The Ohio State Buckeyes have found their mojo under interim head coach Jake Diebler, winning their last five games to finish 19-12 on the season. Diebler seems to believe that the team’s strong finish makes them worthy of being a bigger part of March Madness.
Speaking to the media this week, Diebler replied “Absolutely” when asked if he feels the Buckeyes deserve to be in the NCAA Tournament. He believes that the team’s best wins “stack up against anybody in the country.”
“I’m no expert on all the metrics that go into making that decision. But I would think a couple of our top wins would stack up against anybody in the country. We’ve now stacked together some road wins. Also, the momentum that we have and the way we’ve been playing lately?” Diebler said, via On3 Sports. “I think there’s a lot of positives that, you know, would help our case.”
But unless the Buckeyes make some real noise in the Big Ten Tournament, it seems unlikely that they get bumped all the way to the NCAA Tournament. They’re currently the 10-seed in the competition, so they’ll have to play a whole bunch of games against the Big Ten’s best over the next few days.
Obviously they would qualify automatically if they win the conference tournament, but that’s no picnic. That said, if they make it all the way to the Big Ten Championship Game, who’s to say that they won’t be allowed in even if they lose that game.
Does Diebler make a good case for the Buckeyes getting in?