COLUMBUS — The Ohio State men’s basketball team will face Penn State at home on Thursday. For the first time this season the Buckeyes will face the team that handed them two regular season losses and kicked them out of the Big Ten Tournament last year. Tip is set for 7 p.m. and the game will be shown on ESPN.
Head coach Chris Holtmann, redshirt junior guard Danny Hummer, and graduate guard Keyshawn Woods met with the media on Wednesday to preview the game.
Here’s a summary of what was said.
Chris Holtmann
+ Penn State has been playing really, really well. They play exceptionally hard. They beat Virginia Tech and they have a lot of members back from the team that won the NIT last year. They lost some integral parts but they have quite a bit of experience returning.
+ Holtmann said that Penn State’s Josh Reaves has always given them a lot of trouble on both ends. Lamar Stevens has too. They are versatile wings that play with great defensive intensity.
+ “They are a different team, we are a different team.” But he is always looking at things they can do differently or better with a team that beat them three times last year.
+ He would rather have a kid who is aggressive who they can teach versus a guy who is struggling with assertiveness and confidence, if he had to pick.
+ He doesn’t look ahead to the rest of the schedule and the opportunities presented there. He is focused on the development of his team game by game and he thinks this team will get what they earn.
+ He is certain that Penn State is playing with a lot of confidence right now.
+ Danny Hummer is a tremendous kid. He is quiet but he loves Ohio State. He has been good for the program. Someone had mentioned that he was interested in coming back from Air Force to Ohio State if that opportunity was presented to him and last year they had seven guys and needed him so it was an easy decision for Holtmann.
+ Kyle Young is progressing. He is day to day right now.
+ Holtmann didn’t know that Urban Meyer and some players were going to be introduced at the game tomorrow but he loves having them around the program and he is excited about it.
Keyshawn Woods
+ Woods says he wants to be consistent across the board. It’s do or die for him because he doesn’t have many college basketball games left. He wanted to make a point to be aggressive against Rutgers to start off February the right way.
+ Penn State competes really hard. One win can motivate their team and they can go on a huge run in February and the Buckeyes know that.
+ It has been mentioned that Penn State beat Ohio State three times last year. It’s important for the guys who were here last year to get this win.
+ Making the right play can be contagious but sometimes it can be overly contagious because guys can pass too much trying to find the perfect play.
+ As long as everybody is sharing the ball, nobody is mad at each other for their shot selection.
+ Woods says they set the tone in the game against Rutgers and they need to do that moving forward. He thinks it will be contagious.
+ “If we play how we played against Rutgers we’re going to be fine.”
+ Woods says he does think about the postseason and thinks that they do still have a chance if they do their thing in February and March. “We can’t go back and change January, but that’s why you make it to February — to change the outcome.”
+ Everybody wants to end their college career in the tournament but this is special for him this year considering the struggles with the past teams that he has had.
Danny Hummer
+ Hummer said he was on the team last year and Penn State had really good players. They have a lot of those guys back this year. It’s going to be a battle. “Don’t let their record fool you.”
+ Anytime you lose to a team three times in one year it hurts but it’s a new year.
+ Being a Buckeye is a dream. Coming back to Columbus wasn’t a tough decision but it was hard leaving Air Force knowing the work he put in there.
+ The energy on the bench stems from the culture Coach Holtmann has established. They feel like they are a family.
You can watch the videos in their entirety below.
Chris Holtmann
Posted by The Ozone on Wednesday, February 6, 2019
Danny Hummer and Keyshawn Woods
Posted by The Ozone on Wednesday, February 6, 2019
