Busting Brackets
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NCAA Basketball: Look at 2019 recruiting classes for each state of Ohio team

By Andrew Dieckhoff

PORTLAND, OR - MARCH 21: Brutus, the mascot for the Ohio State Buckeyes performs in the second half against the Arizona Wildcats during the third round of the 2015 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Moda Center on March 21, 2015 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)
PORTLAND, OR - MARCH 21: Brutus, the mascot for the Ohio State Buckeyes performs in the second half against the Arizona Wildcats during the third round of the 2015 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Moda Center on March 21, 2015 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images) /
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COLUMBUS, OH – DECEMBER 15: Head Coach Chris Holtmann of the Ohio State Buckeyes shouts instructions to his team in the first half against the Bucknell Bisons on December 15, 2018 at Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio. Ohio State defeated Bucknell 73-71. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images)
COLUMBUS, OH – DECEMBER 15: Head Coach Chris Holtmann of the Ohio State Buckeyes shouts instructions to his team in the first half against the Bucknell Bisons on December 15, 2018 at Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio. Ohio State defeated Bucknell 73-71. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images) /

Ohio State brings in the Buckeye State’s best NCAA Basketball recruiting class in 2019. What do the other teams from the state have coming in?

In the first installment of our state-focused recruiting coverage, I analyzed all of the incoming classes for each of California’s 25 Division I programs. This time, I take a look at Ohio.

And what better place to start than the Buckeyes themselves?

Ohio State (#13 class in the 247Sports Composite Rankings) – Unsurprisingly, the state’s biggest program brings home the best recruiting class. This group is not only the best in Ohio, but also leads all Big Ten teams. Chris Holtmann is bringing in a trio of consensus Top 50 players to help the team return to the NCAA Tournament. The highest-rated of the three is DJ Carton, ranked #31 in the RSCI composite rankings. This 6’1” point guard out of Iowa who drew heavy interest from various Big Ten schools. According to 247Sports analyst Brian Snow, Carton is “one of the smartest players in the class”. He should fit in nicely for the Buckeyes, providing some guard depth behind Luther Muhammad and Duane Washington. You can expect Carton to become one of the leaders of this team before long.

After Carton, power forward EJ Liddell is the #41 prospect in the Class of 2019. He doesn’t possess the greatest size for the position at just 6’6”, but he has some bulk to him. The top-rated recruit out of the state of Illinois, Liddell also received plenty of Big Ten offers, but settled on coming to Columbus. Despite his somewhat shorter stature, he has long arms and good timing that help him to be an effective rim protector. On the other end of the floor, Liddell is still developing his offensive game, but could provide some high-energy play for Holtmann in 2019-20.

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The last of the four-star recruits, wing Alonzo Gaffney could be a very intriguing player for the Buckeyes. He is extremely long, measuring 6’9” with a 7’4” wingspan. At just 190 pounds, Gaffney isn’t exactly built to bang down low for a living, but he has the ability to step outside a shoot the ball from downtown. Originally from Cleveland, Gaffney played at Brewster Academy in New Hampshire, but returns to his home state ready to take Ohio State back to the Big Dance. He should see a lot of minutes as a freshman, as the Buckeyes are a bit thin on talent on the wings.

Besides these four-star recruits, Ohio State is also bringing Ibrahima Diallo, a 7-footer that shows plenty of potential. He’s a bit raw at the moment, but still rates as a three-star recruit and could provide some depth in the low post behind Kaleb Wesson. Diallo’s role might have gotten even bigger with the transfer of former Top 100 recruit Jaedon Ledee. The Houston native left the Buckeyes to return to his home state and play for TCU, opening the door for Diallo to get more minutes at the five-spot.

Also joining the program is Justice Sueing, who transferred over from Cal after leading the Golden Bears in scoring a season ago. Sueing will sit out this season and has two years of eligibility remaining. The 6’7” forward will slot in nicely in the frontcourt in 2020-21 and will be counted on to make up some of the production that Kaleb Wesson has provided.

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