Seth Towns' Ohio State career appears to be over.
The Columbus native and veteran forward announced Sunday he's "stepping away from Ohio State and Team 124" and will not play college basketball this season following "a few setbacks this summer and some tough conversations with my coaches and medical personnel."
Once a Buckeye, Always a Buckeye pic.twitter.com/cKS6v0GPr1
— Seth Towns (@219setty) September 4, 2022
Towns missed the entirety of the 2021-22 season due to a lingering back injury and had not received full medical clearance to return for the Buckeyes by the start of September.
A Northland High School alum, Towns transferred into the Buckeye program in 2020 after missing two full seasons at Harvard due to knee injuries in 2018-19 and 2019-20. Towns missed the start of the 2020-21 season, but eventually averaged 3.8 points across 25 games in scarlet and gray amid a Big Ten Tournament championship game appearance and NCAA Tournament berth.
Towns underwent a surgical procedure on his back in the preseason ahead of his second season at Ohio State, and was initially slated to return in December of 2021. But Towns wound up missing the year altogether.
The 2017-18 Ivy League Player of the Year opted to return for a sixth season of college basketball this offseason, but said Sunday "it has become clear that my body is not in a position to endure a full Big Ten season."
Buckeye head coach Chris Holtmann said in August that Towns and fellow OSU forward Justice Sueing, who both sat out for Ohio State's exhibition games in the Bahamas, were expected to be medically cleared at the beginning of September. While Sueing received clearance at the end of August, Towns was still dealing with issues.
Towns said he'll be "taking some time to figure out what my next chapter looks like" in the immediate future.
With Towns stepping away, the Buckeyes now have an open scholarship spot for the 2022-23 season.
