After tournament loss to Illinois, Ohio State faces more questions than answers
MINNEAPOLIS – Jamison Battle sat in front of his locker. His shoes were off, his toes were curled and his head was held between both of his hands.
Nearby, a few reporters shuffled through the funereal Ohio State locker room inside the Target Center. Still decked out in scarlet, the fifth-year forward whose final season of college basketball took him from here, his hometown, to Columbus had come up agonizingly short. The final field goal attempt of Friday night’s Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal against No. 2 seed Illinois came from the smooth-shooting lefty, a game-tying attempt fired by the Big Ten's leading 3-point shooter with about four seconds left.
It didn’t fall. The Fighting Illini held on, 77-74, delivering what figures to be the death knell for No. 10 seed Ohio State’s NCAA Tournament hopes. The goal of playing in March Madness just once was a driving factor in Battle’s decision to transfer from Minnesota to Ohio State, and Illinois’ comeback win popped the bubble the Buckeyes had desperately fought to inflate during the last month.
Around him, Battle’s teammates began the process of trying to process what had just happened. Freshman Scotty Middleton walked the locker room, hugging everyone and telling them he loved them. Sophomore Roddy Gayle Jr. fiddled with a black tape job on his right hand, where a floor burn suffered three or four possessions into the game finally popped open for a painful final few minutes of the game.
At his locker, Battle stared straight ahead into the abyss that the Buckeyes are now plunged into. One of the nation’s hottest teams since Jake Diebler was promoted to interim coach with six games remaining in the season, Ohio State faces two massive questions and a million little ones.
With the NCAA Tournament nothing but a fantasy, will the Buckeyes accept an NIT bid? And, if so, who will play for and coach the team?
The next 48 hours could reveal a lot about the future of the Ohio State program. Postseason tournaments will be announced Sunday. The transfer portal opens Monday. Will the Buckeyes remain united in their desire to play for each other under a chance to extend the season for a coach who is in the running for but hasn’t been named the full-time coach?
There were no easy answers Friday night. Just a lot of unknown, perhaps more than after any postseason loss in program history.
“We’ll figure it out in the next 2-3 days,” Battle, who represented the Buckeyes as a team captain, told The Dispatch. “I think the biggest thing is us staying together and staying connected and that’s the type of group we have. This may be the end, but we’ll see what happens.”
With Diebler at the helm, Ohio State went 6-2 and had the opportunity to reach the Big Ten Tournament semifinals as a double-digit seed for the second consecutive year. The Buckeyes led the Illini 56-46 with 11 minutes to play and held a 74-71 lead after a Battle step-back 3-pointer with 1:44 to play only for the Illini to climb back with six free throws in the final 1:28 to snatch the victory away.
A win would’ve continued what has been a run Gayle described as miraculous with Diebler at the helm. The question now for incoming athletic director Ross Bjork is whether Diebler showed enough to merit the full-time job, and the 38-year-old Ohio native has solidified himself as a legitimate option.
It’s possible that the Buckeyes could have players decide to enter the portal rather than play in a postseason that’s not the NCAA Tournament if they don’t know the future direction of the program. At the same time, no team could announce the hiring of a coach who is still coaching his team at the most important time of year should it be someone from outside the program.
“We’ll see what happens,” Battle said. “It’s a team decision. There’s a lot of circumstances going on.”
At the postgame public press conference, sophomore captain Bruce Thornton said the Buckeyes have more work to do.
“You couldn't tell me how the season was going to end or how it was going to begin, but I'm glad I had the experience,” he said. “We still have an opportunity to play in the postseason, so as a team, we're going to play in that.”
Reaction to the possibility of playing in the NIT was mixed but mostly positive among the eight players The Dispatch spoke with postgame. Some said they unequivocally said they would want to play while others said they would want to talk with the rest of the team and make the decision together. Battle said having the coaching situation settled would not have any bearing on the team’s decision.
The Buckeyes did not stick around after the loss, flying back to Columbus later Friday night. Diebler, who joked with reporters Thursday that he needed to spend less time talking and more time preparing and trying to find some time for some rest, said the coming days will involve catching up on some rest in order to get rejuvenated “for hopefully a little postseason run.”
There’s a lot to sort out. Maybe Ohio State can get to Sunday, make a decision on its postseason fate and move forward without the coaching situation settled. Maybe Bjork is able to finalize a hire. Maybe someone or some ones enter the transfer portal Monday. Maybe nobody does.
Or maybe these same Buckeyes decide to keep it rolling regardless of what postseason opportunity is presented and whether or not they know where things are headed after the final whistle is officially blown on the season. Regardless, Diebler said he's committed to continuing to serve these players for as long as he possibly can.
“I’ve had a lot of fun,” Diebler said. “I’ve had a lot of fun with this group. These guys are a joy to coach. I think if we do play, there’s a championship to be won and I know the competitive spirit of this group. I would anticipate that if that’s the case then we’ll be ready to go.”
Stay tuned.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State now faces multiple questions after loss to Illinois
