Officially one and done: Ohio State's Brice Sensabaugh staying in NBA draft
What’s been expected for weeks is now official. After one standout season at Ohio State, Brice Sensabaugh will remain in the NBA Draft and not return to college for a second year, The Dispatch has learned.
A four-star prospect in the 247Sports.com composite from Orlando Lake Highland Prep, Sensabaugh began his senior season there ranked No. 272 nationally by the website before rapidly making up for a junior season lost to a knee injury and COVID-19 cancelations by being named Florida’s Mr. Basketball and signing with Ohio State as the final piece to a five-man recruiting class.
Sensabaugh put his name on the local radar when he scored 50 points while playing in the Kingdom Summer League against a team featuring former first-round pick Trey Burke and four-year Ohio State contributor Andre Wesson. He followed that up by leading the Buckeyes in scoring during their two-game foreign exhibition trip to the Bahamas and went on to finish the season as the team’s leading scorer while being named to the Big Ten’s all-freshman team.
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In 33 games including 21 starts, Sensabaugh averaged 16.3 points and 5.4 rebounds while shooting 48.2% from the floor, 40.5% from 3 and 83.0% from the free-throw line. He finished the year among the top five freshmen in Ohio State history in six offensive categories and as the first freshman to lead the team in scoring since D’Angelo Russell in 2015. He was named third-team all-conference and was a four-time Big Ten freshman of the week who also finished third nationally in scoring among freshmen.
Along the way, Sensabaugh steadily played his way into the NBA conversation. After the forward scored a team-leading 18 points in a 73-57 win at Northwestern on New Year’s Day, coach Chris Holtmann described the freshman to the Dispatch as having “ridiculous, God-given touch for a lot of different places on the floor.” The game came amid a stretch of 13 consecutive games, starting against North Carolina on Dec. 17 and ending after Wisconsin on Feb. 2, in which Sensabaugh led the team in scoring.
It is the longest such streak for a freshman in program history.
Sensabaugh’s season ended early when a knee injury suffered in the Big Ten Tournament cost him the final two games. He officially put his name into the NBA draft in late March while keeping open the option to return to college.
Sensabaugh has since solidified as a first-round projection. While attending THE Foundation’s Spring Festival, an NIL fundraiser at Value City Arena on April 20, Sensabaugh told The Dispatch that it would be difficult to imagine returning to school if he would be taken in the first round.
“That’s what I’m hearing, yeah,” Sensabaugh said of the likelihood of going in the first round. “I think it’s going to be tough (to decide), but at the end of the day I think I’ll have that gut feeling. I’ve gotten some good feedback so far. Just keep riding that out and keep working and see where it takes me.”
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He has signed with Wasserman Media Group and has been training in Los Angeles. Sensabaugh was invited to the NBA combine, where he met with teams but did not participate in workouts or physical testing. Typically, players who are told they will be taken in the first round will hold themselves out of the competitive portions of the event.
The deadline for underclassmen to withdraw from the draft and retain their collegiate eligibility is May 31 at 11:59 p.m.
Sensabaugh is the second Buckeye in as many years to become a one-and-done player. Malaki Branham, the 2022 Big Ten freshman of the year, was taken by San Antonio with the No. 22 overall pick in last year’s draft.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State's Brice Sensabaugh officially staying in NBA draft
