When did Ohio State men’s basketball last start a season unranked nationally? – The Columbus Dispatch
Coming off the program’s fifth-straight 20-win campaign and a second-round NCAA Tournament loss to Villanova, expectations are not incredibly high for Ohio State men’s basketball heading into the 2022-23 season.
Head coach Chris Holtmann and the Buckeyes were not ranked in the Associated Press’ preseason Top 25 poll released Monday, earning 23 points, good for No. 23 nationally, while No. 13 Indiana, No. 22 Michigan and No. 23 Illinois were the Big Ten’s sole representatives.
Ohio State has been ranked in the preseason Top 25 in each of the past three seasons, coming into the 2021-22 season as the No. 17 team in the country.
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Ohio State men’s basketball last entered a season unranked in 2018-19
Coming off a 25-win season in Holtmann’s first campaign with the program in 2017-18, finishing as the No. 17 team in the country, Ohio State came into the 2018-19 season unranked, while Michigan State, Michigan and Purdue served as the Big Ten’s representatives in the Top 25.
With forward Kaleb Wesson and guard C.J. Jackson leading the way, Ohio State finished the 2018-19 season with 20 wins and lost in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to Houston.
The Buckeyes spent eight weeks in the Top 25 in 2018-19, peaking at No. 12 in Week 8.
Since the 2018-19 season, Ohio State has only been unranked for nine weeks in the past three seasons, finishing the 2021-22 season outside of the Top 25.