Smith gives Matta vote of confidence

WASHINGTON — After releasing a statement early Wednesday regarding Thad Matta's future as Ohio State men's basketball coach with the program, athletic director Gene Smith told The Dispatch "that's exactly right" when asked whether Matta will return next season.

After keeping quiet on the state of the program throughout the season, Smith said reports Tuesday about Matta's physical condition led him to finally speak out.

"It bothered me about the comments about his health that came out," Smith said from his seat behind the Ohio State bench at the Verizon Center before the Buckeyes lost to Rutgers 66-57 in an opening-round game of the Big Ten tournament. "The regular season is over, so I knew where I wanted to go."

Smith and Matta met about two weeks ago to talk things over, and Smith didn’t put out a statement at Matta’s request at the time. Wednesday’s decision was made because the story persisted, both said.

Inside the locker room after the game, Matta said the topic bothered him.

“This is a fickle business,” he said. “Unless somebody is intimately involved on a daily basis, (they have no idea). And they choose the negative side. It blows my mind that sports is at this level. I mean, it’s amazing how something like that can become a focal point.”

The Buckeyes (17-15) entered the conference tournament as the No. 11 seed. Their postseason fate isn't known yet.

"We'll have the offseason for Thad to put in place the things he feels we need to have in place to be able to get back to where we want," Smith said. "Those are things that he and I will continue to talk about."

Smith noted that the Buckeyes lost seven games by five points or fewer and that they played much of the season without injured forward Keita Bates-Diop.

"They played hard. And who knows, if we had him maybe wouldn't have lost a couple of those games," Smith said.

Matta is under contract for three more seasons.

In his statement, Smith pointed out Matta's overall record of 337-122 and .734 winning percentage, calling it "outstanding," and noted that Matta is Ohio State's all-time leader in wins and games coached. He has led the Buckeyes to five Big Ten titles, nine NCAA Tournament appearances and two Final Fours.

"What Thad's teams at Ohio State have accomplished — both on and off the court — is highly commendable," Smith said.