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Christmas Wish List: OSU needs production from Ross, Smith

Thad Matta,  LaQuinton Ross, Evan Ravenel

Ohio State coach Thad Matta, center, talks with Evan Ravenel (30) and LaQuinton Ross during the second half of their team’s 69-58 victory over Rhode Island in an NCAA college basketball game during the Hall of Fame Tip-Off tournament, Saturday, Nov. 17, 2012, in Uncasville, Conn. (AP Photo/Fred Beckham)

AP

Over the course of the next two weeks, College Basketball Talk will be detailing what some of the country’s best, most intriguing, and thoroughly enigmatic teams need. It’s the spirit of the holidays. We’re in a giving mood.

What do other teams have on their Christmas Wish Lists? Click here to find out.

Gotta have it list-topper: Lenzelle Smith and LaQuinton Ross to keep playing well

The key to Ohio State’s season hinges almost entirely on the play of Smith and Ross. Let me explain. We all know how good of a scorer Deshaun Thomas is. He shoots a ton, he’d be a miserable guy to play pickup ball with, but there’s not denying the fact that he’s one of the most potent scorers in the country. Aaron Craft is an all-american. I love his game. He’s one of the best leaders and on-ball defenders in the country. He’s a throw-back point guard, and he does it better than anyone else in the country. But he struggles when he’s forced to be a primary scorer, a guy that needs to hunt shots and get 13-15 points for the Buckeyes to have success.

That’s where Smith and Ross come into the picture. Both players are currently averaging double-figures on the season, and while Smith is showing more promise as a spot-up shooter and Ross is better is more of a slashing role, the bottom-line is that they can score. And if Ohio State is going to contend with Michigan and Indiana at the top of the Big Ten this season, they need those two to take pressure off of Thomas and Craft.

Stocking stuffer: More minutes for Shannon Scott

Believe it or not, Scott has actually been better than Craft this season. Granted, it’s come in some limited minutes and he’s done some damage in garbage time against bad teams, but Scott’s raw numbers (5.0 assists, 2.6 steals, 5:1 assist-to-turnover ratio) and efficiency stats (he’s got a better offensive rating, assist rate and steal percentage than Craft) are phenomenal. Maybe, one day, the Ohio State staff won’t regret taking him over Columbus native Trey Burke.

Planning on re-gifting: Opponents outside the Kenpom top 100

Frankly, it’s difficult to truly form an opinion on this Ohio State team as is. They’ve only played one team in the Kenpom top 100 this year -- Duke -- and they put up a performance with two extremes. For about 28 minutes, they dominated the Blue Devils and looked like a legitimate top five team. For the final 12 minutes, they looked like they might finish sixth in the conference. Now, their weak schedule is entirely their fault. Rhode Island is way down because of a coaching change, Washington is usually better than they are this year, Long Beach State didn’t have their transfers eligible yet and Kansas comes to town on Saturday. But that doesn’t change the fact that the Buckeyes have played an extremely weak schedule thus far this season.

Rob Dauster is the editor of the college basketball website Ballin’ is a Habit. You can find him on twitter @robdauster.