Catching up with some tidbits I picked up from men's basketball media day yesterday.
• Justice Sueing says he's healthy and feels better than he's ever felt. Injury that bothered him at the end of the season two years ago just lingered throughout all of last season, and he never felt right. Probably could have played but I got the sense that he wanted to have a fully healthy season this year, even if that meant essentially missing all of last year. Holtmann said he senses Sueing is "anxious" to get back on the floor. At full strength, I think Sueing can be a top-20 kind of player in the league.
• Like the maturity of all three transfers — Tanner Holden (Wright State), Ice Likelele (Oklahoma State) and Sean McNeil (West Virginia). One of the major offseason points of emphasis was rebounding, particularly from the perimeter positions. Holden and Ice combined for 13 boards per game last year, and even McNeil averaged 2.5 per game in the Big 12. Holden was also one of the best players in the country at getting to the FT line. They talked about that in recruiting, and he thinks that will translate to the Big Ten in the same way it did for Sueing when he came from the Pac-12. I asked Ice what position he'll play. He said "basketball player." I really think we could see him play and guard 1-5 at points. Not a prolific scorer, but he has a unique all-around game and he's tough. Holtmann said McNiel is a "proven scorer" at the high major level but thinks he can be more than a sharpshooter.
• Really enjoyed talking with Brice Sensabaugh. Think he's going to be a crafty scorer. He was asked a lot about scoring 50 in the Kingdom Summer League a few months ago, but didn't seem to think that that meant anything as it pertains to what he'll do as a freshman. He'll probably have some nights where he's like 1-for-8 and people will freak out, but they want him hunting shots. He can score form all three levels and will be a mismatch problem on offense. How he holds up on the other end of the floor will be key to logging extended minutes.
• Holtmann: "I've not coached a team that's going to count on four freshmen as much as this one is going to." He's going to play these guys a lot. He believes in building through them, both in the short term and the long term. Of the four, Bruce Thornton will probably play the most, but I wouldn't sleep on Roddy Gayle. He's long and athletic, and his defensive ability (provided he can translate that from high school to college) should keep him on the floor a lot.
• Defense is still a major point of emphasis. Holtmann: "We have not been good enough defensively the last two years." Ohio State was No. 82 in the country in defensive efficiency two years ago, and No. 111 last year. Teams just don't fare well in March when they're bad on that end. New assistant Jack Owens is coordinating the defense this year. He comes from a Purdue program that's usually pretty solid defensively. His addition should help. So too should having a bunch of switchable, versatile 6-4 to 6-7 bodies to put on the floor. I'd look for Likelele and Gayle to be two guys who really spearhead that effort.
• As for the other end of the floor, Holtmann noted how OSU has had to play through "big" men for much of his tenure, either through Kaleb Wesson or a more traditional power forward like E.J. Liddell. He said he thinks this year will be more of a four-around-one look with four "guards" on the floor a lot. But "guard" can mean guys like Sueing, Holden and Likelele, who have guard skill but more traditional wing size. Could present some interesting matchup problems for opponents.
That's all I have for now. We'll have an interview with Chris Holtmann coming on THE Podcast later this week.
• Justice Sueing says he's healthy and feels better than he's ever felt. Injury that bothered him at the end of the season two years ago just lingered throughout all of last season, and he never felt right. Probably could have played but I got the sense that he wanted to have a fully healthy season this year, even if that meant essentially missing all of last year. Holtmann said he senses Sueing is "anxious" to get back on the floor. At full strength, I think Sueing can be a top-20 kind of player in the league.
• Like the maturity of all three transfers — Tanner Holden (Wright State), Ice Likelele (Oklahoma State) and Sean McNeil (West Virginia). One of the major offseason points of emphasis was rebounding, particularly from the perimeter positions. Holden and Ice combined for 13 boards per game last year, and even McNeil averaged 2.5 per game in the Big 12. Holden was also one of the best players in the country at getting to the FT line. They talked about that in recruiting, and he thinks that will translate to the Big Ten in the same way it did for Sueing when he came from the Pac-12. I asked Ice what position he'll play. He said "basketball player." I really think we could see him play and guard 1-5 at points. Not a prolific scorer, but he has a unique all-around game and he's tough. Holtmann said McNiel is a "proven scorer" at the high major level but thinks he can be more than a sharpshooter.
• Really enjoyed talking with Brice Sensabaugh. Think he's going to be a crafty scorer. He was asked a lot about scoring 50 in the Kingdom Summer League a few months ago, but didn't seem to think that that meant anything as it pertains to what he'll do as a freshman. He'll probably have some nights where he's like 1-for-8 and people will freak out, but they want him hunting shots. He can score form all three levels and will be a mismatch problem on offense. How he holds up on the other end of the floor will be key to logging extended minutes.
• Holtmann: "I've not coached a team that's going to count on four freshmen as much as this one is going to." He's going to play these guys a lot. He believes in building through them, both in the short term and the long term. Of the four, Bruce Thornton will probably play the most, but I wouldn't sleep on Roddy Gayle. He's long and athletic, and his defensive ability (provided he can translate that from high school to college) should keep him on the floor a lot.
• Defense is still a major point of emphasis. Holtmann: "We have not been good enough defensively the last two years." Ohio State was No. 82 in the country in defensive efficiency two years ago, and No. 111 last year. Teams just don't fare well in March when they're bad on that end. New assistant Jack Owens is coordinating the defense this year. He comes from a Purdue program that's usually pretty solid defensively. His addition should help. So too should having a bunch of switchable, versatile 6-4 to 6-7 bodies to put on the floor. I'd look for Likelele and Gayle to be two guys who really spearhead that effort.
• As for the other end of the floor, Holtmann noted how OSU has had to play through "big" men for much of his tenure, either through Kaleb Wesson or a more traditional power forward like E.J. Liddell. He said he thinks this year will be more of a four-around-one look with four "guards" on the floor a lot. But "guard" can mean guys like Sueing, Holden and Likelele, who have guard skill but more traditional wing size. Could present some interesting matchup problems for opponents.
That's all I have for now. We'll have an interview with Chris Holtmann coming on THE Podcast later this week.
