Ohio State closes the regular season Saturday against Indiana (noon, ESPN) in what is senior day for Marc Loving. The Toledo native has compiled some impressive numbers. His 1,321 career points rank him 28th all time in Ohio State history. Nonetheless, Loving's career has been filled with ups and downs. One game he looks like an all Big 10 caliber player and the next--he performs a disappearing act. He showed tremendous promise early on, but a mysterious suspension his sophomore year seemed to halt his development.
Having said that, Loving is also a guy who has been loyal to Ohio State. While his on court body language has been scrutinized by fans, I've seen him take losses as hard as any Buckeye I've covered. Some wonder if he cares...in my opinion, he does. He's just a hard kid to get a read on, but---it's my hope that Saturday, during the pregame Senior Day ceremony, he is treated properly--with thunderous applause. He has played in a strange era of Ohio State basketball, when multiple teammates--especially last year--decided Ohio State wasn't for them. Loving never did that. He remained loyal to his coach and the program. Perhaps he didn't achieve everything he could have but--he deserves the respect of Ohio State fans. I hope he gets it in his last Schottenstein Center appearance.
Over the last couple days, Ohio State basketball has posted some Marc Loving videos on social media, with his thoughts on his final game and his favorite moment. Check them out below. Loving also talked with the media about his senior day--you can see a link to that press conference by clicking here. Thad Matta also talked about Loving's career and the match-up with Indiana. A link to Matta's presser is here.