Two days after finalizing Jake Diebler as head coach, Ohio State to play Cornell
Life is coming at Jake Diebler pretty fast these days.
Friday night, the Buckeyes fell three points short in their upset bid against eventual Big Ten Tournament champion Illinois during the quarterfinal round with Diebler as interim coach. Saturday night, Diebler went to bed having agreed to become the full-time coach, and the five-year contract worth $2.5 million annually was officially announced Sunday afternoon.
Monday afternoon, Diebler stood on the floor at Value City Arena having just gone through his first press conference as head coach. Much of the event focused on the future of the program and what, eventually, the goals are with Diebler in charge. More immediately, though, was the next game on the schedule: a Tuesday night home date with Cornell in the first round of the NIT.
“It’s interesting,” Diebler said. “I don’t think I would’ve envisioned becoming a head coach and playing a game within 48 hours. That part’s unique, certainly, but I love to hoop, too. I’m excited about the opportunity to get out there and coach these guys. We’ll be prepared for the task at hand.”
Incoming athletic director Ross Bjork said that by removing the interim tag from Diebler’s title, the Buckeyes would better be positioned for a potential postseason run. The start of the NIT and Monday’s opening of the transfer portal didn’t force his hand, Bjork said, but once he had decided to hire Diebler the chance to provide stability for the program would allow Ohio State to make some more immediate decisions on where this season could be going.
After Friday night’s loss to the Fighting Illini, some players said they would accept an NIT invitation but others stated their desire to discuss the situation as a team before committing to anything. That conversation took place Sunday.
“We have a competitive group who, they love to hoop and they enjoy being around each other,” Diebler said. “I think when we all sat in a room and guys got to express their opinions and what they wanted, it was clear they wanted to play. I have no doubts we’re going to approach this game like we have these last eight and we’ll take it from there.”
Ohio State is 6-2 since Diebler was elevated to replace Chris Holtmann, who was fired Feb. 14. The Buckeyes are 20-13 and earned a No. 2 seed in the NIT, guaranteeing them at least two home games should they continue to advance in the tournament.
While they will play in the NIT, it’s not clear how close they will be to full strength. Assistant coach Jack Owens is going to DePaul with Holtmann, and he was not seen during Diebler’s press conference. Other assistant coaches Mike Netti and Brandon Bailey were there, as was director of professional development Terence Dials who has been helping with coaching responsibilities since Holtmann’s departure.
Asked if he will have a full coaching staff Tuesday, Diebler said, “We’ve got to figure out what fits for everybody. There’s still some conversations to be had. A lot of that staff stuff will be sorted out soon, but we have a great group committed to seeing this through with our players. We’re going to give this game (Tuesday) everything we’ve got.”
No Buckeyes entered the portal Monday, and it appears they might have a roster that could be fully intact. While he was the athletic director at Texas A&M, Bjork saw the Aggies advance to the 2022 NIT title game before falling to Xavier, 73-72.
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“To me, this creates momentum, especially with our roster,” he said. “It allows the younger guys to play more minutes, meaningful minutes. The NIT is tough. If you can play as long as possible, that’s only going to help your continuity. That’s only going to help recruiting. To me, the added bonus is playing as long as we can under Jake’s leadership.”
While not confirming a full roster against the Big Red, Diebler said decisions about entering the transfer portal and what lies beyond this season will wait until whenever the Buckeyes play their final game.
“We’ve got something to play for, so our focus is on that,” he said. “Conversations have started. We’ve got to serve these guys well and see this season through. There are great players in this program who care a lot about Ohio State. They showed that. That was revealed by how they played and finished the season. We’ll certainly lean into that and embrace that.
“Those conversations will happen as soon as the season is over.”
The NIT title game is April 4 at Hinkle Fieldhouse, Butler’s home court, in Indianapolis.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State, Jake Diebler preparing for Cornell after unique weekend
