Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports
The Ohio State Buckeyes will have to replace their leading scorer from last year’s team. With that in mind, are they really a top 10 team entering the 2013-14 college basketball season?
The USA Today Coaches Poll says so. The Buckeyes will enter the season by being ranked No. 10 in the Coaches Poll.
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This team made the Elite Eight last season and will only be losing one key player. Does one player really make that big of a difference? It certainly does when that one player is Deshaun Thomas. Thomas managed to average 19.8 points per game last season.
Even with him gone Ohio State is very deserving of a top 10 ranking. Aaron Craft will be back, along with many other players. The Buckeyes are usually a great defensive team and that should still be the case this season. However, someone is going to have to step up on the offensive side of the ball.
Both Sam Thompson and LaQuinton Ross could become big-time scoring threats, but that remains to be seen. Thompson averaged 7.8 points per game last season and Ross averaged 8.3 points per game. Two players who averaged more will be back on the team as well.
The Buckeyes won the Big 10 tournament last year and they will have the talent to do so again. Winning the Big Ten regular season title could also be in store this season, but the No. 2 Michigan State Spartans will be the favorites to achieve that feat.
Ohio State was a good team last year and the same should be the case this year. They made a deep run in the 2013 NCAA Tournament and are being rewarded with a top 10 ranking, which is right where they belong.
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