With a player like Ohio State’s Evan Turner on the court, there may be a tendency for the opposition to divert all of its attention in his direction.

Unfortunately for Jon Diebler, however, that has not been the case.

Since the start of Big Ten play, the Buckeye junior has found that, even with Turner on the court, teams are not exactly willing to let him run free. There have been times when Diebler has been faced with a defender assigned to do nothing but hassle him for 40 minutes. In both of OSU’s games against Wisconsin, the Badgers put senior guard Jason Bohannon on Diebler and turned the game into what Buckeye coach Thad Matta said was more like “four on four.”

But even though he may struggle to get open outside shots, Matta said that Diebler has been virtually unaffected by it.

“I give him a lot of credit,” Matta said. “He couldn’t care less. I’m sure he’d like to shoot and score, but as long as we’re winning he’s happy with it.”

That is not to say, however, that Diebler has done nothing to combat the extra attention. Recently he has made an effort to take the ball to the basket when faced with pressure on the outside. For someone who has been almost exclusively a perimeter player during his career, adding the ability to drive to the basket has done wonders for his game.

Two weeks ago against Wisconsin, as expected, Diebler was faced with constant harassment. But rather than become a virtual non-factor, on more than one occasion Diebler beat his man off the dribble and was able to get to the hoop. Although it didn’t always earn him an open shot, the penetration opened up his teammates underneath the basket resulting in either free throws or easy points.

“As far as going to the basket, I was just trying to take what the defense was giving me,” Diebler said. “Obviously [the defense] wasn’t used to me doing that so I was able to get in the lane.”

The Buckeyes’ next game saw more of the same. Although he did get more open looks on the perimeter against Northwestern, there were situations where, in the past, Diebler might have rushed a contested 3-point shot. However, when he was smothered by a defender, he again beat people off the dribble, creating open shots for both him and his teammates.
Diebler scored 17 points in the Buckeyes’ win and tied his season high with five assists.

Matta said that Diebler’s newfound affinity for driving to the basket was nothing the coaches forced on him, but rather a product of his willingness to understand a game plan and know when and where he could find open shots. The addition to Diebler’s game, Matta said, has led to his team being less reliant on the 3-point shot, something his team has been criticized for in the past.

“I think we’ve changed how we’re playing,” Matta said. “At times last year I think we got a little bit ‘3 happy,’ but I’ve been pretty pleased with the attempts that we’ve been getting. I think our guys have a pretty good understanding of what’s a good [shot] and what isn’t.”

As the season progresses, if Diebler is able to continue to quell any frustration and create open shots, he could make a big difference for OSU. With each passing week, the games will get more and more meaningful.

It is a process that Diebler said he’s become very familiar with over the course of his career, and one he is looking forward to.

“Every game is a grind and you got to bring it every single day, even in practice,” he said. “I think we enjoy the competitive aspect of it.”

“That’s what you play college basketball for.”