What Must Happen for Ohio State to Earn an NCAA Tournament Berth in the Big Ten Tournament

It’s a season-defining week for Ohio State men’s basketball.The Buckeyes are headed to the Big Ten Tournament with a chance to earn their way into the NCAA Tournament, but they’ll need to win at least two games in Minneapolis – which means beating an equally desperate Iowa team and a top-15-ranked Illinois team – to have a real shot of landing a spot in the bracket on Selection Sunday.Meanwhile, Ohio State’s search for its next head coach continues to unfold behind the scenes. Florida Atlantic’s Dusty May seems to be emerging as the frontrunner while Alabama’s Nate Oats has entered the conversation and Xavier’s Sean Miller remains in the mix. Jake Diebler could continue to build his case for the job, too, if he leads Ohio State on a Big Ten Tournament run that gets the Buckeyes into the Big Dance.We discuss all of that on this week’s Real Pod Wednesdays. We also talk about the most interesting things we learned from last Thursday’s Ohio State football interviews with Jim Knowles and eight of his defensive veterans, including the revelation that Jack Sawyer and JT Tuimoloau could play some snaps at outside linebacker, Denzel Burke’s high praise for Jeremiah Smith and his less positive assessment of Will Howard’s first two days of spring practice.The full rundown for this week’s show:0:00: Ohio State must win at least two games in Minneapolis to have an NCAA Tournament shot4:33: It’s good to see Jake Diebler publicly vouching for his team to make the NCAA Tournament6:54: Recent results might not carry as much weight with selection committee as OSU would like9:24: Defensive improvement has keyed OSU’s recent success, and that must continue this week10:19: Bench production, aggressive play will also be important factors for OSU in Minneapolis14:12: Yes, a first-round bye is good for OSU; a win over 8-23 Michigan wouldn‘t have helped18:24: Weighing Dusty May vs. Sean Miller vs. Nate Oats vs. Jake Diebler as coaching candidates27:38: Ohio State must firmly commit to new coach rather than giving Diebler a one-year tryout38:56: Does it make sense to use Jack Sawyer, JT Tuimoloau as OLBs in “double eagle” package?47:20: How Ohio State could utilize Sonny Styles and C.J. Hicks on the field together51:22: Denzel Burke is unafraid to set huge expectations for Ohio State and himself54:50: Burke’s uncertainty on Will Howard serves as early reality check for transfer quarterback59:55: As Jeremiah Smith hype keeps growing, what should we expect from him as a freshman?1:04:54: OSU women’s basketball has a lot to work on after Big Ten Tournament loss to Maryland1:09:44: OSU women’s hockey still favored to win it all, but path could go through Wisconsin again