Tanner Holden’s Ohio State career was a short one, one that lasted just a single season as the guard has put his name in the NCAA Transfer Portal. The Buckeyes landed the former Wright State star leading into last season, but the production and minutes never followed.
After averaging 20.1 points per game in his final season at Wright State, Holden’s impact with Ohio State was minimal despite playing in 27 games. In those games he averaged 13.6 minutes per game and just 3.6 points per contest. He was noticeably absent during high-leverage situations for Ohio State and generally found much of his time just eating up minutes as he did not start a single game for the Buckeyes.
That does not mean that there were no high points, the highest being a game-winning half-court shot against Rutgers at Value City Arena, giving the Buckeyes a 67-66 win before the bottom dropped out from the Buckeyes starting in January of 2023.
Holden is the second Ohio State player to hit the portal, joining Eugene Brown III who recently found a home at Georgia Southern.
The 2023 Buckeyes will have a mix of old and young on the roster next season with Zed Key and a pair of transfers in Dale Bonner (Baylor) and Jamison Battle (Minnesota) as the vets on the team.
The remainder of the roster will be made up of freshmen and sophomores including a four-man class of Taison Chatman, Scotty Middleton, Austin Parks and Devin Royal.
Ohio State could potentially take one more player via the portal or from the high school ranks depending on Brice Sensabaugh’s decision on the NBA. The freshman standout put his name into the league but kept avenues for a return open, potentially.
That seems unlikely.
If Brice does leave and no other players enter the portal, Ohio State would be sitting at 12 scholarship players with one to give. Of course, if someone else were to hit the portal, the Buckeyes could have even more flexibility.
Many Ohio State fans are hoping that Bronny James might be the 13th player, but that also seems to be a bit of a reach, but the Buckeyes continue to hit the portal with visitors, and it seems likely that there could be more change to the roster, one way or the other.
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