Bruce Thornton scored 28 points, Ohio State had a nice lead at one time, but the Buckeyes still came up short against a ranked team.

Of course, losing shooting guard John Mobley Jr. introduced an extra challenge for coach Jake Diebler’s team, but they also got 26 points from the front court (Amare Bynum and Christoph Tilly).

Unfortunately, they were crushed on the boards, and Virginia’s 9-4 advantage in second-chance point were enough to provide the difference in a game Ohio State really needed to bolster it NCAA Tournament resume.

This game also blew a hole in my theory they really need to double down on local recruiting.

Three former Mr. Ohio Basketballs (Devin Royal, Gabe Cupps and Colin White) played a combined 50 minutes and gave them four points, five rebounds, three assists and two turnovers.

Royal, a 6-6 junior from Pickerington Central, missed 10 of his 12 shots and his turnover was a killer in the closing minutes when Ohio State needed a basket.

He’s the only starter of that trio, but he’s also playing out of position at the 3 (small forward).

Around that time I tweeted, “Rickey Dudley might not have worked at the 3, either,” and I really think that might be an apt comparison. You may best remember Dudley as a tight end on the 1995 team who went on to play in the NFL, but he started his career at Ohio State as a fairly effective power forward for the Buckeyes.

READ MORE: The Word Defining Ohio State Basketball Right Now

Watching OSU men’s basketball is really an experience.

Everything is just so hard for them because of the talent/size deficit any time they face a ranked team.

If these Buckeyes maxed out, they could win 20+ games, but they aren’t doing that because they also don’t do all the little things they need to do as far as rebounding and defense to win games.

They are still really close to being a 20-win team, especially considering close losses to North Carolina and Pitt (among others). That doesn’t mean what is used to but would mark some progress at least.

Can they get there under Diebler?

He’s learning on the job which isn’t fair to him or the players or the fans at this point.

I wouldn’t blame OSU if they pulled the plug, but I am somewhat curious to see what he can do with more time.

If an established winner is out there they should probably get him, but maybe just investing his buyout in better players is the better answer… but that also might not be the full story.

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This was kind of a wild moment during the OSU-Virginia game.

The veteran Fox broadcaster just came out and declared early in the game against Virginia that the Cavaliers were better than Ohio State because they put more money toward bringing in good basketball players while the football program hogs the resources for the Buckeyes.

Whether or not he was working with some inside information or just spouting off based on his perception is unclear.

Perhaps it’s a little bit of both, but ol’ Gus is obviously not the only person who sees this being the situation — and it must be noted that former Buckeye Jimmy Jackson (doing color commentary for the game) did not dispute Johnson, either.

I happen to think he’s right, but I also don’t have inside information. There are resources being put into the program, and Diebler might just be picking the wrong guys (as predecessor Chris Holtmann tended to do) in the portal.

(At least they still have LeBron’s backing)

Diebler was asked about the situation in a video press conference with the Ohio State beat Monday and did not confirm nor deny he needs a bigger payroll.

"I know (athletic director Ross Bjork), his team, myself, we are we are working and really have been working relentlessly to continue to push and increase our NIL situation. This landscape has been evolving right in front of our eyes. That plays a factor. But are there areas that we'd love to get better in and improve in? Absolutely. I'm excited about the things that are happening to help us be better in certain spaces — there’s no question.

“There's things in motion that can't impact the here and now, but are exciting about the future. And I'm just appreciative of what Ross and his team, how we've been able to work together to fight. It's a fight. It's a battle and we're fighting it and we're fighting it together. And I'm appreciative of that."

Overall, that was probably the best way he could have handled that question.

I also tend to think this is the answer of someone who has been told to expect at least a little more help in putting together his next team — which also indicates he will be the one putting it together rather than getting fired.

(For more check out the latest at PressProsMagazine.com from my colleague Jeff Gilbert below.)

Typically watching the Ohio State women play is much more enjoyable than the men.

Kevin McGuff’s squad is 22-4 overall and 11-3 in the Big Ten, and his lineup revolves around electrifying sophomore Jaloni Cambridge with a nice supporting cast that includes wings Kennedy Cambridge (her older sister) and Chance Gray.

Sunday was not such a fun time, though, as the eighth-ranked Buckeyes blew a 19-point lead to No. 20 Maryland.

The Buckeye bigs struggled in this game as Elsa Lemmila scored two points and grabbed four rebounds while Kylie Kitts had three points and four rebounds.

(Rebounding was the story of the game as Maryland totally dominated the boards in the second half.)

Kitts came off the bench in just her second game back from a shoulder injury, so she was probably not at her best, but the Buckeyes are going to need more from her to make some noise next month.

In the aftermath of the women’s loss, I sort of had a hard time figuring out how to contextualize it.

Then I realized the reason for that is every men’s game is such a program referendum/potential crisis/root canal.

The clash between the Buckeyes and Terrapins was more just a good game between two good teams who are gonna finish in the top third of the Big Ten standings and probably host NCAA Tournament games.

They’ll probably continue to be good next year and have a lot of really good players and it’s not an existential crisis if one of them loses.

Weird, huh?

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