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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
Day 4 – August 2
Gameday!! We treated this like a normal gameday with a pregame meal and walkthrough at the hotel. Then headed to the arena.
The Reuben Rodriguez Coliseo had just hosted a Puerto Rican League playoff game last night in front of a sellout crowd. While it wasn’t quite the same atmosphere, there was a nice contingent of Ohio State fans. In total, there were a few hundred people in the gym.
The team came out hot and built a 17-3 lead at the first media timeout. They continued to shoot well the rest of the way and won 117-75. The biggest takeaways were that we shot it well, 21-of-43 from long range (48 percent) and shared it well, 33 assists on 41 made field goals. Everyone played and most everyone was on the floor between 15 and 20 minutes.
Jimmie Williams had the hot hand from long range, making six three-pointers en route to a team-high 21 points. Anthony Thompson had the first two points of the game, a right-handed slam in the lane, as he would finish with 14 points and seven rebounds. Amare Bynum had seven assists and three steals while Ivan Njegovan finished with a game-high 10 rebounds.
Recovery was on the docket upon arrival back at the hotel before dinner this evening. The focus is on one more game. We played well today but can we go back to the gym and give the same effort tomorrow, similar to a Big Ten Tournament. That was the message to the group. We’ll see tomorrow!
Ohio State basketball fans get promising look at roster in first scrimmage
The Buckeyes performed well in their first scrimmage of the season.
scarletandgame.com
Ohio State basketball fans get promising look at roster in first scrimmage
The Buckeyes performed well in their first scrimmage of the season.Last March was the first time Ohio State basketball fans had an opportunity to watch their team play in the Big Dance in four seasons. Of course, they lost in heartbreaking fashion. Still, it was progress for Jake Diebler and his coaching staff to have his team playing meaningful games in March.
Heading into the 2026-27 season, the Buckeyes have some big expectations. They have two five-star freshmen coming in to change the look of the team. Fans are hoping they can lead them to actually advance in the NCAA Tournament. After their first scrimmage of the year, fans should be pleased.
Ohio State cruises to victory in Puerto Rico
The Ohio State Buckeyes took on Los Boris in Puerto Rico. It was a game that they were expected to dominate, and they did. They won the game 117-55, which was great to see. Even more encouraging were the performances from the new Buckeyes on the roster who were not here a year ago.Anthony Thompson is one of the five-star freshmen coming in with a lot of expectations on his shoulders. He finished the game with 14 points on 6/10 shooting in just over 18 minutes of play. It's encouraging to see him play well in his first competitive game wearing the Scarlet and Gray.
The other five-star freshman is LJ Smith, who reclassified so that he could join the squad a year early. He finished with 15 points in 17 minutes, shooting 3/7 from beyond the 3-point arc. However, neither freshman was the star of the show for Ohio State. That award goes to Jimmie Williams.
Williams is a transfer from Duquesne who averaged 15 points per game last year. In this scrimmage, he was blazing hot from deep. He made six of the seven shots he fired from beyond the arc, scoring 20 points in all. That's a little surprising considering he shot just under 34 percent from 3-point land a year ago.
Ohio State basketball fans have something to look forward to this season
Heading into this season, the Buckeyes have a lot of talent that should get fans excited for the first time in a while. With all of the talent that they possess, it's not out of the realm of possibility for this team to finish in the top four in the conference. Of course, the ultimate goal is to make the NCAA Tournament again, but to actually win games..
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calibuck
Too soon old, too late smart
Sounds like the Buckeye performance was a great one for a first game. Cannot comment on level of PR talent, as didn't watch game (was televised?) Sounds like Diebs has got some talent to work with. Scoring from outside, check, inside RBs, also check. Best positive from my thoughts was that Oji played some good minutes. Not certain if he was testing his injury fully, or taking it slow. Either way, from the snippet read, he was contributing in limited minutes, being the force inside that he's expected to see. But, of course, the scorers get most of the ink.
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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
Ohio State Earns Two Blowout Wins in Puerto Rico Exhibitions
Ohio State dominated its two exhibition games in Puerto Rico, defeating a pair of Puerto Rican select teams by an average of 40 points.
Ohio State Earns Two Blowout Wins in Puerto Rico Exhibitions
Ohio State dominated its exhibition games in Puerto Rico.
Facing a pair of select teams consisting of professional basketball players from Puerto Rico, Ohio State defeated its opponents by an average of 40 points. The Buckeyes earned a 117-75 win over Los Boris 1 on Sunday and followed that up with a 111-73 win over Los Boris 2 on Monday.
Game 1
Ohio State Box Score
| Player | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| * John Mobley Jr. (#0) | 20:37 | 5–7 | 3–5 | 0–0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 13 |
| * Curtis Givens III (#2) | 17:30 | 3–5 | 2–3 | 3–4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 |
| * Andrija Jelavic (#4) | 16:21 | 3–4 | 1–2 | 2–2 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 9 |
| * Anthony Thompson (#6) | 18:47 | 6–10 | 2–5 | 0–0 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 14 |
| * Josh Ojianwuna (#17) | 05:40 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Amare Bynum (#1) | 18:33 | 3–11 | 0–3 | 0–0 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 6 |
| Jimmie Williams (#3) | 16:36 | 7–8 | 6–7 | 0–0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 20 |
| Ivan Njegovan (#7) | 16:38 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 8 |
| Myles Herro (#8) | 04:09 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Alex Smith (#9) | 15:13 | 2–6 | 2–6 | 1–2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Justin Pippen (#10) | 21:13 | 3–9 | 1–4 | 5–7 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 12 |
| LJ Smith (#14) | 16:41 | 3–8 | 3–7 | 0–0 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 9 |
| Braylen Nash (#55) | 02:54 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vuk Lazarevic (#88) | 15:42 | 3–3 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| Team | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | 0 | — | — |
| *Denotes starter | |||||||||||
| TOTALS | 206:34 | 41–74 | 21–43 | 14–19 | 46 | 33 | 9 | 2 | 7 | 17 | 117 |
Team Stats
| Statistic | Ohio State | Los Boris 1 |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | 41–74 (55.4%) | 27–64 (42.2%) |
| 2-Point Field Goals | 20–31 (64.5%) | 14–29 (48.3%) |
| 3-Point Field Goals | 21–43 (48.8%) | 13–35 (37.1%) |
| Free Throws | 14–19 (73.7%) | 8–11 (72.7%) |
| Rebounds (Off / Def / Total) | 14 / 32 / 46 | 7 / 23 / 30 |
| Assists | 33 | 22 |
| Turnovers | 7 | 13 |
| Steals | 9 | 4 |
| Blocks | 2 | 0 |
| Points in the Paint | 36 | 24 |
| Points off Turnovers | 18 | 7 |
| Second Chance Points | 19 | 7 |
| Fast Break Points | 19 | 10 |
| Bench Points | 70 | 45 |
Game 2
Another balanced scoring effort led Ohio State to a 38-point win over Los Boris 2. Six Buckeyes scored in double figures: Mobley (17), Bynum (16), Pippen (14), Thompson (13), Williams (10) and freshman guard LJ Smith (10).Njegovan led the Buckeyes again with 13 rebounds while Bynum and Pippen tied for the team lead with five assists. Ohio State shot 53.1% from the field with 34 assists on 43 makes and went 17-of-39 from three (43.6%).
Center Josh Ojianwuna, who was on a minutes restriction as he works his way back from the torn ACL that sidelined him last season, tallied four points and two rebounds in 10 minutes and 47 seconds of action.
Ohio State Box Score
| Player | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| * Amare Bynum (#1) | 20:50 | 6–9 | 2–4 | 2–2 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 16 |
| * Jimmie Williams (#3) | 19:08 | 3–7 | 2–5 | 2–2 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 10 |
| * Ivan Njegovan (#7) | 16:51 | 2–5 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 13 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| * Justin Pippen (#10) | 17:23 | 5–9 | 4–5 | 0–0 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 14 |
| * LJ Smith (#14) | 20:54 | 4–10 | 2–8 | 0–0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 10 |
| John Mobley Jr. (#0) | 19:27 | 7–14 | 3–7 | 0–0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 17 |
| Curtis Givens III (#2) | 16:16 | 1–4 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Andrija Jelavic (#4) | 16:23 | 3–6 | 0–0 | 1–4 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 7 |
| Anthony Thompson (#6) | 20:49 | 5–8 | 2–5 | 1–2 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 13 |
| Myles Herro (#8) | 02:46 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Alex Smith (#9) | 07:56 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| Josh Ojianwuna (#17) | 10:47 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Braylen Nash (#55) | 03:17 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vuk Lazarevic (#88) | 07:13 | 3–4 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Team | — | — | — | — | 2 | — | — | — | 0 | — | — |
| *Denotes starter | |||||||||||
| TOTALS | 200:00 | 43–81 | 17–39 | 8–13 | 48 | 30 | 13 | 4 | 12 | 16 | 111 |
Team Stats
| Statistic | Ohio State | Los Boris 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | 43–81 (53.1%) | 26–66 (39.4%) |
| 2-Point Field Goals | 26–42 (61.9%) | 16–36 (44.4%) |
| 3-Point Field Goals | 17–39 (43.6%) | 10–30 (33.3%) |
| Free Throws | 8–13 (61.5%) | 11–13 (84.6%) |
| Rebounds (Off / Def / Total) | 14 / 34 / 48 | 7 / 27 / 34 |
| Assists | 30 | 18 |
| Turnovers | 12 | 19 |
| Steals | 13 | 8 |
| Blocks | 4 | 1 |
| Points in the Paint | 52 | 26 |
| Points off Turnovers | 27 | 16 |
| Second Chance Points | 18 | 14 |
| Fast Break Points | 37 | 7 |
| Bench Points | 57 | 36 |
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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
2026-27 Ohio State Basketball Roster
| No | Name | Pos | Ht | Wt | Yr | Hometown (Previous School) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | JOHN MOBLEY JR. | G | 6-2 | 185 | JR | Reynoldsburg, Ohio (Wasatch Academy) |
| 1 | AMARE BYNUM | F | 6-8 | 240 | SO | Omaha, Nebraska (Link Academy) |
| 2 | CURTIS GIVENS III | G | 6-3 | 190 | JR | Memphis, Tennessee (Memphis) |
| 3 | JIMMIE WILLIAMS | G | 6-5 | 200 | R-SR | Solon, Ohio (Duquesne) |
| 4 | ANDRIJA JELAVIC | F | 6-11 | 225 | JR | Zagreb, Croatia (Kentucky) |
| 6 | ANTHONY THOMPSON | F | 6-8 | 210 | FR | Lebanon, Ohio (Western Reserve Academy) |
| 7 | IVAN NJEGOVAN | C | 7-2 | 260 | JR | Otocac, Croatia (Gimnazija Vladimira-Nazora) |
| 8 | MYLES HERRO | G | 6-3 | 165 | R-FR | Milwaukee, Wisconsin (Whitnall) |
| 9 | ALEX SMITH | F | 6-9 | 200 | FR | Upper Arlington, Ohio (Prolific Prep) |
| 10 | JUSTIN PIPPEN | G | 6-3 | 190 | JR | Los Angeles, California (Cal) |
| 14 | LJ SMITH | G | 6-4 | 180 | FR | Lincolnton, North Carolina (Oak Hill) |
| 17 | JOSH OJIANWUNA | F | 6-10 | 270 | R-SR | Asaba, Nigeria (Baylor) |
| 55 | BRAYLEN NASH | G | 6-4 | 190 | JR | New Albany, Ohio (New Albany) |
| 88 | VUK LAZAREVIC | F | 7-1 | 200 | FR | Belgrade, Serbia (Wasatch Academy) |
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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
College basketball’s 9 national championship contenders for 2027 men’s title
These teams can win it all this season in men’s college basketball.
www.sbnation.com
College basketball’s 9 national championship contenders for 2027 men’s title
These teams can win it all this season in men’s college basketball.Illinois Fighting Illini
Duke Blue Devils
Florida Gators
Tennessee Volunteers
Texas Longhorns
Arizona Wildcats
UConn Huskies
Arkansas Razorbacks
Michigan State Spartans
Six more teams with "a chance"- Houston Cougars
- Virginia Cavaliers
- St. John’s Red Storm
- Louisville Cardinals
- Miami Hurricanes
- Ohio State Buckeyes...
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calibuck
Too soon old, too late smart
Thanks for the box scores, being a numbers guy, the thing that stood out to me was the assists. 30 of them. That translates to 60 (or more) points for the good guys. Shows unselfishness, and counts as much as a long jumper. Anyway, also shows that someone is willing to take the shot. Sometimes in a close game, people pass up a shot, I guess because they're afraid to miss in crunch time. If tOSU keeps doing this, the season will be bright. And no, didn't see the game, the level of competition, nor which lineup Diebs is gonna put on the floor at start of B10 season. And I'll take being a dark horse at the start of the season, and hopefully the W's pile up before start of B10 season. Go Bucks!
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DZ83CK
Not Banned
Now I'm not saying they're going to do it, but they for once have some quality depth, which bodes well in tournament play as there are inevitably foul problems as teams advance. When everyone can play aggressive and no one is tentative due to foul trouble, that's what you want to have. Plus they have a couple guys in Thompson and Smith who are potential NBA prospects, and you need some higher level players to be your difference-makers in the tournament. In other words, this roster is the better-equipped at making a deep run than any we've had recently - it could be the best overall collection of talent since 2012. I'm not even saying they make the Final Four, but if they get a beneficial draw it could be legitimately possible.College basketball’s 9 national championship contenders for 2027 men’s title
These teams can win it all this season in men’s college basketball.College basketball’s 9 national championship contenders for 2027 men’s title
These teams can win it all this season in men’s college basketball.
Illinois Fighting Illini
Duke Blue Devils
Florida Gators
Tennessee Volunteers
Texas Longhorns
Arizona Wildcats
UConn Huskies
Arkansas Razorbacks
Michigan State Spartans
Six more teams with "a chance"
Just sayin': Say what?
- Houston Cougars
- Virginia Cavaliers
- St. John’s Red Storm
- Louisville Cardinals
- Miami Hurricanes
- Ohio State Buckeyes...
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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
Just sayin': Yeah, but that bar isn't too high......
With that being said, I agree with what you posted. The original article kind of surprised me since other article(s) have predicted that Ohio state would finish 6th or 7th in the B1G. IMHO, the 2 keys to the season are:
1. the both 5-star Freshman have to play like 5 star players.
2. someone needs to become the "go to guy"/team leader that Bruce Thornton was. He figuratively "put the team on his back" and willed it to a win in several games over his (outstanding) career at Ohio State.
They could have had even more depth if Devin Royal had stayed; I was sorry to see him transfer. However, you can't expect a Senior who has started for 2 seasons want to play 2nd string behind a Freshman. Nor could you expect Ohio Sate to pony up the amount of NIL money (for a 2nd string forward) that another school like UConn likely offered.
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calibuck
Too soon old, too late smart
Definitely thought that Devin portaled because of minutes. This being his money year and all. But losing Devin took a big chunk of leadership and experience from this team. Hopefully, the young 'uns will season-up early, and when the going gets tough, they will rise to the occasion. This will be a young tOSU team. Maybe older players, but not so many with this team experience. Go Bucks!
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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
This week’s question: How many Ohio State players will record a 30-point game this season?
Connor: Four
Maybe four guys scoring 30 feels like a reach, but it really isn’t. Two seasons ago, Ohio State had three players – Bruce Thornton, Devin Royal, and Micah Parrish – record at least one game with 30 points, and a then-freshman John Mobley was not too far behind with six different games of at least 20 points.This year’s team may not have a single player who averages 20 points per game, like Thornton from last year, but it has several players who are capable of scoring 20 or even 30 points on any given night. All it takes is a big first half, the team choosing to feed the hot hand, and maybe some end of game free throws to make it happen.
Right off the top, it feels like a surefire thing that Mobley will break his record of 28 points at some point this season and get to 30. He scored 28 two separate times last season, and fans should expect the now-junior guard to continue to improve with another year under his belt.
It will be tougher for Amare Bynum to get 30 points in a game with the way the offensive production will likely be spread out on this team, but let’s go ahead and pencil him in as the second guy to do it. They’re not the exact same players, but I think the Bynum – E.J. Liddell comparisons are fair to make when looking at the freshman to sophomore year jump.
As a sophomore, Liddell had eight 20-point performances, with his season-high being 26 points. It does not feel unreasonable to think that at some point this year, Bynum surpasses that and gets 30.
Anthony Thompson is the third player I think will put up a 30-point game, and if he does it, I expect it to be sometime during the non-conference. The freshman can absolutely shoot it, and will probably put together a game early in the season where he knocks down five or six three-pointers.
That volume of threes is the way to put up crooked numbers, so it wouldn’t shock me if Thompson goes bananas in the non-conference one time against a Mississippi Valley State or someone of that sort.
Finally, I think at some point during the season, Justin Pippen will put up a 30-point game. I expect him to average a number much closer to 10 points per game than 30, but Pippen likes to attack the basket, draw fouls, and – even if he’s not super efficient – he loves to shoot the ball.
Pippen had three games last year where he scored at least 20 points, and as Ohio State’s point guard he’s also going to have the ball in his hands down the stretch, and could be shooting some free throws at the end of games.
Justin: Two
30 points is not an easy number to come by, and this team has a lot of mouths to feed when it comes to offensive output, so I don’t think this will happen often. But I do think it will happen.First of all, the five-star freshman Anthony Thompson is too elite of a scorer and a shooter to not have at least one game where he goes off and puts up a crooked number of points.
Similar to Malaki Branham as a freshman, I would not be shocked if there are some games where he struggles, especially early on, but he will go off in the games where he finds his rhythm early.
Also, John Mobley will be looking to get 30 points this season. He scored 28 twice last season, and that remains his career high. He also had two games in which he scored 26 points and one game with 25 points. He will get 30.
I think Amare Bynum, Jimmie Williams, and Justin Pippen will have games where they score 20 and maybe even 25, but not quite 30.
I am going with two players.
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