Chris Holtmann and Terrence Dials at Ohio State

The Ohio State University picked up Chris Holtmann from Butler just a few seasons ago and is finally ready to dominate under his leadership. Holtmann grew up in Nicholasville KY and played basketball for Taylor University. As a senior at Taylor, he was an All-American award receipient for the NAIA. He quickly jumped into coaching as a graduate for Taylor U. He moved on to Geneva College after a season and then returned to Taylor in 1999. He really got recognized at Gardner-Webb in 2002 and coached for their program for 5 years. A couple of years in Ohio and then back to Gardner-Webb as their head coach. In 2013 he lead them to their first Division I postseason ever. He was the coach of the year for that achievement.

Holtmann at Ohio State

2019 is Chris Holtmann's third season at Ohio State. Success marked his time at Butler and Gardner-Webb and the plan is the same with the Buckeyes. 2018 was a great year for the new coach as he was able to finish 25-9 overall, 2nd in the Big Ten Conference, with a second round finish in the NCAA tournament. He was named Big Ten Coach of the Year. Last year was not as good although the team did finish with 20 wins. The schedule for 2019 has been set and the Ohio State team is stacked with almost all the point scores from last year and a top 10 recruited freshman class. Ohio State should contend for a Big Ten title again and hopefully finish well in the NCAA.

Recent Happenings with Holtmann

Most noteworthy during a recent press conference was news that Just Ahrens missed time over the summer with a back injury, according to Chris Holtmann. His weight is a little bit down and his return is expected soon. Also mentioned was that Player Development coordinator Scoonie Penn has left the program for a job with the Memphis Grizzlies. Another famous Ohio State alum, Terence Dials, will be replacing Penn on the staff.

So, who is Terence dials?

Terence Dials Jr. (July 15, 1983) is an former American basketball player who played high school hoops for Boardman HS in Ohio. As a power forward he played college ball with Ohio State scoring over 1500 points while getting 875 boards. In 2005 he was the Big Ten Player of the Year. He has been playing professionally since 2006 for different countries outside of the United States including France and Switzerland.

Dials originally from Detroit, Michigan moved to Boardman, Ohio early in life and went to Boardman High School. There's a famous story from high school when the power forward broke a backboard during a group practice in secondary school. He was offered a scholarship to play for The Ohio State University and did not look back. During his four-years here, Dials played in 132 games. Dials went undrafted in 2006 in the NBA Draft.