The 25 best players in Ohio State men’s basketball history

Going way back into the annals of Ohio State basketball for the program’s first true star. Hull was an All-American and the Big Ten’s leading scorer during the 1938-39 season, when the Buckeyes were part of the first NCAA final, losing to Oregon. He was also named Most Outstanding Player of that inaugural NCAA Tournament. Hull was inducted into the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame in 1977, and the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame in 2007.

Freeman stood under six feet tall, but he sure put up some huge numbers for the Buckeyes to become the program’s first two-time All-American. After he averaged 21.1 points in his first varsity season, Freeman poured in 31.5 points per game while limited to 13 contests due to injuries. A season later, Freeman averaged 32.9 points — still a school record. One of the first masters of the jump shot, Freeman still holds the Ohio State record for career scoring average (28.0), and finished his three-season run with 1,597 points.

A member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Havlicek set the foundation for his legendary NBA career with the Boston Celtics while at Ohio State. In his first season, Havlicek averaged a solid 12.2 points, on 46.2-percent shooting, and 7.3 rebounds on the Buckeyes’ national championship team of 1959-60. By the time Havlicek’s college career ended, he would average 14.6 points, shoot 50.8 percent and pull down 8.6 rebounds per game. During Havlicek’s time in Columbus, the Buckeyes went 78-6 and made three straight Final Four appearances. His No. 5 uniform was retired by the school during the mid-2000s.

When debating the greatest player in Ohio State basketball history, Lucas generally makes the conversation a short one. In his first college varsity season, Lucas averaged 26.3 points and 16.4 rebounds in helping the Buckeyes win the 1960 national championship. In 1960-61, the 6-foot-8 Lucas averaged 24.9 points with 17.4 boards to earn NCAA Player of the Year honors, an achievement he repeated in ’61-’62 for averaging 21.8 points and 17.8 rebounds. The only three-time Big Ten Player of the Year, Lucas was also a three-time, first-team All-American, leading the nation in field-goal percentage each season. His 62.4-percent shooting for a career remains a school record, while his 1,411 rebounds are also a program record. Meanwhile, the Hall of Famer’s 1,990 points rank third among all Buckeyes. Lucas, who also won gold with the 1960 United States Olympic basketball team, had his No. 11 retired in 2000.

Following a brief stay at Kentucky, the Jamestown product made his way back home to Ohio, where he was a two-time All-American. Playing alongside John Havlicek, Jerry Lucas and Bobby Knight during his career, the 6-foot-8 Bradds was a true force — especially during his junior and senior campaigns. In 1962-63, Bradds averaged 28 points and 13 rebounds, setting the table for a stellar senior campaign. In his final year, Bradds averaged 30.6 points, and scored at least 40 in four straight games. He also pulled down an average of 13.4 boards while earning national player of the year honors. Bradds’ 735 points from 1963-64 are second-most in school history, while he owns the top two highest-scoring games at Ohio State with 49 and 48 points, respectively. His No. 35 was retired by the Buckeyes program.

As dependable as they come, Hosket was a captain who averaged 19.5 points and 12.3 rebounds during his three-year career with the Buckeyes. During the 1967-68 season, Hosket averaged a career-best 20.1 points, plus 11.4 rebounds, while helping lead Ohio State to a Big Ten title and third-place national finish after it reached the Final Four for the eighth time in school history. Hosket, who scored 1,441 career points, ranks fourth in school history with 910 total rebounds. In addition, Hosket was Ohio State’s first Academic All-American basketball player.

It might be tough to label a great player within a school’s history as being underrated. Cleamons, who might be best known as a nine-time NBA champion assistant coach, averaged 18.5 points and 7.3 rebounds during his three seasons with the Buckeyes, but didn’t receive the national notoriety as others on this list. Noted for his leadership abilities, Cleamons began his college career as a 6-5 power forward, but eventually moved to point guard. A testament to his versatility. Cleamons’ 54.2 career field-goal percentage still ranks among the top 10 in program history.  

Playing at 6-feet-1, Hornyak certainly had a knack for putting the ball in the rim. In 69 games, Hornyak totaled 1,572 career points and averaged 22.8 per contest (third-best scoring average in school history). Hornyak was an All-Big Ten selection each of his three seasons at Ohio State, and also earned second-team All-American honors by United Press International in 1972 and third-team in ’73. A key piece to the Buckeyes’ 1971 Big Ten championship squad, Hornyak was inducted into the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame in 2008.

A four-year starter for the Buckeyes during the late 1970s, Ransey ranks fifth in school history with 1,934 points and fourth with 516 assists. A multiple All-Big Ten performer at Ohio State, Ransey was named a third-team All-American from the UPI in 1978-79 — while averaging 21.4 points and shooting 54.7 percent from the field — and consensus All-American pick the next season, when he averaged 16.2 points and career highs of 6.2 assists and 4.2 rebounds. For his career, Ransey shot 49 percent — an impressive feat for a guard.

One of two players in Ohio State basketball history to score at least 2,000 points, Williams ranks second in school history (2,011) in scoring. He started all 114 games he played for the Buckeyes, averaging 17.6 points while shooting just under 50 percent from the field, and still holds the school record with 834 career made field goals. In addition, Williams, a third-team All-American pick by The Associated Press from the 1979-80 season, also ranks second in school history with 1,111 rebounds — good for a 9.7 career average on the glass. 

The casual college basketball fan likely knows Kellogg as one of the great television analysts of the game. However, he played pretty well during his three seasons with the Buckeyes. Kellogg averaged 14.9 points and 10.1 rebounds spanning 86 games. He won Big Ten Player of the Year honors in his final collegiate season of 1981-82, averaging 16.1 points (on 52.7-percent shooting) and 10.5 rebounds. Kellogg is a member of both the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame and Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame.

It would be fair to call Hopson a late bloomer. Not a regular starter for the first two years of his Ohio State career, Hopson did not average double-digit points in either of those campaigns. Then as a junior, he scored 20.9 per game on 54.5 percent shooting. A season later, he averaged 29 points (second-best in the nation), on 51.8-percent shooting, along with career highs of 8.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 2.2 steals per game to win Big Ten Player of the Year. His 958 points from 1986-87 remain a school record, and Hopson’s 2,096 total career points are still the most of any Buckeye for a career. 

From the get-go, Jackson made an impact with the Buckeyes. He started all 93 games during his three seasons at Ohio State, and ranks among the school’s top 10 in career scoring (1,785 points). The Big Ten Freshman of the Year and two-time league player of the year and twice-named first-team All-American, Jackson was named College Player of the Year by the UPI for his 1991-92 season. During that year, Jackson averaged career highs of 22.4 points, 6.8 rebounds and 4.0 assists before taking his act to the NBA. Jackson’s No. 22 was retired by the school in 2001.

A part of the 1999 Final Four group, Redd ranks sixth in school history with 1,879 points, for an average of 19.6 while starting all 96 games he played over three seasons. His Ohio State career got off to a bang when he averaged a career-high 21.9 points, 6.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.0 steals en route to being named Big Ten Freshman of the Year. Redd also averaged 6.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.6 steals for a college career that paved the way for both an All-Star run in the NBA and Olympic gold.

Penn began his collegiate career at Boston College, where he averaged more a little more than 13 points in each of his two seasons there. Then after sitting out the 1997-98 campaign, Penn broke out with the Buckeyes as a junior, averaging 16.9 points (on 45-percent shooting), 4.3 assists and just under four rebounds per game to be named co-Big Ten Player of the Year, while helping the Buckeyes reach the Final Four (which officially is no longer recognized by the NCAA due to violations committed by the program). Penn averaged nearly 16 points in his senior season to once again earn first-team All-Big Ten honors.

Johnson wasn’t much of a scorer during his four seasons with the Buckeyes, averaging 8.3 points. However, the 6-foot-11 Detroit product has gone down as one of the great post presences in school history while starting all but four of the 127 games he played. Johnson’s 444 career blocks are the most at Ohio State and in the Big Ten. He also owns the school record for blocked shots in a single season (161 in 1999-2000) and a game (11). He averaged career bests of 12.5 points, 7.3 rebounds, plus 4.0 blocks, in 2000-01, when he was a First-Team All-Big Ten pick. The Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year in both 2000 and ’01, Johnson also resides in the top 10 at Ohio State with 739 career rebounds. 

Dials played 132 games, spanning parts of five seasons with the Buckeyes. During that stellar college college career, Dials totaled more than 1,500 points and ranks fifth in school history with 876 rebounds. In 2004-05, the 6-9 Dials averaged a career-high 15.9 points with 7.9 rebounds. Then in his final campaign of 2005-06, Dials won Big Ten Player of the Year for averaging 15.3 points, on 57.4-percent shooting, and a career-best 8.0 rebounds. His 55.8 career field-goal percentage also ranks among the best in Ohio State history.

The first half of Ohio State’s one-and-done dynamic duo that helped the Buckeyes reach their most recent NCAA Tournament Championship Game. In leading Ohio State to a 34-5 mark during the 2006-07 season, Conley averaged 11.3 points, on 51.8-percent shooting from the field, 6.1 assists, 3.4 rebounds and 2.2 steals, while starting all 39 games. Beginning with the Big Ten tournament, Conley averaged 15.3 points in nine postseason contests. Conley’s 238 assists from that season are still a school record.

It can certainly be argued that the 7-foot Oden was overhyped for his one and only collegiate season, in which he played alongside the aforementioned Conley. However, Oden, who battled injury to play in 32 of 39 games that 2006-07 season, might have been the most dominant defensive post player in the country at the time. In addition to averaging 15.7 points on 61.6-percent shooting (ranked fourth for a Buckeye), 9.6 rebounds and 3.3 blocks (his 105 that season are third-most at Ohio State), Oden was honored as both the Big Ten and national Defensive Player of the Year. 

If there’s anybody to rival Jerry Lucas as the best player in Ohio State history, Turner might be the guy. When it comes to versatility, Turner seemingly did it all at the college level. After 101 games spanning three seasons, Turner totaled 1,517 points and 682 rebounds, and ranks among the school’s all-time top 10 for assists (414) and steals (159). In his final season of 2009-10, Turner averaged career highs of 20.4 points, 9.2 rebounds and 6.0 assists while being named Big Ten and National Player of the Year. Turner’s No. 21 was retired by Ohio State in 2016.

Steady might be the best way to describe Buford’s play during his four seasons at Ohio State. Now, Buford wasn’t a superstar, through he was the Big Ten Freshman of Year while averaging 11.3 points and shooting 36.1 percent from 3-point range, and twice named an All-Big Ten second-teamer, while also helping the Buckeyes reach the 2012 Final Four. When Buford’s college career ended, he totaled 1,990 points (ranks third in school history) and joins Jerry Lucas and Michael Redd as the only Buckeyes to score more than 500 points in three seasons. His 744 made field goals, 215 made 3-pointers and 38.5 3-point field goal percentage rank among the top 10 among all Buckeyes.

Sullinger provided the star power for Ohio State’s 2012 Final Four squad, and put together two of the best individual seasons in program history. The 6-9 Columbus native averaged 17.3 points and 9.7 rebounds in 74 games over those two seasons with the Buckeyes. He was named the Big Ten and national freshman of the year for averaging 17.2 points and 10.2 rebounds. A consensus All-American each season at Ohio State, Sullinger scored nearly 1,300 points and pulled down 717 rebounds. He’s one of six Ohio State players to score 600 or more points in two seasons.

The pesky Craft played with a high motor and is one of the greatest defensive players in Ohio State history. He was twice named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and is the school’s all-time steals leader with 337. And oh yeah, Craft was pretty good on the other end of the court, and happens to be Ohio State’s career assists leader with 694, making him one of three players in Big Ten history with more than 600 assists and 300 steals for a career. Though Craft averaged double-digit points just once during his four-year, 148-game college career, he shot 46 percent from the field. He was inducted into the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame in 2022. 

Like others on this list, Russell needed only one season to land himself among the greats in Ohio State basketball history. While starting all 35 games for the Buckeyes during the 2014-15 season, Russell averaged a team-leading 19.3 points, plus 5.7 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.6 steals. On Feb. 8, 2015 at Rutgers, Russell totaled 23 points, 11 boards and 11 assists to become the first Ohio State freshman to record a triple-double. Russell, who earned consensus All-American recognition, ranks among the school’s top 10 in single-season points (675) and assists (175).

One of the best prep players ever to come from the state of Illinois, Liddell made his college bones at Ohio’s most celebrated collegiate institution. In three seasons with the Buckeyes, Liddell was twice named an All-Big Ten first-team performer while totaling 1,298 points, 546 rebounds and 143 blocks (seventh-most in school history). During his final campaign of 2021-22, he averaged career highs of 14.1 points, while shooting 49 percent, 7.9 rebounds, 2.9 blocks and being named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year honors, en route to earning third-team All-American status from The Associated Press.