2023–24 Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball team
American college basketball season
The 2023–24 Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball team represented Ohio State University in the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season . They were led by head coach Chris Holtmann for the first 25 games of the season.[ 1] The Buckeyes played their home games at Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio as members of the Big Ten Conference .
They finished the regular season 19–12, 9–11 in Big Ten play to finish in a three-way tie for ninth place. As the No. 10 seed in the Big Ten tournament , they defeated Iowa in the second round[ 2] before losing to Illinois in the quarterfinals.[ 3] They received a bid to the National Invitation Tournament as a No. 2 seed.[ 4]
On February 14, 2024, the school fired head coach Chris Holtmann.[ 5] Assistant coach Jake Diebler was named interim head coach for the remainder of the season.[ 6] On March 17, the school named Diebler the team's new head coach.[ 7]
Previous season
The Buckeyes finished the season 16–19, 5–15 in Big Ten play to finish in 13th place. They defeated Wisconsin ,[ 8] Iowa ,[ 9] and Michigan State [ 10] in the Big Ten tournament before losing to eventual tournament champion Purdue in the semifinals.[ 11]
Offseason
Departures
Incoming transfers
Source[ 12]
Recruiting classes
2023 recruiting class
College recruiting information
Name
Hometown
High school / college
Height
Weight
Commit date
Taison Chatman CG
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Totino-Grace High School
6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
175 lb (79 kg)
Sep 20, 2022
Star ratings : Rivals : 247Sports : ESPN : ESPN grade: 87
Devin Royal SF
Pickerington, Ohio
Pickerington High School Central
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
210 lb (95 kg)
Aug 3, 2022
Star ratings : Rivals : 247Sports : ESPN : ESPN grade: 86
Scotty Middleton SF
Miami, Florida
Sunrise Christian Academy
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
Aug 7, 2022
Star ratings : Rivals : 247Sports : ESPN : ESPN grade: 88
Austin Parks C
Saint Marys, Ohio
Memorial High School
6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
260 lb (120 kg)
Feb 13, 2022
Star ratings : Rivals : 247Sports : ESPN : ESPN grade: 81
Overall recruiting rankings: Rivals : 40 247Sports : 12 ESPN : —
Note : In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.
Sources:
2024 recruiting class
Roster
2023–24 Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball team
Players
Coaches
Pos.
#
Name
Height
Weight
Year
Previous school
Hometown
G
0
Scotty Middleton
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
Fr
Sunrise Christian Academy
Miami, FL
G
1
Roddy Gayle Jr.
6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
210 lb (95 kg)
So
Wasatch Academy
Niagara Falls, NY
G
2
Bruce Thornton
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
215 lb (98 kg)
So
Milton HS (GA)
Fairburn, GA
G
3
Taison Chatman
6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
175 lb (79 kg)
Fr
Totino-Grace HS
Minneapolis, MN
G
4
Dale Bonner
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
175 lb (79 kg)
GS
Shaker Heights HS Fairmont State /Baylor
Shaker Heights, OH
F
10
Jamison Battle
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
220 lb (100 kg)
GS
DeLaSalle HS George Washington /Minnesota
Robbinsdale, MN
G
12
Evan Mahaffey
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
200 lb (91 kg)
So
Moeller HS Penn State
Cincinnati, OH
G
15
Bowen Hardman
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
So
Princeton HS (OH)
Cincinnati, OH
F
21
Devin Royal
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
210 lb (95 kg)
Fr
Pickerington HS Central
Pickerington, OH
F
23
Zed Key
6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
245 lb (111 kg)
Sr
Long Island Lutheran MS and HS
Bay Shore, NY
F
24
Kalen Etzler
6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
So
Crestview HS (OH)
Van Wert, OH
C
25
Austin Parks
6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
260 lb (118 kg)
Fr
Memorial HS (OH)
Saint Marys, OH
C
34
Felix Okpara
6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)
235 lb (107 kg)
So
Link Academy
Lagos, Nigeria
G
42
Colby Baumann
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
So
IMG Academy
Houston, TX
F
44
Owen Spencer
6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
230 lb (104 kg)
Sr
Turpin HS The Citadel
Cincinnati, OH
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on
Roster
Depth chart
Schedule and results
Date time, TV
Rank#
Opponent#
Result
Record
High points
High rebounds
High assists
Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
October 22, 2023 *6:00 p.m., ESPN+ /BSOH
at Dayton
W 78–70
-
21 – Thornton
5 – Battle
3 – Bonner
UD Arena (13,407)Dayton, OH
Regular season
November 6, 2023 *7:00 p.m., BTN Plus
Oakland
W 79–73
1–0
17 –
8 –
5 – Gayle Jr.
Value City Arena (9,244)Columbus, OH
November 10, 2023 *7:00 p.m., Peacock
No. 15 Texas A&M
L 66–73
1–1
24 – Thornton
7 –
6 – Gayle Jr.
Value City Arena (12,704)Columbus, OH
November 15, 2023 *7:00 p.m., BTN
Merrimack
W 76–52
2–1
20 – Gayle Jr.
12 – Key
6 – Thornton
Value City Arena (7,929)Columbus, OH
November 19, 2023 *4:00 p.m., BTN
Western Michigan Emerald Coast Classic campus site game
W 73–56
3–1
13 –
11 – Okpara
6 – Thornton
Value City Arena (9,505)Columbus, OH
November 24, 2023 *7:00 p.m., CBSSN
vs. No. 17 Alabama Emerald Coast Classic semifinals
W 92–81
4–1
29 – Thornton
10 – Okpara
4 – Thornton
The Arena at NFSC (2,196)Niceville, FL
November 25, 2023 *7:00 p.m., CBSSN
vs. Santa Clara Emerald Coast Classic Championship
W 86–56
5–1
21 – Battle
7 – Okpara
7 – Thornton
The Arena at NFSC (2,196)Niceville, FL
November 29, 2023 *7:00 p.m., BTN
Central Michigan
W 88–61
6–1
25 – Thornton
9 – Okpara
5 – Mahaffey
Value City Arena (8,223)Columbus, OH
December 3, 2023 6:30 p.m., BTN
Minnesota
W 84–74
7–1 (1–0)
26 – Thornton
7 –
5 – Thornton
Value City Arena (10,481)Columbus, OH
December 6, 2023 *7:00 p.m., BTN Plus
Miami (OH)
W 84–64
8–1
15 – Gayle Jr.
10 – Key
4 – Key
Value City Arena (9,098)Columbus, OH
December 9, 2023 6:00 p.m., BTN
at Penn State
L 80–83
8–2 (1–1)
17 – Thornton
11 – Key
6 – Mahaffey
Bryce Jordan Center (9,732)University Park, PA
December 16, 2023 *3:00 p.m., CBS
vs. UCLA CBS Sports Classic
W 67–60
9–2
19 – Gayle, Jr.
7 – Thornton
4 – Thornton
State Farm Center (17,058)Atlanta, GA
December 21, 2023 *6:00 p.m., BTN Plus
New Orleans
W 78–36
10–2
17 – Battle
9 – Battle
4 – Battle
Value City Arena (11,749)Columbus, OH
December 30, 2023 *7:00 p.m., FOX
vs. West Virginia Legends of Basketball Showcase
W 78–75 OT
11–2
32 – Gayle, Jr.
9 – Battle
6 – Gayle, Jr.
Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (12,211)Cleveland, OH
January 3, 2024 7:00 p.m., BTN
Rutgers
W 76–72
12–2 (2–1)
24 – Thornton
7 – 2 tied
7 – Thornton
Value City Arena (10,614)Columbus, OH
January 6, 2024 8:00 p.m., FOX
at Indiana
L 65–71
12–3 (2–2)
17 – Battle
15 – Okpara
5 – Thornton
Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (16,584)Bloomington, IN
January 10, 2024 8:30 p.m., BTN
No. 15 Wisconsin
L 60–71
12–4 (2–3)
18 – Battle
8 – Battle
6 – Thornton
Value City Arena (11,276)Columbus, OH
January 15, 2024 12:00 p.m., FOX
at Michigan Rivalry
L 65–73
12–5 (2–4)
19 – Thornton
9 – Okpara
3 – Bonner
Crisler Center (12,202)Ann Arbor, MI
January 20, 2024 12:00 p.m., BTN
Penn State
W 79–67
13–5 (3–4)
16 – Mahaffey
14 – Okpara
6 – Thornton
Value City Arena (15,267)Columbus, OH
January 23, 2024 7:00 p.m., Peacock
at Nebraska
L 69–83
13–6 (3–5)
16 – Thornton
7 – Battle
6 – Thornton
Pinnacle Bank Arena (14,408)Lincoln, NE
January 27, 2024 8:30 p.m., BTN
at Northwestern
L 58–83
13–7 (3–6)
18 – Thornton
5 – Okpara
3 – Gayle, Jr.
Welsh–Ryan Arena (6,218)Evanston, IL
January 30, 2024 7:00 p.m., Peacock
No. 14 Illinois
L 75–87
13–8 (3–7)
21 – Battle
6 – Battle
4 – Thornton
Value City Arena (10,285)Columbus, OH
February 2, 2024 7:00 p.m., FS1
at Iowa
L 77–79
13–9 (3–8)
17 – Battle
8 – Okpara
4 – Mahaffey
Carver–Hawkeye Arena (9,986)Iowa City, IA
February 6, 2024 7:00 p.m., Peacock
Indiana
L 73–76
13–10 (3–9)
19 – 2 tied
6 – Mahaffey
4 – Gayle, Jr.
Value City Arena (11,157)Columbus, OH
February 10, 2024 4:00 p.m., FS1
Maryland
W 79–75 2OT
14–10 (4–9)
24 – Thornton
7 – 2 tied
4 – Thornton
Value City Arena (13,471)Columbus, OH
February 13, 2024 9:00 p.m., Peacock
at No. 20 Wisconsin
L 54–62
14–11 (4–10)
18 – Thornton
6 – Mahaffey
5 – Thornton
Kohl Center (14,931)Madison, WI
February 18, 2024 1:00 p.m., CBS
No. 2 Purdue
W 73–69
15–11 (5–10)
22 – Thornton
4 – 2 tied
3 – Gayle
Value City Arena (18,353)Columbus, OH
February 22, 2024 8:00 p.m., BTN
at Minnesota
L 79–88
15–12 (5–11)
25 – Thornton
7 – Mahaffey
6 – Thornton
Williams Arena (8,558)Minneapolis, MN
February 25, 2024 4:00 p.m., CBS
at Michigan State
W 60–57
16–12 (6–11)
14 – Royal
8 – Gayle, Jr.
4 – Thornton
Breslin Center (14,797)East Lansing, MI
February 29, 2024 6:30 p.m., FS1
Nebraska
W 78–69
17–12 (7–11)
32 – Battle
10 – Gayle, Jr.
3 – 2 tied
Value City Arena (13,090)Columbus, OH
March 3, 2024 4:00 p.m., CBS
Michigan Rivalry
W 84–61
18–12 (8–11)
17 – Thornton
6 – Okpara
5 – Thornton
Value City Arena (16,606)Columbus, OH
March 10, 2024 2:00 p.m., BTN
at Rutgers
W 73–51
19–12 (9–11)
14 – Gayle, Jr.
8 – Okpara
6 – Thornton
Jersey Mike's Arena (8,000)Piscataway, NJ
Big Ten Tournament
March 14, 2024 6:30 p.m., BTN
(10)
vs. (7) Iowa Second Round
W 90–78
20–12
23 – Battle
9 – Battle
9 – Thornton
Target Center (12,338)Minneapolis, MN
March 15, 2024 6:30 p.m., BTN
(10)
vs. (2) No. 13 Illinois Quarterfinals
L 74–77
20–13
21 – Battle
10 – Okpara
10 – Thornton
Target Center (12,675)Minneapolis, MN
NIT
March 19, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN2
(2)
Cornell First Round - Wake Forest Bracket
W 88–83
21–13
17 – Battle
8 – Battle
5 – Battle
Value City Arena (4,517)Columbus, OH
March 23, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+
(2)
(3) Virginia Tech Second Round - Wake Forest Bracket
W 81–73
22–13
21 – Battle
10 – Battle
7 – Thornton
Value City Arena (7,541)Columbus, OH
March 26, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN
(2)
(4) Georgia Quarterfinals - Wake Forest Bracket
L 77–79
22–14
22 – Battle
8 – Battle
10 – Thornton
Value City Arena (7,641)Columbus, OH
*Non-conference game.
# Rankings from
AP Poll . (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in
Eastern Time .
Source[ 13]
Rankings
Ranking movementsLegend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes Week Poll Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Final AP — — — RV RV RV RV RV RV — — — — — — — — — — — — Coaches RV — — RV 25 RV RV RV RV RV — — — — — — — — — — —
References
^ Galatzan, Matt (February 14, 2024). "Ohio State Fires Head Basketball Coach Chris Holtmann" . Sports Illustrated Ohio State Buckeyes News, Analysis and More . Retrieved March 19, 2024 .
^ "Ohio State 90-78 Iowa (Mar 14, 2024) Game Recap" . ESPN . Retrieved March 19, 2024 .
^ "Illinois 77-74 Ohio State (Mar 15, 2024) Box Score" . ESPN . Retrieved March 19, 2024 .
^ "Ohio State men's basketball miss NCAA tournament, picked for NIT" . NBC4 WCMH-TV . March 17, 2024. Retrieved March 19, 2024 .
^ "Ohio State fires Chris Holtmann: Buckeyes basketball coach dismissed in midst of seventh season" . CBSSports.com . February 14, 2024. Retrieved March 19, 2024 .
^ "Why did Ohio State fire Chris Holtmann? Basketball coach's record, buyout, more to know" . The Columbus Dispatch . Retrieved March 19, 2024 .
^ "Ohio State hires Diebler as head coach after going 6-2 in interim role" . NBC Sports . March 17, 2024. Retrieved March 19, 2024 .
^ "Ohio State 65-57 Wisconsin (Mar 8, 2023) Final Score" . ESPN . Retrieved March 19, 2024 .
^ "Ohio State 73-69 Iowa (Mar 9, 2023) Final Score" . ESPN . Retrieved March 19, 2024 .
^ "Ohio State 68-58 Michigan State (Mar 10, 2023) Final Score" . ESPN . Retrieved March 19, 2024 .
^ "Purdue 80-66 Ohio State (Mar 11, 2023) Final Score" . ESPN . Retrieved March 19, 2024 .
^ "2023 Ohio State Basketball Transfer Portal" . On3.com . Retrieved May 20, 2023 .
^ "EXCITING HOME SCHEDULE AHEAD FOR 2023-24 SEASON" . Ohio State Buckeyes . Retrieved May 20, 2023 .
Venues Rivalries Culture & lore People Seasons NCAA national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics