Top-30 senior Marcus Johnson has decommitted from Ohio State, he announced Monday, more than 18 months after he originally committed to the Buckeyes.
Johnson committed to Ohio State in April 2024, weeks after Jake Diebler was named the permanent replacement for Chris Holtmann as head coach. Diebler had been an assistant coach under Holtmann for five years before being given the interim tag when Holtmann was let go in February 2024; Johnson was Diebler's first significant high school recruit as head coach.
A 6-foot-2 guard from Garfield Heights High School (Ohio), Johnson is ranked No. 28 in the SC Next 100 for the class of 2026. He was named Mr. Basketball in Ohio last spring after a junior campaign in which he averaged 29.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.7 assists, and then solidified himself as one of the most talented offensive guards in the class on the Nike EYBL circuit with the Indy Heat grassroots program. Johnson averaged 19.0 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 15 games last spring, including three games of 30 points.
Johnson is the son of Sonny Johnson, who was named Mr. Basketball in Ohio in 1998 before playing at Ohio University.
His decommitment comes after Ohio State landed five-star senior Anthony Thompson, the program's highest-ranked men's basketball recruit in more than a decade. Thompson (No. 13) chose the Buckeyes last week over Indiana; he and four-star Alex Smith, both Ohio natives, now comprise the Buckeyes' 2026 recruiting class.