Things are really looking up for Ohio State this year. With most of the Buckeye impact players returning as sophomores and juniors, there is not only a good amount of experience here, but these players are also carrying a chip on their shoulder. This team will be looking to make people forget their first round loss to Siena in last year's NCAA Tournament, which took place in Ohio.
As no surprise to anyone, center B.J. Mullens left Ohio State after his freshman year. Mullens only started two games all of last season, averaging a mere 20 minutes per game, and although he will certainly be missed, the loss of a team's sixth man is usually a fairly easy thing to fix.
Possibly the most interesting position to keep an eye on is the point guard. Jeremie Simmons never really found a steady rhythm there, and although having done a decent job with assists and protecting the ball, he lost his job to P.J. Hill by the end of the season. Both are seniors now, and the Buckeyes are looking for one of them to step up and be able to bring the ball up the court. Ohio State's strength is on the wings where Evan Turner is a natural talent whose excellent play should create open space for Jon Diebler and William Buford; Diebler drained almost 42 percent of his long-range attempts and hit nearly three per game, while Buford came on strong late in the year and ended up as the team's second leading scorer. There is no way to get all three into the starting lineup, so look for either Diebler or Buford to gain an early lead on the Big Ten's Sixth Man Award.
While David Lighty has the ability to play at a wing as well, the 6-5 junior's eagerness to do anything coach Thad Matta asks of him allows him to play at the four position. Having missed all but seven games due to injury last year, he is back to full health and ready to once again soar above the rim and crash the boards for the Buckeyes. It is not likely that Dallas Lauderdale will provide much scoring, but he is a force under the basket, looking to improve on last year's 2 blocks per game. With Nikola Kecman, newcomer Zisis Sarikopoulos, and senior Kyle Madsen, all prepared to contribute quality minutes off the bench, the frontcourt is deeper than it may seem.
