Beginning Monday, June 21st, 2004 CHN began unveiling 144 Team previews in 144 Days. CHN ranked the nations top 144 teams, and is unveiling one per day leading up until the opening day of the 2004-05 Season.

Bookmark the 144 Teams in 144 Days home page, and check back each day to see which team is previewed next.

  
#65 Ohio State Buckeyes
Big Ten
2003-04: 14-16, 6-10, 9th
2003-04 postseason: none

By Joel Welser

It wasn’t pretty but the bottom line is Jim O’Brien is out and Thad Matta is in as the head coach for the Buckeyes.  A change could do wonders for a team that never really came together last year.  All the new players last year in J.J. Sullinger, Tony Stockman and Ricardo Billings never really pulled together and the Buckeyes finished a disappointing ninth place in the Big Ten.  They should be more of a team this year with a year of experience under their belt.

Who’s Out: Velimir Radinovic will be a big loss under the basket for Ohio State.  The 7-footer averaged 10.3 points and a team high six rebounds per game last year.  Shun Jenkins and Shaun Smith have also both run out of eligibility.  Jenkins saw minutes in 29 games but averaged just 2.2 points and 2.8 rebounds.  Nick Dials showed a lot of promise his freshman year, playing in 19 games, averaging 4.5 points and 2.1 assists.  Dials has decided to transfer to Akron and will play for the Zips in 2005-2006.  Charles Bass only played in two games for OSU before transferring to Ball State.

Who’s In: Point guard Jamar Butler could be the future of Ohio State.  The 6-2 guard averaged an incredible 32.6 points per game as a senior in high school and was named Ohio’s ‘Mr. Basketball.’  Matt Terwilliger will add more depth to the frontcourt.  The 6-7, 215 pounder has a nice touch, but may need to bulk up a little to defend against the Big Ten competition.  With returnees Ivan Harris and Terrence Dials, as well as Terwilliger, in the frontcourt, incoming freshman Jermyl Jackson-Wilson may not see too many minutes.  He is a talented power forward and should be an important player off the bench.  Junior college transfer Je’Kel Foster should see some time off the bench at the shooting guard position.  He averaged 17 points per game at Chipola Junior College in Florida.

Who to Watch: Terrence Dials came on strong at the end of last season, scoring a season high 22 points in each of Ohio State’s last two games.  He just missed a double-double both games as well as grabbing nine rebounds each contest.  He nearly knocked Illinois out of sole possession of the regular season title during the last regular season game of the year.  If that game was any indication of what Dials can do, then the Big Ten better pay attention.  The 6-9 Youngstown, Ohio native averaged 10.4 points and a team high 6.6 rebounds last year and should only improve for his senior season.  He is a solid defender and a decent blocker, but needs to stay out of foul trouble.  He only fouled out of four games last year, but saw his minutes cut multiple times due to foul problems.

Projected Conference Rank: A relatively tough schedule is ahead for Ohio State, but they should improve on their 14-16 mark.  They definitely have the talent to compete in the Big Ten.  Ending in 7th place in the Big Ten is an improvement, yet it is still underachieving for such a talented group.  If they pull it together by the end, a deep run in the NIT is a big possibility.

Projected Post-season Tournament: NIT

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