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C Kaleb "Bully" Wesson ('18 All B1G Freshman, '19 Honorable Mention All B1G, '20 2nd Team All B1G)

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Men’s Basketball: Kaleb Wesson could be leaned on by Ohio State in biggest game of young career

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Beginning the 2017-18 men’s basketball season, Ohio State knew depth at certain positions would be an issue.

The Buckeyes had just one natural point guard and one listed center.

Against Northeastern Sunday, that one center, sophomore Micah Potter, sprained his ankle and was forced to leave the game.

Head coach Chris Holtmann said Tuesday he thinks the 6-foot-9, 240-pound center will be available for the team’s most daunting task so far this season when it travels to Portland, Oregon, to take on No. 17 Gonzaga in the first round of the PK80 Invitational.

“We think Micah will be available to play,” Holtmann said. “He’s going to be somewhat limited in practice leading up to it. But we anticipate that he should be good to go for Thursday night.”

The absence of Potter from the starting lineup would likely require freshman forward Kaleb Wesson to step up and play in the middle for the Buckeyes. And while Holtmann expressed confidence in Wesson’s ability to slide into a starting role, he said he does not believe Potter’s injury will alter the starting five.

“I think that if for some reason, it was really bothering [Potter] then we would make that change,” Holtmann said. “I think right now bringing [Wesson] off the bench is good for him because it gets him a feel for the game and keeps him from picking up early fouls.”

As it is though, the injury to Potter could still limit his minutes, which would put Wesson in a position to eat up more time than he’s seen to this point in his young career.

Through three games, Wesson averages just 19.7 minutes per contest, and while it is higher than Potter’s 19.3 average, Potter was only able to play 13 minutes in his last game. The pair has been about even in the box scores, with Wesson averaging 11.3 points per game compared to Potter’s 8.8. Potter holds a slight 4.8 to 4.7 average rebounding advantage over Wesson.

Holtmann said both players are talented with their backs to the basket, but said Wesson has an advantage in that area, partially due to his size. Where Potter stands apart from Wesson is in his ability to shoot 3s.

“Both guys give us a low-post threat,” Holtmann said. “Obviously we want Micah to be able to stretch the defense some as well. I think Kaleb will be able to do that probably later in his career, but right now he’s a really effective low-post finisher.”

Entire article: https://www.thelantern.com/2017/11/...y-ohio-state-in-biggest-game-of-young-career/
 
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Ho1tman seems pretty high on Kaleb
"He likes to pass. His skill level is a great strength for him," Buckeyes coach Chris Holtmann said. "He can get going when he feels little bit like a point guard and starts going behind his head and through his legs. He can get a little loose with it at times. But he's a willing passer, he can re-trap some double-teams.

"I think he'll get to the point where he'll demand a double-team most games. That's not the case right now because he's not strong enough probably. But I do think later in his career he'll be a guy that will demand a double-team most nights out, and his passing will really allow us to play through that."
Click to expand...
http://www.cleveland.com/osu/2017/12/kaleb_wessons_freshman_impact.html#incart_river_index
 
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