The Buckeyes are set to play exhibition games this month against the Puerto Rican and Egyptian national teams.
Ohio State head coach Chris Holtmann met with the media on Monday afternoon to discuss the Buckeyes’ upcoming trip to the Bahamas and share some updates on the roster, which has seen a considerable amount of turnover this offseason.
Below is a bullet-point recap of what Holtmann had to say during his roughly 17-minute interview session:
- Holtmann said seventh-year senior forward Seth Towns (back) and sixth-year senior forward Justice Sueing (abdomen) are “somewhat limited” right now but both are expected to be fully cleared by the preseason.
- Junior guard Eugene Brown III will likely be on a minutes restriction during the exhibition games against the Puerto Rican and Egyptian national teams on Aug. 4-9. Towns and Sueing will not play, meanwhile.
- Holtmann called the trip to the Bahamas “really important” from a chemistry standpoint, as the Buckeyes added three players through the transfer portal and five freshmen this offseason – the practices more so than the games.
- Speaking of the new faces on the roster, Holtmann said he’s “botched a few names, that’s for sure.” The Buckeyes notably had six scholarship players exhaust their eligibility, two players go to the NBA and two players transfer.
- Holtmann on his three-year contract extension, which was announced in May: “(I'm) really excited about the future and grateful for the trust of the administration.”
- Holtmann mentioned Sueing and junior center Zed Key as two guys that they’ll look to provide leadership this season, but that Oklahoma State transfer guard/forward Isaac Likekele and West Virginia transfer guard Sean McNeil have also stepped up in that regard.
- “We’ll certainly play with a variety of lineups,” Holtmann said of the two games in the Bahamas. “We hope that we come out of this with a group that’s closer, that’s had some time spent together, had some fun and that we learn something about our guys.”
- Holtmann noted some of the players haven’t traveled outside of the continental United States before, so they're looking forward to the trip to the Bahamas, as well as the Maui Invitational in November.
- Holtmann said he loves the beach but he won't be wearing a floral shirt during either trip. "I cannot pull it off, nor will I."
- Holtmann called freshman forward Brice Sensabaugh a natural-born scorer. “He has some real natural gifts offensively.” Notes he needs to work in other areas of his game, though.
- On the addition of freshman Felix Okpara, as well as the commitment from 2023 St. Marys (Ohio) Memorial four-star center Austin Parks, who he can’t mention by name: “Next year, we’ll have three scholarship centers and I know that will make certain people happy.”
- Holtmann said he’s encouraging Key to take more jumpers in practice, which he hopes will translate to the season. Asked if they were going in, though, he said, “Some of them.”
- Holtmann ended his presser by acknowledging the comments from quarterback C.J. Stroud, who said he believes a group of football players could beat the basketball team. “We have the most confident QB1 in the country, and I love that.”
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