2025–26 Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball team

2025–26 Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball
2025–26 Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Record	0–0 (0–0 Big Ten)
Head coach	Jake Diebler (2nd season);
Associate head coach	Joel Justus (2nd season)
Assistant coaches	Dave Dickerson (2nd, 10th overall season); Jamall Walker (2nd season); Luke Simons (2nd season); Brian Walsh (1st season);
Home arena	Value City Arena

2025–26 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
	Conf.				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Illinois	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
Indiana	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
Iowa	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
Maryland	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
Michigan	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
Michigan State	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
Minnesota	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
Nebraska	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
Northwestern	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
Oregon	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
Penn State	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
Purdue	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
Rutgers	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
UCLA	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
USC	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
Washington	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–
Wisconsin	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–

† 2026 Big Ten tournament winner As of March 28, 2025 Rankings from AP Poll

The 2025–26 Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball team will represent the Ohio State University during the 2025–26 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They will be led by second-year head coach Jake Diebler, and will play their home games at Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio, as a member of the Big Ten Conference.

Previous season

The Buckeyes finished the 2024–25 season 17–15, 9–11 in Big Ten play to finish in ninth place. As the No. 10 seed in the Big Ten tournament, they lost to Iowa in the first round.^[1] The Buckeyes received a bid for the inaugural College Basketball Crown, but declined.^[2]

Offseason

Departures

Ohio State departures
Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Reason for departure
Meechie Johnson	1	G	6'2"	185	Senior	Cleveland, OH	Transferred to South Carolina
Aaron Bradshaw	4	F	7'1"	215	Sophomore	Rahway, NJ	Transferred to Memphis
Ques Glover	6	G	6'0"	185	GS Senior	Knoxville, TN	Graduated
Micah Parrish	8	G	6'6"	205	GS Senior	Detroit, MI	Graduated
Colby Baumann	10	G	6'3"	185	Junior	Houston, TX	Walk-on; graduated
Evan Mahaffey	12	G	6'6"	200	Junior	Cincinnati, OH	Transferred to Akron
Sean Stewart	13	F	6'9"	220	Sophomore	Windermere, FL	Entered transfer portal
Austin Parks	25	C	6'10"	260	Sophomore	St. Marys, OH	Transferred to Toledo

Incoming transfers

Ohio State incoming transfers
Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous school
Gabe Cupps	4	G	6'2"	180	RS Sophomore	Dayton, OH	Indiana
Christoph Tilly	13	C	7'0"	240	Senior	Berlin, Germany	Santa Clara
Brandon Noel	14	F	6'8"	240	GS Senior	Lucasville, OH	Wright State
Josh Ojianwuna	17	F	6'10"	230	Senior	Asaba, Nigeria	Baylor

Recruiting classes

2025 recruiting class

College recruiting information
Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
A'mare Bynum C	Omaha, Nebraska	Link Academy	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Oct 22, 2024
A'mare Bynum C	Recruit ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: (84)
Myles Herro PG	Milwaukee, Wisconsin	Whitnall High School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Jun 2, 2025
Myles Herro PG	Recruit ratings: Rivals: 247Sports:
Mathieu Grujicic SG	Germany	Alba Berlin	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Jun 3, 2025
Mathieu Grujicic SG	Recruit ratings: No ratings found
Overall recruit ranking: Rivals: 46 247Sports: 47 ESPN: —
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Ohio State 2025 Basketball Commitments". Rivals. Retrieved June 26, 2025. "2025 Ohio State Buckeyes Recruiting Class". ESPN. Retrieved June 26, 2025. "2025 Team Ranking". Rivals. Retrieved June 26, 2025.

2026 recruiting class

College recruiting information (2026)
Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
Marcus Johnson PG	Cleveland, Ohio	Garfield Heights High School	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	Apr 10, 2024
Marcus Johnson PG	Recruit ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: (89)
Alex Smith PF	Columbus, Ohio	Upper Arlington High School	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Sep 2, 2024
Alex Smith PF	Recruit ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: (81)
Overall recruit ranking: Rivals: 2 247Sports: 1 ESPN: —
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Ohio State 2026 Basketball Commitments". Rivals. Retrieved March 26, 2025. "2026 Ohio State Buckeyes Recruiting Class". ESPN. Retrieved March 26, 2025. "2026 Team Ranking". Rivals. Retrieved March 26, 2025.

Roster

2025–26 Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	Year	Previous school	Hometown
G	0	John Mobley Jr.	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	So	Wasatch Academy	Reynoldsburg, OH
F	1	A'Mare Bynum	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Fr	Link Academy	Omaha, NE
G	2	Bruce Thornton	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	Sr	Milton HS	Fairburn, GA
G	3	Taison Chatman	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	RS So	Totino-Grace HS	Minneapolis, MN
G	4	Gabe Cupps	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	RS So	Indiana	Dayton, OH
C	7	Ivan Njegovan	7 ft 1 in (2.16 m)	250 lb (113 kg)	So	Gimnazija Vladimira-Nazora	Otočac, Croatia
G	8	Myles Herro	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Fr	Whitnall HS	Milwaukee, WI
G	9	Mathieu Grujicic	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Fr	Alba Berlin	Berlin, Germany
C	13	Christoph Tilly	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)	240 lb (109 kg)	Sr	Santa Clara	Berlin, Germany
F	14	Brandon Noel	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	240 lb (109 kg)	GS	Wright State	Lucasville, OH
F	17	Josh Ojianwuna	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)	230 lb (104 kg)	Sr	Baylor	Asaba, Nigeria
F	20	Colin White	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	So	Ottawa-Glandorf HS	Ottawa, OH
F	21	Devin Royal	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Jr	Pickerington HS Central	Pickerington, OH
G	55	Braylen Nash (W)	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	So	New Albany HS	New Albany, OH

Head coach

Jake Diebler (Valparaiso)

Assistant coach(es)

Joel Justus (UNC Wilmington)
Dave Dickerson (Maryland)
Jamall Walker (Saint Louis)
Luke Simons (Purdue)
Brian Walsh (Akron)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster

Depth chart

Pos.	Starting 5	Bench 1	Bench 2
C	Christoph Tilly	A'Mare Bynum	Ivan Njegovan
PF	Brandon Noel	Josh Ojianwuna
SF	Devin Royal	Colin White	Mathieu Grujicic
SG	John Mobley Jr.	Taison Chatman	Myles Herro
PG	Bruce Thornton	Gabe Cupps	Braylen Nash

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Opponent^#	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
October 15, 2025* TBD, TBD	Ohio	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
Regular season
November 3, 2025* TBD, TBD	IU Indy	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
November 7, 2025* TBD, TBD	Purdue Fort Wayne	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
November 11, 2025* TBD, TBD	Appalachian State	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
November 16, 2025* TBD, TBD	Notre Dame	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
November 20, 2025* TBD, TBD	Western Michigan	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
November 25, 2025* TBD, TBD	Mount St. Mary's	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
November 28, 2025* TBD, TBD	at Pittsburgh	Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh, PA
December 13, 2025* TBD, TBD	vs. West Virginia Cleveland Hoops Showdown	Rocket Arena Cleveland, OH
December 20, 2025* TBD, CBS	vs. North Carolina CBS Sports Classic	State Farm Arena Atlanta, GA
December 23, 2025* TBD, TBD	Grambling State	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
February 14, 2025* TBD, TBD	vs. Virginia Nashville Hoops Showdown	Bridgestone Arena Nashville, TN
TBD TBD, TBD	Illinois	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
TBD TBD, TBD	Indiana	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
TBD TBD, TBD	at Iowa	Carver–Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, IA
TBD TBD, TBD	at Maryland	Xfinity Center College Park, MD
TBD TBD, TBD	Michigan Rivalry	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
TBD TBD, TBD	at Michigan Rivalry	Crisler Center Ann Arbor, MI
TBD TBD, TBD	at Michigan State	Breslin Student Events Center East Lansing, MI
TBD TBD, TBD	Minnesota	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
TBD TBD, TBD	Nebraska	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
TBD TBD, TBD	at Northwestern	Welsh–Ryan Arena Evanston, IL
TBD TBD, TBD	at Oregon	Matthew Knight Arena Eugene, OR
TBD TBD, TBD	Penn State	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
TBD TBD, TBD	at Penn State	Bryce Jordan Center State College, PA
TBD TBD, TBD	Purdue	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
TBD TBD, TBD	at Rutgers	Jersey Mike's Arena Piscataway, NJ
TBD TBD, TBD	UCLA	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
TBD TBD, TBD	USC	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
TBD TBD, TBD	at Washington	Hec Edmundson Pavilion Seattle, WA
TBD TBD, TBD	Wisconsin	Value City Arena Columbus, OH
TBD TBD, TBD	at Wisconsin	Kohl Center Madison, WI
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time.

Source^[3]

Game summaries

vs Notre Dame

TBD EDT

Notre Dame Fighting Irish 0, Ohio State Buckeyes 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Value City Arena • Columbus, Ohio

at Pittsburgh

TBD EDT

Ohio State Buckeyes 0, Pittsburgh Panthers 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Petersen Events Center • Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

vs. West Virginia

TBD EDT

Ohio State Buckeyes 0, West Virginia Mountaineers 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Rocket Arena • Cleveland, Ohio

vs. North Carolina (CBS Sports Classic)

TBD EDT

Ohio State Buckeyes 0, North Carolina Tar Heels 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

State Farm Arena • Atlanta, Georgia

vs Illinois

TBD
TBD EDT

Illinois Fighting Illini 0, Ohio State Buckeyes 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Value City Arena • Columbus, Ohio

vs Indiana

TBD
TBD EDT

Indiana Hoosiers 0, Ohio State Buckeyes 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Value City Arena • Columbus, Ohio

at Iowa

TBD
TBD EDT

Ohio State Buckeyes 0, Iowa Hawkeyes 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Carver–Hawkeye Arena • Iowa City, Iowa

at Maryland

TBD
TBD EDT

Ohio State Buckeyes 0, Maryland Terrapins 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Xfinity Center • College Park, Maryland

vs Michigan (rivalry)

TBD
TBD EDT

Michigan Wolverines 0, Ohio State Buckeyes 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Value City Arena • Columbus, Ohio

at Michigan (rivalry)

TBD
TBD EDT

Ohio State Buckeyes 0, Michigan Wolverines 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Crisler Center • Ann Arbor, Michigan

at Michigan State

TBD
TBD EDT

Ohio State Buckeyes 0, Michigan State Spartans 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Breslin Student Events Center • East Lansing, Michigan

vs Minnesota

TBD
TBD EDT

Minnesota Golden Gophers 0, Ohio State Buckeyes 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Value City Arena • Columbus, Ohio

vs Nebraska

TBD
TBD EDT

Nebraska Cornhuskers 0, Ohio State Buckeyes 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Value City Arena • Columbus, Ohio

at Northwestern

TBD
TBD EDT

Ohio State Buckeyes 0, Northwestern Wildcats 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Welsh–Ryan Arena • Evanston, Illinois

at Oregon

TBD
TBD EDT

Ohio State Buckeyes 0, Oregon Ducks 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Matthew Knight Arena • Eugene, Oregon

vs Penn State

TBD
TBD EDT

Penn State Nittany Lions 0, Ohio State Buckeyes 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Value City Arena • Columbus, Ohio

at Penn State

TBD
TBD EDT

Ohio State Buckeyes 0, Penn State Nittany Lions 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Bryce Jordan Center • State College, Pennsylvania

vs Purdue

TBD
TBD EDT

Purdue Boilermakers 0, Ohio State Buckeyes 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Value City Arena • Columbus, Ohio

at Rutgers

TBD
TBD EDT

Ohio State Buckeyes 0, Rutgers Scarlet Knights 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Jersey Mike's Arena • Piscataway, New Jersey

vs UCLA

TBD
TBD EDT

UCLA Bruins 0, Ohio State Buckeyes 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Value City Arena • Columbus, Ohio

vs USC

TBD
TBD EDT

USC Trojans 0, Ohio State Buckeyes 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Value City Arena • Columbus, Ohio

at Washington

TBD
TBD EDT

Ohio State Buckeyes 0, Washington Huskies 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Hec Edmundson Pavilion • Seattle, Washington

vs Wisconsin

TBD
TBD EDT

Wisconsin Badgers 0, Ohio State Buckeyes 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Value City Arena • Columbus, Ohio

at Wisconsin

TBD
TBD EDT

Ohio State Buckeyes 0, Wisconsin Badgers 0
Scoring by half: 0–0, 0–0

Kohl Center • Madison, Wisconsin

Rankings

Ranking movements
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	Final
AP
Coaches

References

^ "Harding hits late 3 to help Iowa pull away and beat Ohio State 77-70 in a Big Ten Tournament opener". ESPN.com. March 12, 2025. Retrieved March 26, 2025.
^ Jardy, Adam (March 17, 2025). "Why did Ohio State decline College Basketball Crown invitation? Jake Diebler explains". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved March 26, 2025.
^ "2025-26 Men's Basketball Schedule". Ohio State Buckeyes. Retrieved March 26, 2025.

[1] "Harding hits late 3 to help Iowa pull away and beat Ohio State 77-70 in a Big Ten Tournament opener". ESPN.com. March 12, 2025. Retrieved March 26, 2025.

[2] Jardy, Adam (March 17, 2025). "Why did Ohio State decline College Basketball Crown invitation? Jake Diebler explains". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved March 26, 2025.

[3] "2025-26 Men's Basketball Schedule". Ohio State Buckeyes. Retrieved March 26, 2025.

[1]

[2]

[3]

Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball
Venues	The Armory (1897–1918) Fairgrounds Coliseum (1918–1956) St. John Arena (1956–1998) Value City Arena (1998–present)
Rivalries	Michigan
Culture & lore	Brutus Buckeye Buckeye Nuthouse WBNS WBNS-FM Ohio State Sports Network
People	Head coaches NBA players Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1897–98 1898–99 1899–1900 1900–01 1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
NCAA national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics

Previous season

Offseason

Departures

Incoming transfers

Recruiting classes

2025 recruiting class

2026 recruiting class

Roster

Depth chart

Schedule and results

Game summaries

vs Notre Dame

at Pittsburgh

vs. West Virginia

vs. North Carolina (CBS Sports Classic)

vs Illinois

vs Indiana

at Iowa

at Maryland

vs Michigan (rivalry)

at Michigan (rivalry)

at Michigan State

vs Minnesota

vs Nebraska

at Northwestern

at Oregon

vs Penn State

at Penn State

vs Purdue

at Rutgers

vs UCLA

vs USC

at Washington

vs Wisconsin

at Wisconsin

Rankings

See also

References