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Ohio State blows out Indiana, 38-15. Now, it's time to do the same to That Team Up North.
Welcome to the Full Court Press, your weekly destination for offseason Ohio State basketball recruiting updates.
The summer basketball circuits are in full swing and a number of Ohio State targets and commits return to action this weekend in Atlanta to compete in the Nike EYBL, which enters its third weekend. We will touch more on that in just a bit.
First however, Ohio State got some big news on the recruiting front Thursday night when DJ Carton announced the Buckeyes had made his top six.
Top 6 #blessed pic.twitter.com/DuHEowH6Gr
— Dee Jay (@DJCarton) May 11, 2018
Carton earned an offer from Ohio State on Dec. 19 and took an unofficial visit to Columbus during the weekend of Ohio State's football Spring Game. He is rated as the No. 33 player in the country in the 2019 cycle and is the top player in the state of Iowa according to 247sports.
Carton was also selected as one of 32 athletes to compete for a roster spot on the USA Basketball U18 National Team, along with current Ohio State guard Musa Jallow, who is the lone NCAA scholarship athlete on the training camp roster.
His announcement caught the attention of Justin Ahrens, who began to actively persuade Carton to come to Columbus.
Them boys on the top for a reason come join the fam bro @DJCarton https://t.co/UbvxK52sgV
— Justin Ahrens (@ahrensjustin12) May 11, 2018
Holtmann and Mike Schrage have been the primary recruiters of Carton, who has not yet set a date for his announcement.
Buckeyes Offer 2019 Texas Prospect
The first player to commit to Holtmann at Ohio State was Texas native Jaedon LeDee on Sept. 19 and the Buckeyes are looking to back to the Longhorn state in the 2019 cycle.
The Buckeyes offered 2019 power forward Drew Timme on Wednesday, a four-star prospect and the No. 108 overall player in his class according to 247sports.
Thankful to receive an offer from Coach Holtmann and Johnson from The Ohio State University @OhioStateHoops pic.twitter.com/pk4XCmEpc1
— drew timme (@drewtimme2) May 9, 2018
Holtmann and assistant Terry Johnson are Timme's primary recruiters.
Time has been trending upwards over the last few weeks, and has gained seven offers since April 21. Overall, he holds 20 scholarship offers, and his latest offer came from Texas just one day after the Buckeyes offered.
You can see some of Timme's highlights above.
Nike EYBL Rolls On
A number of Ohio State targets and commits will be back in action this weekend in the Nike EYBL circuit that enters its third out of four weekends. The tournament travels to Atlanta this weekend, and is headlined (for Ohio State purposes) by four games from Alonzo Gaffney's All-Ohio Red squad.
Gaffney's team will play four games this weekend, starting Friday night against Mac Irvin Fire. All-Ohio Red will then play two games on Saturday and one Sunday before returning home. All-Ohio Red has a record of 3-5 in the tournament, with Gaffney averaging 12.6 points and 6.4 rebounds in 14.9 minutes per game.
Other Ohio State targets in the tournament include Trayce Jackson-Davis (Indy Heat), Timme, Samuell Williamson (Drive Nation), Kyle Sturdivant (Nike Team Florida) and more.
You can live stream games from the event here and get a full schedule of games here.
Four-Star PF Schedules Unofficial Visit
According to a report from Jake Weingarten, Ohio State is set to host 2019 four-star point guard Mason Gillis on the final day of the month.
2019 Four-Star Mason Gillis took an unofficial to Purdue last week. He now tells me he will head up to Ohio State on May 31st. Xavier visit in June.
— Jake (@jakeweingarten) May 9, 2018
A four-star power forward out of Indiana, Gillis is considered a hard lean towards Purdue, which was the second program to offer him in January. He holds offers from the Boilermakers, Butler, Xavier, Miami (OH) and Toledo. The Buckeyes have not yet offered Gillis, but that could change if his visit later this month goes well.
