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#23 Ohio State Vs Illinois State, Wednesday November 25 @ 2PM EST ESPN

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Admittedly I have not read this thread, so this may have been covered ad nauseum. That was the worst coverage of a sporting event I have ever seen in my life. Not only did they spend most of the first half talking to Vitale, they had to show him the whole time taking up 1/3 of the screen, except for the times he took up the entire screen. Then they would show graphics that took up 1/4 of the screen at other times. This was all done while the game was going on, not just when there was a break in the action. You can't even get away from that ineptitude by muting it.

The announcers? I'm not even sure they knew there was a game going on half the time, or if they did they didn't seem to know much about who was playing. They spent most of the time talking about what was coming up on ESPiN. I really wasn't interested in being told what games were on next or next week 2,814 times. After the first 100 or so times I got it.
 
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OHIO STATE'S FRONT COURT IS DIFFERENT BUT STRONG
Ohio State lost two key pieces from the team's frontcourt a year ago in the Wesson brothers. Kaleb was the team's top scorer, the best three-point shooter and rebounder. Andre defended on the wing as well as anyone on the roster and could score when required from him. The two also brought more than the stat sheet. But neither is on the roster this year.

Kyle Young, now a senior, is back, and the forward will add toughness and fight on the boards while also finding ways to score. But what will make or break the Buckeyes' frontcourt is how EJ Liddell and Justice Sueing play.

If Wednesday afternoon was any indication, the Scarlet and Gray will be fine. While this year's team doesn't have a player with the size in the paint as Kaleb or a winger defender like Andre, they do have two other players who can do different things and are going to continue to improve.

"I think Justice and E.J., two more tremendous kids," head coach Chris Holtmann said after the game. "They accept coaching. You can challenge them in areas."

Sueing, a transfer from California, had to sit out last year but averaged 14.3 points and 13.8 points per game in his two seasons in Berkley. He came out and paced the Buckeyes with 19 points on 8-of-9 shooting. Sueing was not afraid to attack the basket and did so well, causing the Illinois State defense problems throughout his 31 minutes on the court. He also recorded eight rebounds, which tied for the team lead with Young.

The only thing Sueing didn't do well offensively was pass the ball, finishing the game with three turnovers. It seemed he got into a rhythm and looked to make a few passes he didn't need to make that went to the other team.

Liddell looked like the player Ohio State started to see near the end of last season. In 23 minutes, the sophomore finished with 16 points on 5-of-9 shooting, getting to the free throw line nine times. Liddell is a fighter in the paint and looks to be adding to his game with three rebounds, three assists and two steals. He will need to continue to grow as the competition gets tougher.

While it won't look the same in the frontcourt this year, the Buckeyes have talented players who can step in and continue to make an impact throughout this season.

IT'S GOING TO BE A STRANGE YEAR
Ohio State came into the season knowing it was going to be a strange year. After having the Big Ten and NCAA Tournaments canceled last spring, most of these Buckeyes have already experienced the adversity that COVID-19 brings to the table. But Wednesday was a different experience.

The Big Ten announced prior to the college football season that no fans would be allowed at games for the foreseeable future. Ohio State took that a step forward two weeks ago when it was announced even the parents of players and staff that the conference permitted to attend would no longer be allowed at games due to the rising COVID-19 cases in Franklin County. This meant that the Scarlet and Gray played in front of only some Value City Arena staff members and a limited number of members of the media to open the season.

"Really different," Holtmann said of the environment. "We tried to prepare for it as much as you can. I’ve heard Ryan (Day) talk about how unique it is for your players and for your staff. I think the scrimmages that we had gave us a little bit of a feel. We did a dry run with the background noise, but I don’t think anything fully prepares you for what it’s going to feel like in the midst of a game. I’ll be honest with you, we were just really, really excited about being out there together."

For as strange as it was to see Ohio Stadium empty for football games this fall, it's even weirder inside Value City Arena. And while it's not often that Ohio State sells out the nearly 19,000-seat arena, hearing the players speak to the referees or the coaches shouting out to those on the court is much more apparent in an empty venue than even the most sparsely attended Buckeye basketball game.

As Holtmann talked about prior to the first game, it will be important for the Scarlet and Gray bench to bring the energy to the arena and help spark the five players on the court. Ohio State was able to do that on Wednesday, but the bench will play a bigger role in games going forward.

BUCKEYES NEED TO DEVELOP GUARD DEPTH
One of the major questions coming into this season is how Ohio State's guards will play. The Buckeyes have two returning starters in point guard CJ Walker and shooting guard Duane Washington. Washington was the Scarlet and Gray's second-leading scorer last year, averaging 11.5 points per game, and Walker led the team in assists with 3.5 per contest.

Behind those two, there's not a lot of knowns. Luther Muhammad and DJ Carton both transferred. Justin Ahrens has been inconsistent through his first two seasons. Ohio State added point guard Abel Porter in the offseason, but he had to retire due to health issues. Jimmy Sotos, another transfer, was awarded immediate eligibility in Porter's place. Musa Jallow is also back after missing all of last year.

What was good for Buckeye fans to see was the play of Washington and Walker continue to be at a high level in the season-opener.

"Good," Holtmann said of their play. "I thought Duane got a little bit better as the game went on. I thought he was pretty locked in defensively, which was really good to see. He’s still got to continue to get in a little bit better shape, a little bit better conditioning. But CJ I thought was steady as always. He led our group, led our group in our preparation... Great to see our guards lead the way."

Washington finished with 12 points but was 4-of-12 from the field. He started out just 2-of-8 shooting in the first half but was able to get involved in other ways. Washington finished the game with three assists, two rebounds and one steal in 27 minutes as the guard remained active.

Walker, as Holtmann said, played much like he did last season. He had 10 points on 3-of-8 shooting, led the team with six assists and had two rebounds. Walker did turn the ball over twice, which he will need to get cleaned up.

While Ohio State likes what the team got out of the two starters, the depth at guard needs to emerge. Jallow was clearly rusty after more than a year off with an injury with no points and two turnovers in 13 minutes off the bench, although he did record three rebounds, one block and one steal. Ahrens had just six points on four shots in 13 minutes. Sotos had a rough debut with zero points, two assists and one rebound and fouled out after 10 minutes on the court.

Just to add more guard depth in practice, Holtmann added a walk-on in Jansen Davison, who was not even on the roster coming into the game but played three late minutes.

In a conference like the Big Ten, the guard play will have to be good and it will need to be more than just the two starters.
 
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