Ohio St. Basketball: Each Buckeyes Starter's Biggest Area to Improve in 2014-15

It is much easier said than done, but perhaps college basketball fans and media members should not overreact to any losses before the month of February.

After all, the 2014-15 Ohio State Buckeyes went from the second-best team in the Big Ten before the season started to a squad that was bound for the NIT in the early conference schedule to a team that is once again on track to reach the upper portion of the conference standings.

Ohio State looked outmatched against Louisville, North Carolina, Iowa and Indiana and had zero quality wins to five losses by Jan. 17. However, the Buckeyes picked up that elusive quality win against Indiana Sunday and now appear to be headed in the right direction with two straight wins before a critical showdown with Maryland Thursday.

The team has turned things around because of improvements at the individual level. Let’s take a look at where each starter has improved the most over the course of the season using the starting lineup from Ohio State’s most recent game.

Shannon Scott: Turnovers

Doug McSchooler/Associated Press

From a pure statistical standpoint, the first thing that jumps out about Shannon Scott is the fact that he is sixth in the nation in assists per game (6.7).

However, he has been dishing out assists all season long and actually had an astounding 41 in the first three games of the year. Where he has shown his most improvement from early in the campaign to now is his ability to protect the ball.

Scott has only turned it over more than two times in a game twice in the past 10 contests. That stands in stark contrast to the point guard who coughed it up five times in the loss to Louisville and five more times in the win over Morehead State a week later.

Scott’s never going to be an elite scorer, but there are impressive scoring options alongside him in D’Angelo Russell and Marc Loving. That means the most important thing Scott can do in terms of offense is simply distribute it to the wings and let the playmakers go to work. 

The only way he can do that is if he continues to protect the ball.

D’Angelo Russell: Consistency

Hannah Foslien/Associated Press

Enjoy Russell while you still can because he could very well be a top-five pick in the upcoming NBA draft.

The electrifying talent, ability to light up the scoreboard at a moment’s notice and the highlight-reel passes have been there all season, but Russell is starting to put together a streak of consistency that should have the rest of the Big Ten rather worried.

Gone in recent games are the 4-of-16 efforts against Iowa or the 3-of-15 efforts against Indiana that fans saw earlier in the year. Instead, Russell has shot 56 percent from the field in the past four games and has topped 20 points in each one, including the 33-point effort against Northwestern.

Coach Thad Matta discussed Russell’s value to the team, via Patrick Maks of Eleven Warriors:

"

I think that he’s pretty comfortable with what we’re doing … great understanding of the game of basketball. Very diligent … he wants to be a great player…Before practice after practice you see him in there working … He’s also a guy that’s fun to play with, he makes our team — his teammates better — with the ball in his hands. 

"

It is easy to forget that Russell is only a freshman when watching him play, but the consistency is likely the result of more seasoning as he grows accustomed to the college game. The rest of the Big Ten is officially on notice if that continues.

Sam Thompson: Defensive Aggressiveness

Jay LaPrete/Associated Press

Sam Thompson is shooting an abysmal 20 percent from three-point range on the season, but he has made up for it with improved and tenacious defense in recent games.

While it has shown up in the box scores (at least one steal in the past 10 games, including a five-steal effort against Michigan), it is his ability to stay in front of the other team’s best wing player on a nightly basis that makes Thompson valuable. Rarely does his man ever get a clean look at a three or even a straight-line drive to the basket.

Matta has built his program on the back of strong defensive squads, and Thompson is Ohio State’s best defender this season. The Buckeyes are going to need that come March.

Jae’Sean Tate: Versatility

Doug McSchooler/Associated Press

Matta rewarded Jae’Sean Tate’s energy off the bench earlier this season with a spot in the starting lineup the past two contests. All Tate did to reward his coach was turn in 20 points and six rebounds on 9-of-10 shooting from the field in the critical victory against Indiana.

While Tate’s energy is important for the Buckeyes, it has been there all year. It is his versatility and ability to play multiple positions that will be crucial if Matta is going to stick with the small-ball lineup we have seen the past couple of games. Tate may only be 6’4” tall, but he mixes it up down low with much bigger players on a consistent basis.

Tim Shoemaker of Eleven Warriors summarized Tate’s ability to play above his listed height:

"

Take a glance up and down Ohio State's roster and you'll find 10 of its 13 players are listed at 6-foot-5 or taller.

Jae'Sean Tate is not one of those 10, but that doesn't really matter. Because even though he stands just 6-foot-4, Tate plays just as big — if not bigger than — any of the other Buckeyes.

"

That versatility allows Matta to mix and match a number of different combinations, which has paid off in the past two games.

Anthony Lee: Incomplete

Nam Y. Huh/Associated Press

It wouldn’t really be fair to Anthony Lee to grade anything he has done at this point of the season as a starter because he just cracked the initial rotation in the past two games.

He turned in the exact type of performance that the Buckeyes were looking for against Northwestern with eight points on 4-of-4 shooting from the field, but he was only on the floor for two minutes against the smaller Hoosiers. 

Perhaps the best thing Lee has done in the eyes of the fans is take minutes away from the much-maligned Amir Williams. More performances like the one we saw against Northwestern from Tate would go a long way toward boosting Ohio State’s chances in the Big Ten race.

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