Season in Review: 2021-2022 Men’s Basketball

Nightly nail biters, a lights out superstar, and an emerging true freshman stud gave us one crazy ride

Adam Bloom | April 8th, 2022

Upon entering the 2021-2022 Men’s Basketball season in November, excitement was brewing in Columbus as the Basketbucks looked forward to a season where they would be led by their returning star, Junior Forward E.J. Liddell. Surrounding Liddell was a group of players that looked to be a solid core to contend with. The team had a little bit of everything. Ohio State had program veterans, such as F Kyle Young and F Justin Ahrens who have been staples of the team for years. There were also new transfers to the program, such as G Jamari Wheeler and C Joey Brunk, who fit the needs of the team when players left last year’s team. Young returning players such as F Zed Key, F Eugene Brown III, and G Meechie Johnson Jr. were key contributors to the program and they will likely be handed the keys to the program, going forward, with the departure of many players this coming offseason. That’s not to mention true freshman Guard Malaki Branham, who’s breakout performance over the course of the second half of the season wowed the basketball world, and propelled him to a projected first-round pick in the upcoming NBA Draft. Chris Holtmann’s team, and the Buckeye faithful fans, sat down in front of their TV’s on November 9th, excited to watch this highly anticipated team bulldoze lowley Akron to open their 2021-2022 campaign. Instead, a few hours later, Buckeye fans’ hearts were racing as Zed Key hit a layup with less than one second remaining to give the Buckeyes a 1-0 start to the season. The next 5 months would be filled with the same nerve wrenching thrills that the Buckeyes experienced on opening night. A season full of highs and lows would come down to the essential question: When is Holtmann’s program going to take a leap to the next level?

The Buckeyes finished the season with a 20-12 overall record. They finished an impressive 13-3 at home, but struggled on the road to a 5-6 mark. Holtmann’s squad finished 6th in the Big Ten, with a conference record of 12-8. Upon first glance, this team didn’t have too shabby of a season. Despite some unexpected losses at the end, 20-12 wasn’t what fans had hoped for, but it wasn’t terrible. The 6th place finish in the Big Ten was disappointing in the context of how close the Buckeyes were to the top with just a few weeks left in the season, but generally speaking, finishing top 6 in the best conference in college basketball is respectable. The record on the road was not good, but playing in the Big Ten means every road game, regardless of opponent, is going to be a significant challenge. The home record was phenomenal, and the Buckeyes were the Big Ten team to last the longest without a home loss. These results left the Buckeyes’ regular season finish as above average, but not to the expectations that the team entered the season with.

Ohio State was led this season by E.J. Liddell, who averaged a team high 19.4 PPG on 49% shooting from the field. Liddell also led the team in rebounding with 7.9 RPG, as well as blocks, with 2.6 BPG. Jamari Wheeler led the team in assists, with 2.9 per game, as well as steals, with 1.3 per game. Malaki Branham was the second leading scorer, averaging 13.7 PPG on a team best 49.8% field goal percentage. While Liddell was the player who stood out the most on this Buckeye team, Branham’s emergence as a first-round NBA draft pick and second star in Columbus breathed hope into Buckeye fans who worried that Chris Holtmann’s one man show wasn’t working. Ohio State struggled in many major statistical categories from a team perspective, despite the strong showing from players like Liddell and Branham. The team finished 139th in PPG, 267th in RPG, 251st in APG, and 132nd in points allowed. These numbers are highly concerning given the talent level that was on this team.

The season was full of highs and lows, many, many nail biters, postponed and canceled games, and a full-scale implosion in the month of March. After a 4-2 start to the first month of the season, energy and optimism around the program remained high. While Holtmann searched for his second man to support Liddell, the Buckeyes were rolling with 2 ranked wins, including one over #1 ranked Duke. Despite this hot start, things began to shift in December. As Covid-19 began to surge again, the Buckeyes had multiple cancellations, and only played one game in December, which they were able to win. The beginning of January brought the team back to the court more consistently, but Liddell was struggling to get hot after returning from multiple weeks off. It was at this time that Malaki Branham broke onto the scene and breathed life back into his team. Entering a matchup with Nebraska, Branham’s career high was 11 points. That night he led the team with 35, the second most points by a freshman in program history. He then returned against Indiana and led the team in scoring once more with 13 points. Headed into a January 9th matchup with Northwestern, Branham’s emergence began, but Liddell’s cold streak was holding the Buckeyes back. That night, Liddell exploded for a career high 34 points, along with 5 blocks. Branham played well again, with a team-second 24 points.

The Buckeyes were entering the final stretch of January looking towards a loaded week ahead with games against Minnesota, #6 Purdue, and Iowa. This was a ‘Prove it Week’ for the Buckeyes. Despite the excitement heading into this crucial stretch of basketball, the Buckeyes went 1-1 during this stretch that included another postponement of the Iowa game. The Buckeyes were able to defeat Minnesota, giving Holtmann his 100th career win, and seeing E.J. Liddell cement his place as a Buckeye legend by reaching 1,000 career points. Entering the game against #6 ranked Purdue on the road, Ohio State was 5-2 in the Big Ten and was looking to stay on top. After starting 2-15 from 3 and allowing an 8-0 run from Purdue to start the second half, Holtmann’s squad outscored the Boilermakers 46-29 down the stretch. With 35 seconds left on the clock, Liddell hit a 3, and 6 seconds later, Branham got a steal and hit Liddell who sunk another 3 to tie the game with 26 seconds left. Then Jaden Ivey hit a fadeaway 3 as time expired, and the Buckeyes’ hopes sank.

In February, the Basketbucks had some ups and downs, going 5-3 with a massive win against Illinois, but with losses to Rutgers, Iowa, and Maryland. The slap heard ‘round the world by Juwan Howard gave Buckeye fans some much needed entertainment and smugness during a trying time on the hardwood, but a 6 point loss at home to TTUN to finish the regular season made laughing at the Wolverine’s pain less enjoyable. Ohio State finished the season with a devastating 1-4 record that included a loss to Penn State in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament. The Buckeyes, who not too long ago had their eyes on a 4 or 5 seed, found themselves as a 7 seed entering the big dance. The Buckeyes defeated Loyola University of Chicago despite only shooting 1-15 from 3. In the round of 32, the Wildcats of Villanova were too much for the struggling Buckeyes, and despite bringing the game within 2 towards the end, the comeback fell short and Ohio State’s season ended with another Chris Holtmann loss in the first weekend.

What makes the outcome of this season particularly disappointing is the lack of growth in the program from year to year. Last year, in the ‘20-’21 season, the Buckeyes finished 21-10 overall, and 5th in the Big Ten with a 12-8 conference record. The year before that? A 21-20 overall record, and another 6th place finish in the Big Ten with a conference record of 11-9. The ‘19-’20 season didn’t have a big dance as a result of Covid-19, but this season’s boot from the tournament in the round of 32 was Holtmann’s 3rd loss in the second round. Holtmann previously lost once in the first round (as a 2 seed), and has never made it to the second weekend. In a season in which the Buckeyes dealt with much adversity, hopes that this roster could put together a run for the Big Ten title, and make a deep run in March Madness, fell apart and fans were left with a feeling of disappointment. An inability to make the sweet sixteen, and a consistent trend of struggling towards the end of the season, has left many wondering about what the next best steps are for the Ohio State Men’s Hoops program.

Read more Buckeye Kingdom here:

https://www.buckeyekingdom.com/blog

See Recent Articles Below