Ohio State men's basketball's defensive bootcamp could unlock a better team

There was no mistaking the message being emphasized to the Ohio State men’s basketball team.

Starting with a July 20 practice, the Buckeyes were spending a full week focusing on one side of the court. It’s the end where opponents have gotten what they have mostly wanted for the past several seasons, and it was the primary focal point as coach Jake Diebler looked ahead to a looming exhibition trip to Puerto Rico.

Defense topped the plans, an emphasis that even carried over to the weight room.

“At any moment, (Diebler) makes us drop down, get in a stance and hold it,” guard Curtis Givens III said after a July 21 practice. “This week we’re just trying to get better at defense and understanding our defensive concepts better.”

That emphasis is not just for the two games the Buckeyes will play in Puerto Rico. It wasn’t until the end of the week that Ohio State even got copies of the rosters for its forthcoming foes.

A quick look at Ohio State’s recent yearly statistics show the need for a defensive reset. Although the Buckeyes have had a top-40 adjusted offensive efficiency rating in each of the past seven seasons according to KenPom.com, they have been among the top 50 in adjusted defensive efficiency only twice, and one of those seasons, 2024-25, they were 50th.

The offense, despite occasionally sputtering, has mostly been among the nation’s best. It’s the defense that has let Ohio State down, and that was a primary point of emphasis for Diebler while assembling this year’s roster.

At California, Justin Pippen finished 98th nationally with a steal rate of 3.5%, according to KenPom. When he first talked with the Ohio State coaching staff, Pippen asked how wedded they were to the zone defense they trotted out in 2025-26 as a change of pace. He wanted to guard guys one-on-one, something Diebler said they were more than happy to hear.

He’s listed at 6 feet 4, 190 pounds. Ohio State also added transfer guards Jimmie Williams (6-4, 210) and Givens (6-3, 190), both of whom will provide more size on the perimeter and defensive capabilities. Williams was 181st nationally in steal percentage (3.1%) last season and Givens was at 1.8%.

The only Ohio State player with a better steal percentage than Givens in 2025-26 was Bruce Thornton at 1.9%, and that lack of defensive pressure had a direct impact on the Buckeyes’ offensive and defensive numbers.

“We didn’t force enough turnovers last year,” Diebler said. “We didn’t get out into transition enough, so we’re trying to generate more opportunities for that. I think we have the personnel to do it. We’re longer. We’re bigger.”

Ohio State finished the 2025-26 season 11th in the Big Ten in scoring defense, allowing 72.6 points per game, and 15th in steals per game at 4.9. The Buckeyes also played at a slower pace than during Diebler’s first season, averaging 67.3 possessions per game in 2024-25 and 66.0 in 2025-26.

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Diebler wants the Buckeyes to run. Turning teams over with more regularity and rebounding at a high clip defensively would help with that. And making his guys stand in a defensive stance during weightlifting sessions during a summer defensive bootcamp is just one way Diebler is trying to hammer that message home.

“We’re trying to generate more possessions in the open court through our defense,” he said. “We’re trying to generate more open-court possessions with our pace as well, but the best way we can do that is if we can get some live-ball turnovers and get some deflections.”

Ohio State men's basketball beat writer Adam Jardy can be reached at ajardy@dispatch.com, on Bluesky at @cdadamjardy.bsky.social or on Twitter at @AdamJardy.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State men's basketball's defensive bootcamp could unlock a better team