Both Malaki Branham (No. 20 overall to the San Antonio Spurs) and E.J. Liddell (No. 41 to the New Orleans Pelicans) were taken in the 2022 draft, and with two Ohio State players hearing their name called in Brooklyn, New York, the Buckeye program can now lay claim to a feat it hadn’t equaled since 2007. That’s two players taken on Day 1.
Branham averaged 13.7 points and 3.6 boards while shooting 49.8 percent from the floor and 41.6 percent from 3-point range during his first and only season with the Buckeyes, and his play earned him a nod as both the Big Ten Freshman of the Year and a third-team All-Big Ten honoree.
A first-team All-Big Ten selection and third-team AP All-American in his final year at Ohio State, Liddell led the Buckeyes with averages of 19.4 points and 7.9 rebounds and led the Big Ten with 2.6 blocks per game this past season.