Ohio State Basketball: 2021-22 season preview and outlook for Buckeyes

Ohio State basketball marches into the 2021-22 season as quite the sleeper squad in Big Ten basketball. While all eyes will be on the Michigan Wolverines and Illinois Fighting Illini, head coach Chris Holtmann and his squad will have vengeance on their mind after getting to the Big Ten Tournament title game and coming up short in the Big Dance.

Last season’s disappointing defeat to No. 15-seed Oral Roberts in the NCAA Tournament as a No. 2 seed will certainly fuel the fire for the Buckeyes this year. They return three full-time starters and a fourth part-time starter in their primary rotation while bringing back depth in seven other returners and five newcomers, including three from the transfer portal.

E.J. Liddell, Justice Sueing, and Kyle Young look to prove they can get past the first weekend and they’ll have plenty of help with Justin Ahrens due to play a bigger role and Cedric Russell (Louisiana), Jamari Wheeler (Penn State), and Joey Brunk (Indiana) are set to make their mark with experience under their belt already.

Ohio State basketball is primed for another run to the NCAA Tournament, but they’ll need to take care of business first during the regular season. They’ll have some guys that will need to adjust to their system, and if they do, look for the Buckeyes to be a single-digit seed once again.

They’re a senior-laden group (10), which should give them the experience they need to get over the hump. Here’s a season preview and overall outlook for Ohio State basketball for 2021-22.