Ohio State men’s basketball enters AP poll at No. 23

After starting the season off with four wins, including two on the road against top-50 KenPom ranked teams, the Ohio State men’s basketball team has found itself in the AP Top 25 for the first time in the 2018-19 season, coming in at No. 23.

Chris Holtmann’s team has overcome a tremendous production and leadership loss following the departure of four key veterans from last year’s surprise NCAA Tournament team. However, the combination of players growing into larger roles and a talented group of newcomers has allowed the Buckeyes to surpass their early season expectations.

In each of their first four games, the basketball Buckeyes have seen different players step up, from sophomore big man Kaleb Wesson and senior guard C.J. Jackson to freshmen Duane Washington Jr. and Luther Muhammad to graduate transfer guard Keyshawn Woods.

Holtmann has been able to find production from a multitude of players in the early going. He will need that versatility as the Bucks’ schedule includes some heavyweights in the coming weeks, including Syracuse and No. 17 UCLA.

The top five this week remain unchanged with No. 1 Duke, No. 2 Kansas, No. 3 Gonzaga, No. 4 Virginia, and No. 5 Tennessee. Other Big Ten teams in the rankings are No. 9 Michigan, No. 11 Michigan State,No. 20 Iowa, No. 24 Purdue, and No. 25 Wisconsin.

The Buckeyes will be back in action on Tuesday, Nov. 20 at 7 p.m. ET against Samford in a game broadcast on BTN Plus.