In the three years since hiring former player Jeff Boals as head coach, Ohio's men have gone 59-33 and won a MAC Championship, securing their first NCAA Tournament bid in nine years, where they upset defending national champions Virginia in the first round. They also had a player drafted for the first time in nearly 20 years when Jason Preston was selected 33rd overall by the Los Angeles Clippers in 2021.
On the women's side, Ohio recently saw a trio of incredible careers come to an end. First, 1,000-point scorers Erica Johnson and Gabby Burris hung up their jerseys this past season after leading Ohio to some of its best seasons ever, including its first-ever 30-win season in 2018-19.
Second, Cece Hooks finished one of the greatest careers in MAC history this year, graduating as the conference's all-time leader in points, steals and made field goals. She was also named MAC Defensive Player of the Year, All-MAC First Team and MAC All-Defensive Team four times each, and won MAC Player of the Year in 2021.
Despite all this recent success, both Ohio teams are at a bit of a crossroads, as many talented players departed from Athens this offseason. For the women's team, Hooks and Burris graduated and Johnson elected to forego her final year of eligibility to pursue her professional career. For the men, Jason Carter graduated and Mark Sears and Ben Vander Plas transferred to Alabama and Virginia, respectively.
Those six players accounted for 65.7% percent of all the points scored by both Ohio basketball teams last season. Additionally, five of the six players averaged more than 30 minutes per game, and the only one who didn't was Carter, who dealt with injuries for much of the season and still averaged 28.7.
There are undoubtedly massive holes to fill for both Ohio basketball teams, but if there is one thing that Boals and women's head coach Bob Boldon have proved, it is that they are capable of bringing talent to Athens in a variety of ways.
In just three years in Athens, Boals has already proven to be adept at utilizing the transfer portal, where he brought in Carter, as well as Tommy Schmock and Dwight Wilson III, as graduate transfers. He has also been active in that area this offseason, bringing in a pair of transfers, Jaylin Hunter from Old Dominion and Gabe Wiznitzer from Louisville.
He has also shown himself to be a skillful recruiter when it comes to both luring top talents to Athens and finding diamonds in the rough. He was able to bring in a high-profile recruit like Sears, as well as giving Preston one of his only college offers, both of which turned out to be pretty good moves for the program.
On the women's side, Boldon has spent his entire nine-year tenure with the Bobcats bringing in talented players. He coached six different 1000-point scorers: Hooks, Johnson and Burris, as well as Kiyanna Black, Quiera Lampkins and Amani Burke. Boldon is also the winningest coach in Ohio basketball history and won his 100th career MAC game this past season.
After a pair of disappointing finishes last season, both Ohio basketball teams are staring down the barrel of two very tough transitions, but Athens is home to two of the best coaches in the MAC, and Boals and Boldon now have yet another opportunity to show off their ability to bring talent to the Bobcats.