Scarlet Sunrise: Jamison Battle injury not expected to be long term

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Jamison Battle ankle injury not expected to be long term

An ankle injury sidelined Jamison Battle for the Michigan State game this past Sunday. Except, it didn’t take him out of the game completely.

“I felt Jamo was still out there, really,” Dale Bonner said postgame after his game-winner lifted Ohio State to a 60-57 victory. “He was on the bench talking to everybody. Only difference was, he wasn’t on the floor. He still showed great leadership.”

Battle — the Buckeyes’ second-leading scorer and the Big Ten’s leading 3-point shooter — had started the first 27 games of the season after joining the Buckeyes this past offseason from the transfer portal. He came from Minnesota, where he spent the previous two seasons. In Battle’s first return to Williams Arena last Thursday, he knocked down five 3-pointers and scored 21 points, albeit in a losing effort to the Golden Gophers.

Battle pushed hard to be ready to go for the weekend bout in East Lansing three days later.

“I think if we maybe had a little more time, another day or so, [his absence] might not have been the case,” Diebler said postgame.

Diebler added on his 97.1 The Fan radio show Monday: “We wanted to do what was best for him. We trusted him to evaluate how well he could play out there, and after doing some testing and things, it just didn’t seem like he was going to really be able to have the impact that he probably wanted to have. At that point, we needed to look out for him. No one anticipates this to be a long-term thing. This set him up to be successful for the rest of the season.”

As soon as Bonner beat the buzzer to net a contested corner 3-pointer over Michigan State’s Tyson Walker, Battle excitedly shoved Bonner before chasing after his fellow graduate transfer teammate.

“He looked probably 100% healthy for the first couple steps, but then when you go back and watch on film, he’s kind of like hobbling and hopping,” Diebler said on 97.1 The Fan. “I said, ‘Hey, man, what are you doing?’

“He’s like, ‘Coach, my adrenaline was pumping.'”

Diebler reinforced what Bonner noted postgame: Battle’s voice, especially in timeouts, was “incredible.”

“He was so engaged,” Diebler said on 97.1 The Fan. “Had some really valuable things he said. I was really impressed with just how locked in he was to our team being successful — and him finding a way to have an impact when he couldn’t be on the court. He spent so much time with our trainer in between games trying to get ready and wanting to be out here, but for him to stay engaged, it was impressive.”

Ohio State freshman Devin Royal steps up, breaks out at Michigan State

With Battle out, other Buckeyes players had to step up at Michigan State. No one did that more than freshman forward Devin Royal, who recorded a team-high and season-high 14 points.

Of those 14 points, 10 came in the final 13:50 of the second half.

Royal willed Ohio State back into the game with not only his offense but also two pivotal steals. And he did so against a Spartans program that heavily recruited him out of Pickerington Central. Royal was the driver of the Buckeyes’ second-half comeback.

“I feel like we just needed some type of spark, a little energy,” Royal said postgame. “So I just wanted to go out there and give all the energy I had until I was tired or needed to come out.

“Just give all my energy and make the best of it.”

For the full story, go here.

Why Mike Hall is most intriguing Ohio State name at NFL Combine

The NFL Combine starts up this week, and eight Buckeyes players will be in attendance. Marvin Harrison Jr. is reportedly not working out at the event, but he’s clearly the biggest Ohio State superstar who will be in Indianapolis this time around.

That said, the most intriguing Buckeyes name at the pre-draft showcase might just be Mike Hall Jr. Hall showed out at the Reese’s Senior Bowl last month and could continue to climb draft boards in February with strong testing in Lucas Oil Stadium.

Lettermen Row broke down what will be a critical week for Hall. Check it out here.

Counting Down

Buckeyes vs. Akron: 186 days
Buckeyes vs. Michigan: 277 days

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