The jury is still out, the cookie still crumbling.

But …

While nothing is set just yet, enough precincts have reported this month to go out on a small limb: Michigan made the better basketball coaching hire than Ohio State.

QUESTION OF THE WEEK

Let's settle this once and for all. True or false: You should only fill out one #MarchMadness bracket. 🏀 #BracketOfIntegrity #SheetOfIntegrity

— Blade Sports (@toledosports) March 24, 2025

A year ago, the rivals both had openings to lead their going-nowhere programs.

Ohio State hired from within, promoting interim coach Jake Diebler. Michigan went out and hired the hottest coach on the market, Florida Atlantic’s Dusty May.

Now, Ohio State remains adrift, while Michigan is headed to the Sweet 16, shepherded there by none other than a former Buckeye.

In a flavorful twist, Roddy Gayle — who transferred to Michigan after two seasons in Columbus — scored 21 of his season-high 26 points in the second half of the Wolverines’ comeback win over Texas A&M on Saturday.

So, yeah.

We’ll see where the story goes, but it’s hard to imagine a better start for May at Michigan.

And it’s harder to not wonder what might have been for Ohio State.

What if new athletic director Ross Bjork had opened the search and made a real run at May himself? I guess we’ll never know.

Meantime, credit where due.

May, 48, continues to deliver in a tour-de-force debut season in Ann Arbor.

A year after Michigan won just eight games under Juwan Howard, the new guy walked in and built Rome in a day, rebuilding a depleted roster overnight.

May didn’t just bring in a line of coveted transfers, starting with 7-1 towers Vladislav Goldin (Florida Atlantic) and Danny Wolf (Yale). He brought in the right ones and coached them beautifully.

Michigan finished second in the Big Ten during the regular season and now March has again become the month of May. The Wolverines (27-9) captured the conference tournament title and have kept winning. They will play top–seeded Auburn in the Sweet 16.

Michigan’s hoops future could not be brighter.

As for Ohio State, well, spring football practice began last week and … la la la la la … that national championship banner sure looks nice.

I liked the hire of Diebler, and, yes, maybe some of that was because he’s a great guy from northwest Ohio.

I also thought the Gibsonburg native earned the chance.

While fair to criticize Ohio State for hurriedly promoting the 37-year-old assistant of the coach it paid $12 million to go away — wait, that does sound crazy! — Diebler seemed like a solution, not part of the problem.

Here was the Buckeyes’ top recruiter and a guy who showed serious chops in the lead chair last season.

Ohio State was 4-10 in the Big Ten when it fired Chris Holtmann and elevated Diebler. Then it beat No. 2 Purdue — making Diebler the first coach to beat a top-five team in his Division I debut since 1999 (Notre Dame's Matt Doherty at No. 4 OSU) — and kept rolling.

The Buckeyes (20-13, 9-11) won six of eight games under Diebler, falling just short of the NCAA tournament.

It was easy to imagine him keeping the momentum going and leading them out of the woods.

Maybe it still is.

But Diebler’s first full season was undeniably uneven.

Where a year ago he breathed fresh life and energy into Ohio State, this was another lost winter for a program that last made the Sweet 16 in 2013.

Diebler missed on his biggest transfers — center Aaron Bradshaw (Kentucky) and Meechie Johnson (South Carolina), who left the team in December for “personal reasons” — and the pieces never quite fit.

OSU (17-15, 9-11) finished 10th in the league and missed the dance for the third straight season. Just as concerning, apathy settled back in, with the Buckeyes averaging 11,578 fans per game in their charmless arena.

Can Diebler change that in Year 2?

Can he hang on to his top players — beginning with all-conference guard Bruce Thornton — land the right high-profile transfers, and put the puzzle together? Do the fans and donors at a school where football is everything even care enough to help make it happen? (Counterpoint: The basketball teams at the most crazed football schools in the South are thriving, so no excuses.)

I’m pulling for Diebler to succeed, but there are no shortage of questions.

All the while, May sure looks like the answer at Michigan.

First Published March 23, 2025, 10:13 p.m.