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NCAA basketball power rankings: Way-too-early college basketball Top 10 for 2021-2022

By Mike Phillips

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - MARCH 30: Cody Riley #2 of the UCLA Bruins defends a shot by Hunter Dickinson #1 of the Michigan Wolverines during the first half in the Elite Eight round game of the 2021 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium on March 30, 2021 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - MARCH 30: Cody Riley #2 of the UCLA Bruins defends a shot by Hunter Dickinson #1 of the Michigan Wolverines during the first half in the Elite Eight round game of the 2021 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium on March 30, 2021 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
(Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /

8. NCAA Basketball Rankings: Ohio State Buckeyes

Forget the brutal finish to the season for Ohio State, which was upset by Oral Roberts in a 2-15 matchup in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Buckeyes clearly exceeded pre-season expectations for the program, which was not considered to be one of the Big Ten’s top teams entering the season.

Chris Holtmann could lose a few key players to graduation as C.J. Walker, Kyle Young and Seth Towns are all seniors while key reserve Musa Jallow is in the transfer portal. The good news is that the Buckeyes’ top three scorers (E.J. Liddell, Duane Washington Jr and Justice Sueing) should all be back in Columbus next season.

Ohio State also has a good recruiting class coming in as a pair of four-star freshmen headlined by Akron native Malaki Branham should be ready to step right into the rotation. Meechie Johnson, who was a top-50 prospect in this class before reclassifying, should also take on a bigger role after enrolling early this season to get his feet wet.

The Buckeyes should also be a destination for potential transfers looking to step into key roles in a competitive conference. There is plenty of talent here for Holtmann to keep building a winner for Ohio State, which should be right in the thick of the Big Ten title race in 2022.