Eric Boggs
The Ohio State Buckeyes men’s basketball team and staff aren’t dwelling on their NCAA Tournament exit. Instead, Jake Diebler and his staff are already working to reshape the roster for the 2026–27 season—and they’ve set their sights on one of the top available scorers in the transfer portal.
Following a heartbreaking 66-64 loss to the TCU Horned Frogs and a Big Ten Tournament defeat to rival Michigan, Ohio State is wasting no time addressing its biggest offseason need: replacing elite scoring production.
According to reports from On3’s Joe Tipton, the Buckeyes are among the programs gaining traction with Jake Fiegen, a standout guard from Cornell and one of the top-ranked players expected to enter the transfer portal.
Fiegen brings exactly what Ohio State needs. The 6-foot-4 shooting guard averaged 17.1 points and 5.1 rebounds this past season while shooting an impressive 41 percent from three-point range. His scoring ability has steadily developed throughout his collegiate career, growing from a limited freshman role into one of the most efficient perimeter threats in the country.
Ranked as a top-10 transfer and one of the best shooting guards available, Fiegen is drawing significant interest from programs across the country, including the Northwestern, Indiana, Villanova, Vanderbilt, DePaul and Wake Forest.
Ohio State’s urgency in pursuing a player like Fiegen is easy to understand. The Buckeyes are set to lose star point guard Bruce Thornton, who averaged nearly 20 points per game and served as the engine of the offense. Additionally, starting center Christoph Tilly is out of eligibility, leaving both a scoring and interior presence void heading into next season.
That makes returning pieces like John Mobley Jr., Amare Bynum and Devin Royal even more critical. But to truly take a step forward, the Buckeyes will need to supplement that core with proven production—and Fiegen fits that mold perfectly.
Beyond his scoring, Fiegen’s experience and efficiency make him an ideal plug-and-play option. Having spent his entire career at Cornell, he enters the portal as a polished offensive player likely seeking both a higher level of competition and a strong NIL opportunity in his final collegiate season.
For Ohio State, the equation is simple. If the Buckeyes can pair their returning talent with an elite perimeter scorer like Fiegen, they could quickly retool into a serious contender in the Big Ten Conference.
The offseason is just beginning, but one thing is already clear: Jake Diebler and his staff aren’t waiting around. They’re attacking the portal with purpose—and aiming to keep Ohio State’s momentum moving forward.
