With the men’s basketball season two weeks away, The Lantern’s managing sports editor, Reilly Cahill, had a sit-down interview with head coach Jake Diebler Monday.
Diebler enters his third season as the Buckeyes’ head coach, coming off his first NCAA Tournament appearance last season.
The interview consisted of the men’s basketball team’s roster construction, nonconference schedule and season outlook.
Watch the full video on Lantern TV.
Here are a few of the topics that were addressed in the interview.
Impact of returning starters John Mobley Jr. and Amare Bynum
Ohio State does not return much continuity from a season ago.?
The Buckeyes bring in nine new players while returning two starters from last season: guard John Mobley Jr. and forward Amare Bynum.
Diebler emphasized the impact of having those two returning players.
“I think Amare and John know what we’re about as a program, the toughness, the togetherness, the competitive spirit,” Diebler said.
Diebler described how Mobley and Bynum have been reliable pieces for the newcomers to adapt to Ohio State’s program throughout the offseason.?
“Now they can pass that knowledge down, whether it’s to young guys or even older guys from other programs who when they come in here, they realize, man, the standard of work and competitiveness is different here,” Diebler said.
Nonconference schedule outlook
The Buckeyes’ 2026-27 season will begin against No. 25 BYU on Nov. 2 in Salt Lake City, Utah.
The matchup marks Ohio State’s first of seven nonconference opponents this year that made the NCAA Tournament a season ago. In addition to BYU, the Buckeyes will face three other AP top 25 ranked teams: No. 4 UConn in Storrs, Connecticut on Nov. 13, No. 24 Vanderbilt at the Schottenstein Center on Nov. 24 and No. 17 Kansas in New York City on Dec. 19.?
Diebler emphasized facing that level of competition before Big Ten play begins.
“We have to get ready, this league is so good,” Diebler said. “We have a really tough conference schedule.”
Diebler also referenced how playing challenging opponents early in the season can benefit the team as the season progresses toward the postseason.?
“NCAA Tournament seed lines have been rewarded for playing a tough schedule, and we felt like we wanted to provide a pathway that at the end of the year we had some games in the nonconference that maybe could help us move up a seed line if we if we’re able to win and play well in those games,” Diebler said.
Diebler said the approach for facing another team is one of confidence regardless of the opponent or place.
“Anyone, anytime, anywhere,” Diebler said. “I think our guys have that same mentality.”
Building off of last season’s NCAA Tournament appearance
Ohio State’s three-year NCAA Tournament drought ended last season.
The Buckeyes made March Madness for the first time since 2022, but lost their first round game against TCU.?
Ohio State has 14 Sweet 16 appearances in its program history, but has not returned to that stage since the 2012-13 season.
Diebler looks to raise the program back to where he thinks it belongs.
“We’re not going to hide from the past, we’re not going to not talk about the peaks of this program because we’re afraid of it, we want to attack it, we’re trying to push and grow towards that and we celebrate it,” Diebler said. “We put the championships up in our practice gym, that was one of the first things I did when I became head coach because I want our guys to know that this is what we’re striving for.”?
