensational. He played a really sound offensive game," Holtmann said.
Bates-Diop said after the loss to Penn State that the Buckeyes don't want the loss to define them, yet they want to improve on what cost them the game to the Nittany Lions.
"(Holtmann) just made sure that everybody knows that this is just one game so it won’t define us for the rest of the season," Bates-Diop said. "We’ve got eight more games left in the Big Ten. We’re going to learn from this one obviously, and do what we can to make sure we don’t lose anymore.”
