What did the Ohio State basketball team learn about itself in Maui Invitational?
LAHAINA, Hawaii – The intrigue was just as high within the program as it was from the outside as Ohio State touched down in Maui. After three games against low-major competition, the Buckeyes joined a loaded Maui Invitational field featuring three top-25 teams, an in-state foe in Cincinnati and a historically bad Louisville team.
Sitting just outside of the top 25, the Buckeyes would get their first real opportunities against high-major competition. On Wednesday morning, Ohio State had put the finishing touches on a 2-1 run and fifth-place finish with an 80-73 win against No. 21 Texas Tech. Seven of the nine players used by coach Chris Holtmann were elsewhere last season, and these three games provided the first real data points on what to expect from this year’s team.
OSU Headlines newsletter:Sign up for our daily newsletter on Ohio State sports
Ohio State Sports Insider:Join the Ohio State Sports Insider text group with reporters Adam Jardy, Bill Rabinowitz and Joey Kaufman
“I think we can learn a lot from all three games,” coach Chris Holtmann, leaning against the wall outside the media room underneath the court at the Lahaina Civic Center, told The Dispatch. “I was as curious about our team of any team I’ve ever coached in a preseason event. Just really, really curious. How are we going to play against adversity?”
For the first time this year, the Buckeyes saw that adversity. At first, they struggled. As the tournament went on, they started to adapt. Now, with 22 of the remaining 25 regular-season games scheduled against high-major competition, Ohio State returned to the mainland with a clearer picture of what it is this season.
In the team meeting room at the Hyatt Regency, graduate transfer Isaac Likekele shared his top takeaway with his teammates.
“I was telling them you really want to celebrate each other’s success,” the fifth-year player said. “Right now, to see the way that Bruce (Thornton) was playing, to see the way that Brice (Sensabaugh) was playing, the way that Felix (Okpara) was playing, the way Zed (Key) was playing, I can’t do nothing but enjoy that. It’s just amazing to see.”
Ohio State basketball: From Justice Sueing to Brice Sensabaugh, here are Ohio State's keys to the season
Ohio State’s inability to slow down opposing offenses last season was well-documented. The Buckeyes allowed 99.3 points per 100 possessions last season according to KenPom.com, their mark in Holtmann’s five seasons and most porous effort since allowing 101.0 during the 2016-17 season – Thad Matta’s last. That team was passed over by the NIT.
Under newly hired assistant coach Jack Owens, the need to turn things around defensively has been an offseason priority. The first three games saw Ohio State hold its opponents to 82.2 points per 100 possessions or fewer (and an average of 50.7 points per game) according to KenPom.com, but Maui was guaranteed to provide a stiffer test.
In going 2-1, Ohio State’s defense was a bit of a mixed bag. In the 88-77 opening loss to San Diego State, the Buckeyes had an adjusted defensive efficiency rating of 122.5. Only two teams had better marks against Ohio State last season and the Buckeyes lost both games. The Aztecs, at No. 34 in adjusted offensive efficiency, have been the most dangerous offensive team on Ohio State’s early-season schedule.
Things got better against Cincinnati (53 points allowed, 87.8 adjusted defensive efficiency) and more challenging against Texas Tech (73 points, 118.0 adjusted defensive efficiency), and Ohio State will head to Duke ranked No. 61 in adjusted defensive efficiency at 95.4.
That’s an improvement on the previous two seasons still with room for improvement this season. Offensively, though, there hasn’t been much of a drop-off after losing Malaki Branham and E.J. Liddell to the NBA.
Bruce Thornton: With freshman Bruce Thornton at point guard, Ohio State basketball starting to settle in
After Justice Sueing scored 20 in the season opener against Robert Morris and Brice Sensabaugh had 20 against Eastern Illinois two games later, Sean McNeil scored 22 points in a losing effort against the Aztecs. Two days later, Sueing took it up another notch and poured in a career high 33 points to lead the Buckeyes past the Red Raiders in the Maui finale.
“Anybody on this team has the ability to score the ball and to go off,” third-year center Zed Key said after the Texas Tech game. “Justice had a dazzling performance. He's vital for this team. He's an older guy. He's a leader.”
The list of 20-point scorers doesn’t include Key, who had 19 against Cincinnati. Sensabaugh leads the team at 15.8 points per game in only 18.1 minutes per game. Texas Tech coach Mark Adams said it’s a lot to handle.
“They got so many players that you have to focus in on that could get 15, 20 points,” he said. “Just a very, very explosive offense. I talked about Sean McNeil and what he shoots. And then you got Brice, number 10, who may end up being a lottery pick, just unbelievable scorer. So it's difficult defensively to just focus in on one or two guys.”
For the most part, those offensive talents have allowed the Buckeyes to cover for a defense that is still a work in progress. In the loss to San Diego State, Holtmann estimated that his team played about 15 minutes’ worth of defense.
As of Saturday night’s games, San Diego State is the best-rated offense the Buckeyes have played at No. 34. Seven Big Ten teams, plus Wednesday’s road opponent (Duke) and Ohio State’s opponent in the CBS Sports Classic (North Carolina) are all ranked higher than the Aztecs.
“I did not love stretches of our defense again,” Holtmann said after beating Texas Tech. “I just think it wanes. I thought we had a terrible stretch in transition defense in the middle part of the first half, and I told them that at halftime.
“The numbers are not great either. So we got to get better in that area, but I think offensively we were able to keep 'em at bay.”
Across the ocean, it's feedback the Buckeyes can try to apply.
Get more Ohio State basketball news by listening to our podcasts
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Lessons learned from Maui, Ohio State basketball now facing Duke test
