Bruce Thornton showed in February how special of a player he can be for the Buckeyes, both now and in the future.
After admitting on Jan. 31 that he hit the freshman wall, Thornton has played his best basketball of the season over the last few weeks.
Five days after that discussion, the point guard scored a career-high 22 points while shooting a very efficient 10-of-13 from the floor against Michigan. It was just the start of an impressive February for the freshman. Over Thornton's last seven games, he has averaged 13.7 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists while shooting 58.5% from the field, 37.5% from beyond the arc and a very impressive 70.7% from 2-point range, which is quite a feat given that he's a point guard. While 12 assists in seven games is something Thornton needs to) improve on, he has just six turnovers in that span, good for a two-to-one assist-to-turnover ratio.
In that seven-game stretch, Thornton has scored at least 19 points in three different games. Compare that to the rest of the season and the freshman scored 12 or more points just five times in Ohio State's first 22 games.
Part of Thornton's strong play in each of Ohio State's past two games has been how impressive he looked in the first half of the Buckeyes’ last two games. Against Penn State, the freshman had 10 points while making 4-of-5 shots from the field (2-of-3 from 3-point range) in the first half; against Illinois, he had 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting, three rebounds and one assist in the game's first 20 minutes.
Bruce Thornton led Ohio State to a win over Illinois yesterday.
— SLAM University (@slam_university) February 27, 2023
20 PTS
5 REB
2 AST@Bruce2T_ @OhioStateHoops pic.twitter.com/xkYtE9Ryed
Thornton has always been able to lean on his defense even if he struggles to find his shot at times. That's what makes him a special player already. The freshman can be counted on to go against the opposing team's best guard throughout much of the game while averaging 29.7 minutes per game this season. He has played 34-plus minutes a game in five of Ohio State's last seven games.
"I thought he played aggressive and looked loose and confident," Holtmann said of his point guard. "He's had those moments throughout the year. He competes on both ends. ... The way Bruce has been kind of raised and brought up he is very much a two-way player. You can play him for 36 minutes and, if he's scoring the ball like he is, you know he's impacting the other end as well. His attention to detail – he's highly, highly detailed for a (freshman) and when his offensive game provides what it provided tonight, he really helps us at a high level."
Not only has Thornton emerged as one of Ohio State's best players statistically, but the first-year Buckeye has already proven to be one of the Buckeyes' most vocal leaders, especially after he was named one of the team's captains during the first week of February.
"It has been very much a learning experience for him in terms of navigating this as a guy who's kind of looking for his voice in the midst of a bunch of older guys and just wanting to do it the right way," Holtmann said following OSU's win over Illinois on Sunday, "He's been a part of all of our captain meetings for the last several weeks. He's got great insight, great thoughts."
Thornton's strong play on the court paired with his leadership has led to plenty of praise from both his coaches and opposing coaches as well. It's almost as though Thornton is a veteran with plenty of experience, yet he's only in his first collegiate season.
"Every kid wants to get to the next level as quickly as they can. It has to be the right timing and right for them and right for their future," Holtmann said of Thornton. "Every kid wants that so I wouldn't want to necessarily put limitations on him but what I will tell you is I don't think he's going to be a foundational piece for us – he already is and he's a freshman. He really has kind of solidified himself, in a lot of ways, if not the face of the program, certainly one of the faces of the program. So he's going to be that for us moving forward."
In mid-December, Holtmann called Thornton the Buckeyes’ “most poised guy.” Now, he considers the captain and team's two-way point guard Ohio State's “foundational piece.”
"Bruce was phenomenal the whole game," Holtmann said after the Illinois game. "We haven't had a point guard like this where he's so much the focal point of what we do on both ends since we've been here. His maturity, his talent, his ability, his toughness and his intangibles make him really special."
Illinois coach Brad Underwood had plenty of positive things to say about Ohio State's 6-foot-2, 215-pound point guard, both presently and in the future. The Illini's coaching staff had watched Thornton's development even before this season as it kept track of Thornton on the recruiting trail as well.
"He's got a body that allows him to play in the Big Ten," Underwood said. "Bruce is a terrific shooter, we all saw him on the (recruiting) circuit. He's never going to dazzle you with his speed or his quickness but we never put him in harm's way on the other end. ... He's just a much more confident player and everyone knows he can shoot it and he's picking his spots extremely well."
Even as the accolades continue to add up for Thornton, the freshman point guard gives all of the praise to his teammates and coaches for his development and improvement, both in the box score and as a veteran-like leader.
"My teammates in the locker room, they really believe in me," Thornton said. They feel like if I make no shots and still be a great captain still as a freshman. They are still grooming me to this day, I'm still learning but it's all up to my teammates and my coaches to put their trust in me. I'm very thankful and very blessed for them because they really don't have with me as a freshman but they do so I'm thankful for them and I'd rather have no better teammates than them."
On Sunday, Thornton said that he's "so glad he's here at Ohio State" and that "there's no place better than here." After hearing those comments, Holtmann admitted it made him a bit emotional.
"It speaks to who he is as a kid," Holtmann said. "I think he's really happy to be here. He's growing as a player, he's growing as a kid and I do think he fits – there is a needle to be threaded there, for sure, I think if you're going to have roster continuity – that."
In the Buckeyes' last two games, Holtmann has gone with four freshmen in his starting lineup, which hadn't happened since the 1995-96 season. The youth movement has shown Ohio State fans a glimpse into how the future of the program will look. Brice Sensabaugh has been the star of that class all year, but Thornton continues to prove time and time again that he is the Buckeyes’ point guard of the future.
As the calendar flips to March, Thornton will look to carry the momentum and his strong play into Ohio State's final two regular-season games and the Big Ten Tournament as the Buckeyes look to finish the season stronger than they’ve played as a team for the last two months.
