Entering Tuesday, Musa Jallow had played a grand total of 12 minutes of basketball since the 2018-19 season.

After a season-long, lower leg injury last year, Chris Holtmann was anticipating some early-season rust from his junior forward this season.

That rust was nonexistent for Jallow when the Buckeyes took the floor in South Bend on Tuesday night.

In Ohio State’s 90-85 win over Notre Dame, Jallow played the role of unexpected bench savior, scoring seven points and collecting two rebounds in the back-and-forth contest. His impact was even bigger than the numbers say.

Just ask his head coach.

“We don’t win the game without Musa Jallow tonight,” Holtmann said following Tuesday's victory. “Obviously. He’s gotta keep building on that and hopefully we can keep him healthy.”

The Indiana native played the full closing stretch in place of senior starter Kyle Young. He scored five of his seven points in the final 10 minutes of game time, including a crucial three-point play that gave Ohio State a five-point lead with six minutes remaining.

Even more impactful was his work on defense.

With under 20 seconds left and Ohio State clinging to a three-point lead, Jallow and senior point guard C.J. Walker combined to force Notre Dame guard Prentiss Hubb into a turnover on the final Irish possession of the night.

“We were switching-- at least I was switching most of the screens for pretty much the whole game, and we knew they had to get a three up,” Jallow said of his clutch defensive stop. “I knew that Hubb was gonna come off aggressively, so I just tried to play token D, stay in front of him, and make sure he didn’t get a shot up.”

These are the plays Musa Jallow can make at full health.

It hasn’t been easy for the junior to stay on the court-- even after taking a redshirt last season, Jallow once again found himself on the sidelines over the past two games after experiencing lower leg discomfort.

It appeared any contributions from the junior would be a complete bonus as he worked his way back from injury. Jallow himself didn’t even know if he was going to be able to take the floor on Tuesday until hours before the game.

“Pretty much, the couple days leading up to the game, I wasn’t sure if I was gonna be able to play,” Jallow said. “Finally got the green light either yesterday or the day before. Holt was just like, ‘Just be ready. We’ll see what the game looks like. Just be ready to play your role.’”

He ended up playing 22 minutes, the majority of which came in the second half.

The most telling stat for Jallow in this game? He was a team-high plus-10 in his minutes on the court, making an impact in every area.

This was the player that showed up in the 2019 NCAA Tournament, the one who makes plays on both sides of the ball.

A long, rangy forward who can switch on defense and find easy baskets on offense, Jallow has the potential to become a key piece for an Ohio State team that looked overwhelmed at times on the defensive end on Tuesday.

Even when he isn’t scoring or touching the ball on offense, Jallow’s presence on the court is always apparent. He crashes the boards at every opportunity, defends multiple positions with strength and active hands, and plays hard on every single play.

Holtmann noted Jallow’s unique combination of versatility and awareness on the defensive end, saying it was crucial to this game in particular.

“I did not anticipate playing Musa much tonight,” Holtmann said “I wasn’t even sure I was gonna play him. But this game required his defensive IQ and his ability to switch and guard different people.”

In terms of making an impact on the court for Ohio State, it has been a long road back for Jallow. But a year of rehab gave him the patience he needed to persevere through injuries and make a clean transition back to the court.

Tuesday night proved that.

“I’ve just been telling myself to take it one day at a time, and just be ready for whatever it takes,” Jallow said “Sitting out a year, and going through the recovery process from my injury-- just never take anything for granted.”

When he is on the court, Musa Jallow makes game-defining plays.