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LGHL Column: Should Bronny James commit to Ohio State?

Column: Should Bronny James commit to Ohio State?
meganhusslein via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here

High School: Boys Basketball Sierra Canyon at Notre Dame

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

The Buckeyes could definitely use him.

The biggest name in high school basketball has yet to make a decision on where he will play college basketball. Bronny James has announced that Oregon, USC and Ohio State are his final three schools, and is expected to announce his decision at the end of Sierra Canyon’s season. Should/could/will he end up as a Buckeye?

First off, how good is Bronny, really? There’s a lot of people who say he’s only getting recruited because of his name, but most experts agree that he is a top-50 player in the nation. He was previously a five-star recruit before being bumped down to a four-star. However, he has maintained his top-50 status for the entirety of his high school career, which is an impressive feat.

So, no, he’s not the best player in his class. Kentucky and Duke aren’t giving him any offers. However, he has shown flashes of greatness. He is a bit of a streaky player, going off for a few games in a row and then settling back down for a couple of games. Experts say that he isn’t always the dynamic playmaker like his dad is, but every time he asserts himself as that, he shows how good he really is.

He is a very selfless player, a true team player. However, it seems that sometimes that selflessness translates to timidness. The all-around talent is there, but he just needs to consistently play more aggressive.

Everyone is wondering what the next steps are for him. As previously mentioned, he is a very solid player who definitely will start at a Power 5 school. The question is, which one?

Syndication: The Columbus Dispatch
John Hulkenberg/ThisWeek / USA TODAY NETWORK

His recruitment and decision-making process has been very hush hush, so truly the James family are the only people who knows what he is going to do. There’s rumors of playing in the G League, going overseas or, the most obvious option, taking the college route.

I do believe he will play in college for a few reasons. He seems to be truly a team-first player, and so you’d think he would really enjoy the college environment and the goal of winning a national championship. Additionally, as a push for him to choose the Buckeyes, Ohio State is a Nike campus, and with his father’s ties to Nike, it would be nice for him to stay with the Nike family.

Also, the NIL money he could reel in as a student-athlete would probably be historic, not that that matters to him too much. But still, something to consider.

I think Ohio State would be a great fit for Bronny, and I believe there is a real chance he chooses the Buckeyes. Obviously, with Lebron growing up in Akron and being a lifelong Buckeye fan, one would think that Ohio State would have a slight edge over USC and Oregon alone just because of that — but who knows!

NCAA Football: Notre Dame at Ohio State
Kyle Robertson-USA TODAY Sports

From a basketball standpoint, the Buckeyes could use him. There is only one other guard in the 2023 recruiting class in four-star Taison Chatman. Barring any transfers, the only guards on the roster next year are Bruce Thornton, Gene Brown and Roddy Gayle Jr. Ohio State is clearly still trying to figure out the lineup that works best for them, and it is possible that Bronny could be the answer they are looking for.

So, should he commit to Ohio State? Yes! Could he? I think it’s definitely possible. Will he? Thats the answer we are all waiting for.

I think the Buckeyes have a really good chance as of now, but again, we don’t know the internal talks he is having with his family about what is best for him. I obviously want him to go wherever is best for him, but selfishly, it would be great to see Lebron James Jr. in scarlet and gray.

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Ohio State at Indiana, Jan 28th, 8 PM EST, FOX

ScriptOhio
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HOW IT PLAYS OUT​

LINE: INDIANA -3.5, O/U: 145.5​

Ohio State hasn’t won a game at Assembly hall in four years, and given how well Jackson-Davis and company have been playing in recent weeks, it will be tough for the Buckeyes to break that streak on Saturday.

Prediction: Indiana 72, Ohio State 67

www.insidethehall.com

What to Expect: Ohio State at Indiana

Indiana will seek its fifth straight victory when it hosts Ohio State on Saturday night at Assembly Hall.
www.insidethehall.com

WHAT IT COMES DOWN TO​

The KenPom projection is Indiana by three with a 61 percent chance of victory. The Sagarin numbers like the Hoosiers by 3.5 points.

The Sensabaugh matchup is of the most concern for Indiana. The Hoosiers have struggled to contain wing scorers with the most recent example being Jamison Battle on Wednesday in Minneapolis.

Indiana is playing with a lot of confidence and Trayce Jackson-Davis has been playing as well as anyone in the country. He’ll be a tough cover for Ohio State, particularly with Key less than 100 percent healthy. With a road trip to Maryland (unbeaten at home in league play) looming followed by home games against Purdue and Rutgers, the Hoosiers would be well served to take care of business on Saturday night and keep momentum rolling.
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LGHL Ohio State men’s basketball vs. Indiana: Game preview and prediction

Ohio State men’s basketball vs. Indiana: Game preview and prediction
Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here

NCAA Basketball: Indiana at Minnesota

Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports

After playing at Illinois on Tuesday, Ohio State is on the road again tonight battling the Indiana Hoosiers in Bloomington.

Following last Saturday’s win over Iowa that snapped a five-game losing streak, Ohio State wasn’t able to keep the good vibes rolling, falling 69-60 at Illinois on Tuesday night. The Buckeyes had no answer for what the Fighting Illini threw at them, falling behind by as many as 17 points in the second half. Now Ohio State has another tough road test tonight when they take on the Indiana Hoosiers at Assembly Hall in Bloomington.

The performance from Chris Holtmann’s team in Champaign on Tuesday night left a lot to be desired. There was very little energy and urgency from the Buckeyes, who are looking at an uphill battle if they want to earn an NCAA Tournament bid. Ohio State shot just 36.7 percent from the field, and were outrebounded 44-30 by Illinois. Only two Buckeyes reached double figures in scoring in the game. Brice Sensabaugh finished with a team-high 14 points, while Justice Sueing added 13 points in 21 minutes off the bench.

With his scoring output on Tuesday night, Sueing is now just 10 points away from 1,500 career points. 604 of his 1,490 career points have come during his time at Ohio State. Smart money is on Sueing reaching the career milestone tonight. Not only is Sueing averaging 13 points per game this year, he has failed to reach double figures in scoring in just six of the 20 games he has planned in this year.

Meanwhile, Sensabaugh leads Ohio State in scoring, averaging 17.4 points per game. Sensabaugh also leads Big Ten freshmen in scoring this year. Earlier this week, Sensabaugh was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week, marking the fourth time this year he has earned the honor. No matter how the season plays out for the Buckeyes, Sensabaugh is making a strong case to be named the Big Ten’s Freshman of the Year.

Preview​

NCAA Basketball: Indiana at Minnesota
Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports

Tonight Ohio State will travel to Bloomington for their only meeting of the regular season with Indiana. Last year the schools split their meetings, with the Hoosiers winning 67-51 at Assembly Hall, and the Buckeyes earning a victory in the return leg in Columbus, winning 80-69 in overtime. Indiana leads the all-time series 109-88, but Ohio State has won six of the last eight meetings with the Hoosiers.

After a three-game losing streak, Mike Woodson’s team has righted the ship with a four-game winning streak. The most recent of those victories came on Wednesday night, when the Hoosiers escaped Minneapolis with a 61-57 win over Minnesota. Not only did Indiana survive the upset attempt from the Golden Gophers, they did so without Woodson on the bench, as the head coach of the Hoosiers missed the game while recovering from COVID-19.

Powering Indiana to victory on Wednesday was Trayce Jackson-Davis, the Big Ten’s reigning Player of the Week. The junior is stating his case to be in the conversation for National Player of the Year with his play of late. During Indiana’s four-game winning streak, Jackson-Davis is averaging 27.3 points per game, 14.3 rebounds per game, and 4.8 blocks per game.

By scoring 25 points, pulling down 21 rebounds, and swatting six shots on Wednesday, Jackson-Davis became the first player to score at least 25 points, record 20 rebounds, and block at least five shots in a game since Hasheem Thabeet did so for UConn in 2009. Jackson-Davis’ layup with 43 seconds to go ended up being the game-winning bucket, giving the Hoosiers a 59-57 lead.

Indiana has needed Jackson-Davis to step up becasue they have had to deal with a couple injuries over the last month. Pitt transfer Xavier Johnson hasn’t played since mid-December, and is out indefinitely with a foot injury. Race Thompson suffered a knee injury earlier this month that caused him to miss four games. The senior has appeared in the last two games, but Wednesday night’s game was the first time since before Christmas that he was on the court for more than 10 minutes in a game. Thompson is averaging 7.6 points per game and 5.6 rebounds per game this year.

If teams are able to put clamps on Jackson-Davis, Indiana is a very beatable team because they don’t have consistent production behind him. Even though Jalen Hood-Schifino is the team’s second-leading scorer with 12.1 points per game, the guard is still only a freshman. Hood-Schfinio has had a hard time getting any offense going over the last two games. Prior to scoring just six points on 2-11 shooting from the field against Minnesota, he only scored two points on 1-6 shooting in a win over Michigan State.

A familiar name in this game is Miller Kopp, who transferred to Indiana prior to last season after spending the first three years of his college career at Northwestern. With 11 points in Wednesday night’s win over Minnesota, Kopp eclipsed 1,200 points in his college career. The scoring output from Kopp against the Golden Gophers was the first time in over a month that he has scored more than 10 points in a game. Before transferring to Indiana, Kopp had three games against Ohio State where he scored at least 16 points against the Buckeyes.

A few other players that play important roles for the Hoosiers are Tamar Bates, Trey Galloway, and Malik Reneau. Lately it has been either all or nothing from Bates, with the sophomore guard posting goose eggs in the scoring column in three of the last five games, but scoring 11 points against Penn State, and 17 points against Michigan State in those other two games. Bates is a threat from behind the arc, as he has three games where he has hit at least our three-pointers this year.

While Galloway hasn’t been shutout from scoring in as many games, the Hoosiers are going to need more consistency from the guard if they want to make a run in the NCAA Tournament. To round out the group, Reneau gave Indiana a lift off the bench on Wednesday, scoring 10 points in 12 minutes of action.

Prediction​

NCAA Basketball: Ohio State at Illinois
Ron Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

It is very difficult to have any confidence in Ohio State right now, especially on the road in a tough environment like Assembly Hall. If the Buckeyes can’t respond with even the slightest bit of effort on Tuesday at Illinois after snapping a five-game losing streak, there isn’t a lot of hope for Ohio State to show much energy tonight against Indiana and one of college basketball’s top talents.

If Ohio State wants to have any shot at winning in Bloomington tonight, they need to slow down Jackson-Davis. Even though Jackson-Davis is on a heater right now, the Buckeyes do have some experience at taking on some of the top bigs in the country and not letting them have a ton of success. Earlier this month Ohio State took Purdue down to the wire, holding Zach Edey to 16 points and 11 rebounds, which is actually pretty tame compared to what Edey has been able to do to some other Big Ten teams.

Ohio State feels like the more complete team than Indiana, the issue is for whatever reason the parts aren’t fitting together for the Buckeyes. Brice Sensabaugh and Justice Sueing have done their part, but there needs to be a few more of their teammates that step up on both ends of the floor. Injuries have kept Zed Key from reaching the levels we saw from him earlier in the season, while Sean McNeil and Issac Likekele have been inconsistent.

The Buckeyes desperately need to win this game, especially with three of their next four games at home, if they want to give themselves any shot of making the NCAA Tournament with an at-large bid. Unfortunately, asking Ohio State to slow a streaking Jackson-Davis and beat Indiana on their own floor is just a little too tall of a task for Chris Holtmann’s team.


ESPN BPI: Indiana 63.4%
Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
TV: FOX

LGHL score prediction: Indiana 77, Ohio State 68​


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Google Bucknuts Happy Hour: Buckeyes in NFL playoffs/NFL Draft projections | What's wrong with Ohio State hoops? - 247Sports

Bucknuts Happy Hour: Buckeyes in NFL playoffs/NFL Draft projections | What's wrong with Ohio State hoops? - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".

Bucknuts Happy Hour: Buckeyes in NFL playoffs/NFL Draft projections | What's wrong with Ohio State hoops? 247Sports

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Google Pro Football Focus Ranks Seven Buckeyes Among 101 Best Players in College Football in 2022 | Eleven Warriors - Eleven Warriors

Pro Football Focus Ranks Seven Buckeyes Among 101 Best Players in College Football in 2022 | Eleven Warriors - Eleven Warriors
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".

Pro Football Focus Ranks Seven Buckeyes Among 101 Best Players in College Football in 2022 | Eleven Warriors Eleven Warriors

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Google James Laurinaitis, 3-time All-American, joins Ohio State staff - ESPN

James Laurinaitis, 3-time All-American, joins Ohio State staff - ESPN
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".

  1. James Laurinaitis, 3-time All-American, joins Ohio State staff ESPN
  2. James Laurinaitis returns to Ohio State coaching staff as graduate assistant 247Sports
  3. James Laurinaitis' return to Ohio State in graduate assistant role seen as a big win for the Buckeyes 247Sports

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Google Marvin Harrison Jr.’s creating a new blueprint for recruiting Ohio State’s loaded wide receiver room: Buckeye - cleveland.com

Marvin Harrison Jr.’s creating a new blueprint for recruiting Ohio State’s loaded wide receiver room: Buckeye - cleveland.com
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".

Marvin Harrison Jr.’s creating a new blueprint for recruiting Ohio State’s loaded wide receiver room: Buckeye cleveland.com

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LGHL LGHL Uncut Podcast: McGuff, Mikesell and McMahon discuss Buckeyes’ second loss in a row

LGHL Uncut Podcast: McGuff, Mikesell and McMahon discuss Buckeyes’ second loss in a row
1ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here

cotie.0.png

Ohio State University athletic department

A second-straight loss against a top team in the Big Ten leads to more questions for Ohio State.

Throughout the year, Land-Grant Holy Land will be bringing you uncut audio primarily from Ohio State press conferences, but also from individual interview sessions.


For the second game in a row, the Ohio State women’s basketball team came up short. Monday it was the No. 10 Iowa Hawkeyes, and Thursday it was the No. 6 Indiana Hoosiers.

Following the first Indiana home win against the Buckeyes since 2010, head coach Kevin McGuff, guard Taylor Mikesell and forward Cotie McMahon address the media. Answering questions together, the three touch on an array of topics.

Coach McGuff talks about what happened in the third quarter when the Buckeyes were outscored 27-6, the growth of Big Ten women’s basketball with a record crowd on hand at Bloomington’s Assembly Hall and talks about Mikesell’s personal accomplishment of hitting 2,000 career NCAA points.

McGuff also gives credit to the performance of Indiana, especially guard Yarden Garzon who scored 20 points with 10 rebounds. Plus, looking at how many Big Ten teams could make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament.

Mikesell and McMahon talk about what went wrong for the Scarlet & Gray in that third quarter. Specifically, the inconsistent play that allowed the Hoosiers to run away with the game. Mikesell discusses the bittersweet individual milestone, and McMahon discusses another physical game and how she was doing after walking into the press conference wearing a boot.


Connect with Thomas:

Twitter: @1ThomasCostello

Theme music provided by www.bensound.com

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LGHL Chris Holtmann and his veterans must lead the way if Ohio State hopes to dance in March

Chris Holtmann and his veterans must lead the way if Ohio State hopes to dance in March
Josh Dooley via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here

1246536705.0.jpg

Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images

Growing pains were to be expected, but OSU mens basketball needs better coaching and stronger leadership to turn this season around.

Ohio State mens basketball is down bad right now... real bad.

After a 10-4 start, during which Chris Holtmann’s team defeated a ranked (at the time) Texas Tech squad, hung with San Diego State and North Carolina, and nearly knocked off No. 1 Purdue on Jan. 5, the Buckeyes have since dropped five of six and plummeted toward the bottom of the Big Ten standings.

Ardent fans and those within the program could, if they were so inclined, point to injuries, youth, and/or plain old bad luck as the reason(s) for OSU’s recent struggles, but doing so would only come across as lame excuse-making. The simple truth is that Holtmann and his players have collectively failed to prepare and perform since the calendar flipped.


As a long-time Holtmann defender, it is painful to see his 2022-23 squad struggle so immensely. I think the salmon-suited one is a hell of a coach, but blame for the Buckeyes’ inability to break a press or get in and out of offensive/defensive sets ultimately falls at his feet. Not being able to settle on a lineup shows a lack of coaching conviction and, in my mind, a lack of preparedness. And guys playing without juice? Well that is just inexcusable.

The Holt-Mann should be getting more out of this talented group than he currently is. I emphasize “currently” because despite my frustration(s), I still believe that some sort of turnaround could be on the horizon. But it needs to happen quickly.

Of course, putting all of Ohio State’s struggles on the shoulders of Holtmann would be an egregious mistake — for a number of reasons.

First and foremost among them is the inarguable fact that the Big Ten is hard! It is arguably the most competitive conference in all of college basketball. Losses are/were bound to happen. Look no further than 2018-19, when the Buckeyes went 8-12 in conference play, yet still won 20 games and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. So a handful of losses in either January or February is not indicative of a bad team, at least not in the Big Ten.

Also not helping matters for OSU is the poor performance of certain players. Key players, in fact. Important, important guys have just flat-out stunk for long stretches in January, and coaching can only do so much to offset that. Just like the schedule can only provide so many “freebies”. But the Buckeyes didn’t even take advantage of those!

Losses to Minnesota and Nebraska were embarrassing, but that’s what happens when Brice Sensabaugh is taking on entire teams like Jon Snow during the Battle of the Bastards. Sensabaugh does not get a free pass here either, but his recent play (AKA scoring) has at least kept Ohio State competitive in some of these January games.

Vox.com
Pictured: Brice Sensabaugh when the OSU offense becomes stagnant

Any hope for a turnaround begins with the vets. Older, more experienced players need to play much better than they have recently.

At the top of that list is Justice Sueing. Since OSU’s loss at Maryland, during which he played very well, the sixth-year senior has been... not good. I’m pulling punches with my criticism because I like Sueing. But over the Buckeyes’ last five games, he is averaging nine points on 35 percent shooting. He also has more turnovers than assists during that time. Maybe this is always who the former Cal Bear was destined to be, but I think Holtmann and the Ohio State staff expected Sueing to be in the conversation for their best player.

Unfortunately, individual struggles have been not exclusive to the Hawaii native. Since returning from a shoulder injury, Zed Key has been roughly average — if looking at the totality of his career. But the Buckeyes need December’s version of Key, who was experiencing a real breakout. In seven games played between November 22 and December 21 (2022), the Bay Shore big man averaged 15.3 points per game and had three different outputs of 19 or more. He has scored more than 11 only once since then. Ohio State fans are hoping Key returns to his earlier form as that shoulder (and knee) continues to heal.

Let’s add Tanner Holden, Isaac Likekele, and Sean McNeil to this list while we’re at it. No veteran is beyond reproach as OSU limps through their Big Ten schedule. Expectations can be debated, but there is no arguing that Holden and Likekele in particular are putting up poor numbers. McNeil packs a heck of a scoring punch, but he will also disappear for stretches and/or play a one-dimensional game.

The struggles are all-inclusive for this team, but in order to achieve any sort of success moving forward, the older players must lead by example. Sage wisdom and strong encouragement don’t have the same impact if those giving it are putting up bricks and turning the ball over.

"We just need more from them."#Buckeyes coach Chris Holtmann was succinct in his appraisal of captains Zed Key and Justice Sueing after Tuesday's loss at Illinois.

Here's why: https://t.co/BUM3Eg4Ij6

— Adam Jardy (@AdamJardy) January 26, 2023
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It has been a rough stretch for Ohio State, but there are still 11 games left in this ‘22-23 regular season. There is more than enough time to right the ship — if all parties perform much, much better. But it will take more than a few in-game adjustments and a few made jumpers. It will also require coaches and players leading from the front, and taking collective ownership of recent failures. It never comes down to one thing or one player, so hopefully the Buckeyes band together and figure this thing out before the music stops.

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LGHL You’re Nuts: Which Big Ten men’s basketball team has been the biggest surprise to this point?

You’re Nuts: Which Big Ten men’s basketball team has been the biggest surprise to this point?
justingolba via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here

Syndication: The Columbus Dispatch

Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

Well, there’s two ways to look at this question....

As we move into the final month of the college basketball season, it is time to start evaluating teams and looking at what we thought they would be in the preseason compared to right now. Who has overachieved? Underachieved? Been exactly who we though they were?

So this week for You’re Nuts, the Bucketheads Connor Lemons and Justin Golba are debating who we think has been the biggest surprise in the conference thus far.

Last week, Justin and Connor debated what lineup change they thought the Buckeyes should make in the midst of their losing streak.


After 220 votes, Justin took 59 percent of the vote with ‘just play Tanner Holden more’ over Connor’s 37 percent of the vote.



Here are the updated standings:

After 85 weeks:​

Justin- 38
Connor- 34
Other- 9​

(There have been four ties)​


And here is this week’s prompt. Let’s ride.

Of course, check out the Bucketheads podcast, available on the Land-Grant Holy Land feed on all podcast platforms.

Today’s question: Which Big Ten men’s basketball team has been the most surprising this season?​

Connor: Ohio State Buckeyes​

Syndication: The Columbus Dispatch
Joseph Scheller/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

If you’re a longtime Twitter user, this is where I would like to insert the “Our expectations were low, but holy f*ck!” meme. However, that apparently just crosses the line of what I’m allowed to say, so I won’t.

But still! This Ohio State team was picked to finish sixth in the Big Ten Media poll before the season, and fourth in the Basketball Almanac's preseason predictions. Plus, those predictions were made without knowing that Brice Sensabaugh was going to pop off the way he has, leading Ohio State with 17,4 PPG on 50.6% shooting. Bruce Thornton, despite his struggles the last few weeks, has also over-delivered compared to what everyone expected. Justice Sueing has been healthy the entire season, too.

And yet, the Buckeyes are in 12th-place in the Big Ten.

At 11-9 overall and 3-6 in conference play, Ohio State is teetering on the edge of irrelevance. What is even more disappointing about this is that they’re doing it with fairly good health and with the freshmen largely exceeding expectations — two things that we did not expect three months ago. Despite that, this team has been one of the most disappointing squads in the nation in comparison to what was expected of them.

Ohio State’s defense has more or less gone down the tubes every seasons since 2020, and this year is no different. The Buckeyes sit at No. 75 in defensive efficiency, which is a bit better than last season. Aside from their win against Iowa recently, the offense has gone stagnant and even Sensabaugh’s unbelievable ability on that end can’t cover it up.

Well, what’s the big deal here? Coaching could be the issue — fans sure seem to think so. The most experienced players on the team underperforming is a big part of it — Isaac Likekele transferred to Ohio State as a 1,000-point scorer and has averaged 4.1 PPG to this point in the season. Justice Sueing has put up respectable numbers overall this season, but has been brutal at nearly every aspect of the game during Ohio State’s 1-6 stretch — so much so that he’s been relegated to the bench.

Need I really say more? *fart sound*

Justin: Purdue Boilermakers​

COLLEGE BASKETBALL: JAN 16 Purdue at Michigan State
Photo by Adam Ruff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Coming into this season, there were a lot of teams in the Big Ten that were surrounded with question marks. One of the teams with the most was Purdue.

How do you replace Jaden Ivey? The shooting of Sasha Stefanovic? The playmaking of Trevion Williams? Would Ethan Morton, Caleb Furst and Mason Gillis step up? Who is their point guard? What are realistic expectations for Zach Edey?

All of those questions were posed to head coach Matt Painter and his staff, and through the first eight games they played, those questions were answered.

Purdue finished 29-8 overall and 14-6 in the Big Ten last season. They finished 10th in the country, but at one point in the season, held the No. 1 overall ranking. Now, after beating Michigan on Thursday night, the Boilermakers are 20-1 overall and 9-1 in conference play with their sole blemish being a road loss to Rutgers.

But they lost four starters off that team, and for the most part struck out in the transfer portal on all of the point guards they went after following the departure of Eric Hunter Jr. to Butler. Enter: Fletcher Loyer and Braden Smith.

Loyer and Smith were both highly regarded recruits, but no one expected them to be as impactful as they have been this fast. Loyer and Smith are the Boilermakers second and third leading scorers with 12.8 and 9.9 points per game, respectively. Smith also leads the team in assists (4.3 per game) and is third in rebounds (4.9 per game).

Then of course, there is Zach Edey. Edey is averaging 21.5 points and 13.4 rebounds per game. Edey is 11th the country in scoring and second in the country in rebounds, only behind Kentucky’s Oscar Tshiebwe, who is averaging 13.9 per game. In the Big Ten, he leads the league in both.

He is easily the Big Ten Player of the Year thus far, and is leading the National Player of the Year race, mainly because of his stats and his importance to Purdue and their success.

No one thought Purdue would be bad because they have Edey and Painter running the show, but to start as the preseason 24th team in the country and then make it to No. 1 after just one month is incredibly impressive. And they are just one Cam Spencer three-pointer away from being 21-0.

Shoutout to the boys in Black and Gold.


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