Even though Ohio State is heavily favored to win its first-round NCAA Tournament game as a No. 2 seed against No. 15 seed Oral Roberts, Chris Holtmann and the Buckeyes aren’t taking their preparation lightly.
While Oral Roberts is just 16-10 this season and has lost to all five NCAA Tournament teams it’s played, its offensive numbers are certainly noteworthy. The Golden Eagles lead the nation in 3-pointers made per game (11.3) and free throw percentage (82.4%) and rank 11th among all Division I teams with 81.8 points per game. And they’re a threat to shoot the ball as soon as they get past midcourt, which means the Buckeyes are going to have to be constantly engaged on defense.
| Who | Where | When | TV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oral Roberts (16-10, 10-5) | West Lafayette, Indiana (Mackey Arena) | 3 p.m. Friday | CBS |
“One of the best shooting teams I’ve seen on film. And they shoot it from everywhere,” Holtmann said Tuesday. “They really spread you out, and they shoot it at (all five positions).”
Much of that shooting from Max Abmas, college basketball’s leading scorer this year, who has made 90 3-pointers in 25 games while averaging 24.2 points per game and shooting 48.4% from the field, including 43.3% from three. Even though Abmas was a lightly recruited player and is just 6-foot-1 and 165 pounds, Holtmann believes Abmas has a chance to play at the next level.
“I think he’ll eventually be a pro, I really do. He just has the ability to shoot it from everywhere on the floor,” Holtmann said. “Our pickup point’s gonna need to obviously be different than what it is typically, because of how dangerous he is. He really can come across halfcourt and raise up, and he shoots it with great accuracy.”
The Buckeyes know they have to account for Abmas’ shooting ability, but their goal will be to force him to take difficult, contested shots as often as possible.
“We just gotta have good contests on his jumpers,” Duane Washington Jr. said. “Everywhere he is, make sure that somebody is around him at all times, and just make sure you get a hand up. Percentages show that those are tough shots. So those shots, he’ll hit some definitely, good player. But the more he takes of those, we’ll be alright.”
That said, the Buckeyes can’t be solely focused on stopping Abmas. Oral Roberts forward Kevin Obanor has averaged 18.2 points per game while making 50.3% of his shots from the field and 46.9% of his 3-point attempts. The Golden Eagles have six players who have averaged at least 18 minutes per game this season while making more than 40 percent of their field goal attempts and at least 34 percent of their 3-point attempts.
They don’t have anyone taller than 6-foot-8, which benefits an Ohio State team that has struggled to defend big men, but they still have solid height throughout their lineup. Obanor and fellow forward DeShang Weaver are both 6-8, Francis Lacis is 6-foot-7 and Kareem Thompson (6-6) and Carlos Jürgens (6-5) give them a pair of tall guards.
“I think positionally, their size is maybe a little bit better than you think,” Holtmann said.
Nonetheless, Ohio State is a 16.5-point favorite to win the game. Oral Roberts is rated by KenPom as the worst defensive team in the NCAA Tournament, so the Buckeyes should be able to score plenty of points themselves. As long as the Buckeyes can play at the same level that enabled them to make a run to the Big Ten Tournament final, beating Oral Roberts really shouldn’t be a problem.
The Buckeyes are battle-tested from playing in a conference that put nine teams into this year’s NCAA Tournament, and aside from their four-game losing streak to end the regular season, they’ve won a lot more than they’ve lost this year at 21-9. But they also know anything can happen in March Madness, especially if they’re not as prepared as they need to be.
So while it’s probably tempting for the Buckeyes to look ahead to who they could face later in the tournament, starting with either No. 7 seed Florida or No. 10 seed Virginia Tech in the second round, Holtmann wants them to stay focused on winning Game 1.
“I think the one thing you can’t have is this false sense of, well, we played in a great league so that guarantees us something. Because it doesn’t guarantee us anything,” Holtmann said. “We’ve gotta earn whatever it is we get. And just because we played in, I think, a league that is as good as it’s been in a number of years, it doesn’t guarantee any Big Ten team to perform well in the NCAA Tournament. It’s styles, it’s matchups, it’s how you play, it’s how you perform.
“So I think we’ve got great respect for Oral Roberts, we’ve got great respect for our opponent and the challenges, and if we’re fortunate enough to play well and win, then we’ll move on to the next task at hand and know that’s going to be a really quality opponent, too. So I think that’s how you have to approach it, and I think that’s the maturity that’s going to be required of our guys. I think they understand that. We’ll make sure they do.”
