COLUMBUS, Ohio – A player’s rise to stardom is never without its speedbumps, and freshman D.J. Carton is looking to overcome his first taste of adversity.
Ohio State, along with its superstar guard in the making, jumped out to an electric start to the season, but the road has been less than smooth recently. During Ohio State’s three-game losing streak, Carton has struggled to find the production that has been so vital to the team’s success.
“I think it’s just an ongoing process for a young guy and a point guard, especially now that teams have 13, 14 games of film that they’re evaluating him on,” Chris Holtmann said. “So, they see tendencies, they read tendencies and they game plan and they’ve certainly done that.”
The Iowa native has poured in 10 points a game to go along with an average of 2.7 rebounds and 2.7 assists. Carton’s game appeared to be trending in a positive direction, and following a performance against Kentucky in which he dropped 15 points on six shots, the freshman looked ready to explode into conference play.
Before the Big Ten schedule would heat back up, the Buckeyes would end the nonconference schedule with a bout against West Virginia. The week gap between the Kentucky and West Virginia game proved costly to the positive momentum that both the Buckeyes and Carton had built, and Ohio State would begin its three-game skid.
Against the Mountaineers, Carton would put up a then-career-low three points on 1-of-5 shooting from the field. He would also tie a career high with five turnovers.
The game against West Virginia was easily Carton’s worst of his young career, but that would last only five days. Following his disappointing performance against the Mountaineers, Carton would have a scoreless performance against Wisconsin at home. In 21 minutes of action, Carton would attempt only one shot and cough the ball up four times.
While the struggles are out of character for the talented player, Holtmann knew that a stretch like this was not out of the realm of possibility.
“I’ve coached freshmen before and I’ve seen guys go through ups and downs,” Holtmann said. “It’s really hard to make judgements until you see guys go through the grind and rigors of league play.”
Holtmann has been around the block and coached his fair share of freshmen, so he understands the difficulty of adjusting to conference life. As recently as last year, then-freshmen Duane Washington Jr. and Luther Muhammad experienced lulls in their games in the month of January.
History says that patience is necessary for a young player like Carton, who has potential and talent that is undeniable.
While the Buckeyes could not end the losing streak against Maryland, Carton was able to scrap his way out of his individual rut. His 14-point performance was far from perfect, but the freshman showed an aggressive determination that all great players possess.
Carton would hit only six shots in a game in which he attempted a career-high 15 shots, but there was no denying that he was looking to put the past two games behind him. He would add three assists, three turnovers and a block to his performance as well. The Buckeyes fell to Maryland 67-55.
The schedule does not lighten up for Carton and the struggling Buckeyes, but all of the great teams are able to rally in times of adversity. The Buckeyes will get another chance to get positive momentum rolling against Indiana on Saturday, and Carton will continue his individual journey toward becoming the high-level player that he has the potential to be.
Playing behind an experienced guard like C.J. Walker, Carton has been able to impact the game coming off the bench. Walker understands what it’s like to be a freshman, and the Florida State transfer is not worried about Carton’s ability to bounce back and find his game going forward.
“In the Big Ten, it’s a long season, so you just got to stay confident and engaged and I feel like he will be fine,” Walker said.
