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LGHL Five Storylines: Ohio State women’s basketball vs. Iowa
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Five Storylines: Ohio State women’s basketball vs. Iowa
ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
The crowd, keeping composure and, yes, Caitlin Clark
The Ohio State women’s basketball team has a challenge ahead of itself. A challenge that the team has had in other moments this season, but each time coming up short. Now, instead of an outstanding USC Trojans guard Juju Watkins scoring 30 points easily, or 6-foot-7 UCLA Bruin center Lauren Betts stopping anything in her path, it’s Iowa Hawkeyes guard Caitlin Clark and all she brings both in and out of the game.
Here are five storylines to watch for in Sunday’s game, where No. 18 in the country hosts No. 2.
The attention surrounding the game itself can’t be understated. Ohio State opened the upper deck for this game alone, with Clark and the Hawkeyes averaging 9,874 people in attendance for away games. Take away three neutral site games at a midseason tropical tournament that normally don’t bring large attendance numbers, and its almost 13,000 per game.
Sunday will increase that number, with the Buckeyes announcing Friday that the game is a sellout of the roughly 19,000 seats available.
The crowd will fall into three broad categories: Ohio State fans, University of Iowa fans and the Clark curious crowd. What the split will be is unknown, but there will be a lot of black and yellow in the crowd normally comprised of scarlet and gray. However it breaks down, it’s an important moment for everyone included in the game.
“Just to be able to have a whole bunch of fans in the Schott, you know, I think that’s going to be really fun for us,” said Ohio State guard Celeste Taylor. “The energy, the crowd, whether that be against us or with us.”
When Iowa gets the ball, they want to run. That means when possession switches on poor passes, the defense has to work even harder than it will already have to with the opponent at hand.
The Buckeyes average 16 turnovers per game in losses, the most being 19 against the Michigan Wolverines on Dec. 30. Ohio State has improved since then, averaging 11.5 per game in the recent four-game winning streak. Against Iowa, it’ll have to be in that ballpark for the game to stay competitive. Ohio State has the experience to do that, with graduate senior guards Jacy Sheldon and Celeste Taylor on the perimeter running the show.
A record crowd for the season could either help or hurt Ohio State in this regard. Effective communication will limit turnovers and let the offense especially stay focused. The Buckeyes have that in mind for practices before Sunday.
“We may even turn up the music a little bit here in the next couple days, just to make them communicate out there without me being able to direct things.” said head coach Kevin McGuff. “Cuz it’s gonna be a little bit like that on Sunday.”
On the other side of turnovers, Ohio State leads the conference in turnover margin, in Big Ten play. That +6 margin in the Buckeyes’ favor, if it repeats Sunday, has to turn into points against an Iowa side averaging 90.9 points per game against conference opponents. For all that Clark will bring to the game, the start averages 4.2 turnovers per game, and almost six per game in the last five Big Ten games. Trying to frustrate the star isn’t an easy task, but Taylor has the ability to do just that.
While Iowa’s screens created for Clark’s deep threat won’t give the game too many permanent one-on-one situations, Taylor gives the Buckeyes something it didn’t have against the Hawkeyes in two defeats last season. At Duke, Taylor was a National Defensive Player of the Year finalist for 22-23, and the guard has brought that same work to the Buckeyes.
Taylor sits second in the conference this season in defensive rating, sitting at 79.2 points allowed for every 100 opponent possessions. The graduate senior does this by limiting space between herself and her opponent, always has a hand or arm up on shots and capitalizing on any opponent mistakes. In other words, Taylor annoys people and never lets up.
That’s the kind of performance the Buckeyes need and Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder will do her best to limit. That could mean more quick shots from deep for Clark, which make for fun highlight reels but are also a better alternative than letting her pass into the paint or make moves herself.
“It’ll be fascinating,” said Coach McGuff about the matchup. “I think there’s two competitive players who are both really good at what they do. So it’ll be fun to watch.”
The two former amateur teammates are friends, and do have some NCAA history against each other. During the 2021 ACC/B1G Challenge.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25238608/26cac2c4_20211202_iowa_womens_basketball_at_duke_113.jpeg)
Stephen Malley | hawkeyesports.com
On Dec. 2, 2021, the Hawkeyes went to Cameron Indoor Stadium in North Carolina and fell to Taylor and the Blue Devils, in the guard’s junior season. Clark scored 22 points, had nine rebounds and eight assists. Now, that’s a great scoreline for most NCAA players, and Clark was only a sophomore in the 79-64 defeat, but a stat sheet for Clark similar to that 2021 game would do wonders for the Buckeyes on Sunday.
In any close games for the Hawkeyes this season, Clark has avoided hitting a double-double. Against the Spartans, where the star hit a game-winning three at the buzzer to win by three on Jan. 2, Clark had 40 points but only one rebound and five assists. With the Buckeyes improved half court defense this calendar year, limiting the non-Clarks of the world will go a long way.
Taylor isn’t alone either. In both defeats to the Hawkeyes last season, Iowa didn’t have to contend with Sheldon. In the first game, last January, Sheldon was out due to a foot injury that kept her out most of the season. The Big Ten Tournament defeat for Ohio State only had Sheldon playing 17 minutes off the bench.
The matchup between the two former teammates is a top billing within an already blockbuster event.
While the Buckeyes fell twice to the Hawkeyes last season, there is recent history of Ohio State getting the best of Iowa. It happened two years ago in Iowa City, Iowa.
In a 92-88 victory on Jan. 31, 2022, the Buckeyes won with the three-point shot. While this might make minds go to the clear fact that shooting guard Taylor Mikesell is no longer playing NCAA basketball, the most dangerous shooter in the victory is still on the roster. It’s not Sheldon either but forward Rebeka Mikulášiková.
The Slovakian forward hit five of the scarlet and gray’s 11 three-point shots on the day. Fast forward two years and she’s in a run of form that is helping Ohio State win games. Against Maryland, Mikulášiková led the team with 20 points, going three-for-six from beyond the arc.
Mikulášiková also hurt the Terrapins in the paint, using her agility to spin around defenders and hit theatrical layups. Mikulášiková credited those inside points for her success from deep. Both inside and outside. Fortunately for the forward, it won’t be all on her shoulders in the paint.
Forwards Taylor Thierry and Cotie McMahon can have an impact against the Hawkeyes in the paint. Iowa has a strong inside game, mostly on offense when Clark is throwing passes into Hannah Stuelke or Sharon Goodman.
Focusing on the inside by all three forwards, plus the drives created by Sheldon, will open up those opportunities to shoot from deep, but it won’t be easy. Iowa will play a zone defense against the Buckeyes because lately the threes are not falling.
Ohio State will need to do better than its current stretch of deep shooting. In the Buckeyes’ last game against Maryland, coach McGuff’s side went 4-for-26 from deep. Starting early in the first quarter, right from the tipoff, the threes weren’t landing. Giving McMahon, Mikulášiková and Thierry early chances going into the zone, or receiving passes after breaking through it, will show how the referees decide to call the game and how Iowa handles the pressure.
Establish that and the shooting follows. As long as they hit.
A large pair of blinders are needed to not see the importance of Clark to this game. She’s the reason the upper bowl is open, why tickets sold out immediately after going on sale (thanks to scalping) and why Iowa is the No. 2 team in the nation.
The classic argument is that there are five players on the court. No arguments here. Clark could not beat an Ohio State one-on-five. However, she certainly will try to win singlehandedly.
Clark averages 21.8 shots per game, the most in the Big Ten, seven shots more a game than the second most by Michigan guard Laila Phelia. Look in the Iowa roster and the second name is Stuelke, shooting 13 less shots per game. Clark has the most assists in conference history because the attention given to her finds teammates who convert high percentage shots.
So, the added work of double and triple-teaming Clark doesn’t work. Feeding into the Clark madness on the court won’t help the Buckeyes. Ohio State of last season couldn’t get past Clark. Iowa broke the 19-game Buckeyes winning streak to start the year and then cleaned the scarlet and gray up in the Big Ten Tournament final, one day after a 25-point comeback by coach McGuff’s side.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25238651/1247801591.jpg "COLLEGE BASKETBALL: MAR 05 Ohio State vs Iowa")
Photo by Bailey Hillesheim/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
This time around, the team feels different.
“Defensively we’ve grown. I think we’ve improved in that area last year compared to this year,” said Thierry. “And I think offensively too. We’re moving the ball really well. And we have a lot of versatile players who can score and defend. So I think all around our game has improved as a team.”
How well has the team improved? Sunday is the litmus test.
Continue reading...
ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
The crowd, keeping composure and, yes, Caitlin Clark
The Ohio State women’s basketball team has a challenge ahead of itself. A challenge that the team has had in other moments this season, but each time coming up short. Now, instead of an outstanding USC Trojans guard Juju Watkins scoring 30 points easily, or 6-foot-7 UCLA Bruin center Lauren Betts stopping anything in her path, it’s Iowa Hawkeyes guard Caitlin Clark and all she brings both in and out of the game.
Here are five storylines to watch for in Sunday’s game, where No. 18 in the country hosts No. 2.
The Crowd
The attention surrounding the game itself can’t be understated. Ohio State opened the upper deck for this game alone, with Clark and the Hawkeyes averaging 9,874 people in attendance for away games. Take away three neutral site games at a midseason tropical tournament that normally don’t bring large attendance numbers, and its almost 13,000 per game.
Sunday will increase that number, with the Buckeyes announcing Friday that the game is a sellout of the roughly 19,000 seats available.
Sunday's matchup against Iowa is officially SOLD OUT
: https://t.co/2flICTMWp5
️: Verified resale tickets are available at https://t.co/8PG4wk3khs and via the Ohio State Buckeyes app or Ticketmaster app#GoBucks pic.twitter.com/xzqE2mC6Vt
— Ohio State WBB (@OhioStateWBB) January 19, 2024
The crowd will fall into three broad categories: Ohio State fans, University of Iowa fans and the Clark curious crowd. What the split will be is unknown, but there will be a lot of black and yellow in the crowd normally comprised of scarlet and gray. However it breaks down, it’s an important moment for everyone included in the game.
“Just to be able to have a whole bunch of fans in the Schott, you know, I think that’s going to be really fun for us,” said Ohio State guard Celeste Taylor. “The energy, the crowd, whether that be against us or with us.”
Composure
When Iowa gets the ball, they want to run. That means when possession switches on poor passes, the defense has to work even harder than it will already have to with the opponent at hand.
The Buckeyes average 16 turnovers per game in losses, the most being 19 against the Michigan Wolverines on Dec. 30. Ohio State has improved since then, averaging 11.5 per game in the recent four-game winning streak. Against Iowa, it’ll have to be in that ballpark for the game to stay competitive. Ohio State has the experience to do that, with graduate senior guards Jacy Sheldon and Celeste Taylor on the perimeter running the show.
A record crowd for the season could either help or hurt Ohio State in this regard. Effective communication will limit turnovers and let the offense especially stay focused. The Buckeyes have that in mind for practices before Sunday.
“We may even turn up the music a little bit here in the next couple days, just to make them communicate out there without me being able to direct things.” said head coach Kevin McGuff. “Cuz it’s gonna be a little bit like that on Sunday.”
On the other side of turnovers, Ohio State leads the conference in turnover margin, in Big Ten play. That +6 margin in the Buckeyes’ favor, if it repeats Sunday, has to turn into points against an Iowa side averaging 90.9 points per game against conference opponents. For all that Clark will bring to the game, the start averages 4.2 turnovers per game, and almost six per game in the last five Big Ten games. Trying to frustrate the star isn’t an easy task, but Taylor has the ability to do just that.
Celeste Taylor’s Defensive Impact
While Iowa’s screens created for Clark’s deep threat won’t give the game too many permanent one-on-one situations, Taylor gives the Buckeyes something it didn’t have against the Hawkeyes in two defeats last season. At Duke, Taylor was a National Defensive Player of the Year finalist for 22-23, and the guard has brought that same work to the Buckeyes.
Taylor sits second in the conference this season in defensive rating, sitting at 79.2 points allowed for every 100 opponent possessions. The graduate senior does this by limiting space between herself and her opponent, always has a hand or arm up on shots and capitalizing on any opponent mistakes. In other words, Taylor annoys people and never lets up.
That’s the kind of performance the Buckeyes need and Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder will do her best to limit. That could mean more quick shots from deep for Clark, which make for fun highlight reels but are also a better alternative than letting her pass into the paint or make moves herself.
“It’ll be fascinating,” said Coach McGuff about the matchup. “I think there’s two competitive players who are both really good at what they do. So it’ll be fun to watch.”
The two former amateur teammates are friends, and do have some NCAA history against each other. During the 2021 ACC/B1G Challenge.
On Dec. 2, 2021, the Hawkeyes went to Cameron Indoor Stadium in North Carolina and fell to Taylor and the Blue Devils, in the guard’s junior season. Clark scored 22 points, had nine rebounds and eight assists. Now, that’s a great scoreline for most NCAA players, and Clark was only a sophomore in the 79-64 defeat, but a stat sheet for Clark similar to that 2021 game would do wonders for the Buckeyes on Sunday.
In any close games for the Hawkeyes this season, Clark has avoided hitting a double-double. Against the Spartans, where the star hit a game-winning three at the buzzer to win by three on Jan. 2, Clark had 40 points but only one rebound and five assists. With the Buckeyes improved half court defense this calendar year, limiting the non-Clarks of the world will go a long way.
Taylor isn’t alone either. In both defeats to the Hawkeyes last season, Iowa didn’t have to contend with Sheldon. In the first game, last January, Sheldon was out due to a foot injury that kept her out most of the season. The Big Ten Tournament defeat for Ohio State only had Sheldon playing 17 minutes off the bench.
The matchup between the two former teammates is a top billing within an already blockbuster event.
Forwards Momentum
While the Buckeyes fell twice to the Hawkeyes last season, there is recent history of Ohio State getting the best of Iowa. It happened two years ago in Iowa City, Iowa.
In a 92-88 victory on Jan. 31, 2022, the Buckeyes won with the three-point shot. While this might make minds go to the clear fact that shooting guard Taylor Mikesell is no longer playing NCAA basketball, the most dangerous shooter in the victory is still on the roster. It’s not Sheldon either but forward Rebeka Mikulášiková.
The Slovakian forward hit five of the scarlet and gray’s 11 three-point shots on the day. Fast forward two years and she’s in a run of form that is helping Ohio State win games. Against Maryland, Mikulášiková led the team with 20 points, going three-for-six from beyond the arc.
Mikulášiková also hurt the Terrapins in the paint, using her agility to spin around defenders and hit theatrical layups. Mikulášiková credited those inside points for her success from deep. Both inside and outside. Fortunately for the forward, it won’t be all on her shoulders in the paint.
Forwards Taylor Thierry and Cotie McMahon can have an impact against the Hawkeyes in the paint. Iowa has a strong inside game, mostly on offense when Clark is throwing passes into Hannah Stuelke or Sharon Goodman.
Focusing on the inside by all three forwards, plus the drives created by Sheldon, will open up those opportunities to shoot from deep, but it won’t be easy. Iowa will play a zone defense against the Buckeyes because lately the threes are not falling.
Ohio State will need to do better than its current stretch of deep shooting. In the Buckeyes’ last game against Maryland, coach McGuff’s side went 4-for-26 from deep. Starting early in the first quarter, right from the tipoff, the threes weren’t landing. Giving McMahon, Mikulášiková and Thierry early chances going into the zone, or receiving passes after breaking through it, will show how the referees decide to call the game and how Iowa handles the pressure.
Establish that and the shooting follows. As long as they hit.
Caitlin Clark
A large pair of blinders are needed to not see the importance of Clark to this game. She’s the reason the upper bowl is open, why tickets sold out immediately after going on sale (thanks to scalping) and why Iowa is the No. 2 team in the nation.
The classic argument is that there are five players on the court. No arguments here. Clark could not beat an Ohio State one-on-five. However, she certainly will try to win singlehandedly.
Clark averages 21.8 shots per game, the most in the Big Ten, seven shots more a game than the second most by Michigan guard Laila Phelia. Look in the Iowa roster and the second name is Stuelke, shooting 13 less shots per game. Clark has the most assists in conference history because the attention given to her finds teammates who convert high percentage shots.
So, the added work of double and triple-teaming Clark doesn’t work. Feeding into the Clark madness on the court won’t help the Buckeyes. Ohio State of last season couldn’t get past Clark. Iowa broke the 19-game Buckeyes winning streak to start the year and then cleaned the scarlet and gray up in the Big Ten Tournament final, one day after a 25-point comeback by coach McGuff’s side.
This time around, the team feels different.
“Defensively we’ve grown. I think we’ve improved in that area last year compared to this year,” said Thierry. “And I think offensively too. We’re moving the ball really well. And we have a lot of versatile players who can score and defend. So I think all around our game has improved as a team.”
How well has the team improved? Sunday is the litmus test.
Continue reading...
LGHL No. 18 Ohio State women's basketball shocks No. 2 Iowa in overtime, 100-92
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No. 18 Ohio State women's basketball shocks No. 2 Iowa in overtime, 100-92
ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jason Mowry/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Buckeyes outlast Caitlin Clark to upset the No. 2 Hawkeyes on a record-breaking day.
The Schottenstein Center on Sunday was at a whole new level of excitement for Ohio State women’s basketball. That’s because of the presence of Iowa Hawkeyes guard Caitlin Clark. In front of a record-breaking, sellout, women's basketball crowd, the odds were stacked against the Buckeyes.
Despite the odds and foul troubles by three starters, Ohio State fed off the crowd, defeating the favored No. 2 Hawkeyes 100-92. Including a 12-point deficit comeback and five minutes of Buckeye-dominant overtime.
From the jump, the energy and noise were palpable. Entering it, the matchup within the matchup was Iowa’s Clark versus former Duke shooting guard Celeste Taylor. The former National Defensive Player of the Year finalist gave Ohio State a defensive matchup it can feel better about going up against the leading scorer and assist-creator in the nation.
Unfortunately for the Buckeyes, Taylor’s presence was missing within the first two minutes of the game thanks to foul trouble. While a single person alone can’t stop Clark, Taylor gave Ohio State the best like-for-like matchup. However, even without Taylor, Ohio State showed that it was up to the task early.
Leading the charge was sophomore forward Cotie McMahon. Seemingly feeding off the crowd, the Centerville, Ohio native gave the capacity crowd something to cheer about. McMahon aggressively went to the basket. It was a performance fans were used to seeing last season in the postseason run where Ohio State went to the Elite Eight.
McMahon led Ohio State with 11 points. Clark responded scoring 13 and sprinkling in two assists.
It was clear early though that head coach Kevin McGuff wanted to break any Iowa attempt at setting up its zone defense. With the three-point shot eluding the Scarlet and Gray, leveraging forwards looked like it was working. At the end of the first quarter it was 26-24 in the Hawkeyes favor, but considering the loss of Taylor, a one-possession game against the No. 2 team in the country was a foundation-builder.
In place of Taylor was guard Rikki Harris. The Buckeyes’ sixth player, also known as the “bench starter,” entered the game and hit two of the three made shots from deep for Ohio State, marking just the third time this season the senior from Indianapolis has knocked down multiple three-point attempts.
Ohio State returned all five starters to the court for the second quarter and continued the inside game with McMahon. Although the forward missed two free throws to start the 10 minutes, it did put the Hawkeyes bigs in foul trouble. Both Hannah Stuelke, who started after missing Iowa’s Tuesday game against Wisconsin, and Sharon Goodman went to the bench with two fouls apiece.
Defensively, the Buckeyes' strong first-quarter presence had a lull in the second. After going up two points, Iowa went on an 11-3 run to go up 38-32. On most of the Hawkeyes’ five scoring possessions, Ohio State wasn’t back fast enough on defense to stop easy transition baskets. It forced a timeout by McGuff with 5:41 left in the half, down six, hoping to stop the bleeding on defense.
The Buckeyes responded well out of that timeout, with Iowa only getting off five shots the rest of the quarter, hitting two. Ohio State then found the deep shot, courtesy of guard Jacy Sheldon. After missing all three of her shots in the first quarter, Sheldon led Ohio State with eight points in the second quarter.
Of those eight points, two came from deep. On the first, forward Rebeka Mikulášiková, who had five points and three assists in the first half, drove to the basket from beyond the arc but quickly threw a no-look pass to Sheldon, converting the attempt. Then, with the Buckeyes down five with less than a minute to play, the Dublin, Ohio native hit her second, from the corner, to put Ohio State down two points heading into the halftime locker room.
Clark did what she does in the first half, scoring 20 points, but rebounds and assists were down slightly. The superstar senior from Des Moines had four assists and only two rebounds in the first half, with Ohio State winning the rebounding margin 17-16 in the first 20 minutes. McMahon’s 12 points led all Buckeyes.
To start the second half, fouls crept up again on Taylor while trying to defend Clark. After stopping a Clark drive to the basket, and knocking the ball free. With a review, the call stood and Taylor went back to the bench. Joining her soon after was Iowa forward Kate Martin, as the Iowa senior quickly picked up her fourth. At that point in the game, nine players across both teams had at least two fouls, with the teams combing for 28 in two and a half quarters, leaving a game that didn’t feature too much flow.
Iowa responded, playing a strong inside game themselves, mirroring what made the Buckeyes successful in the first quarter. The Hawkeyes went on a seven-point run, extending the lead to eight points, the largest of the game to that point. In the run, the Buckeyes missed all five attempted shots and needed to help themselves to make it a game again. It came from an unlikely source.
Guard Emma Shumate, who had just entered the game in the third quarter, hit a three on her first touch of the ball in the game. Then, on the next offensive possession did it again. If you’re keeping track at home, that’s six points in 44 seconds for the sophomore from Dresden, Ohio. The six-point run cut the lead down to two, but it didn’t last long. The Hawkeyes continued pummeling under the basket, responding with the final five points of the quarter to go back up seven with 10 minutes remaining.
The start of the fourth quarter didn’t instill much confidence in the Buckeyes-leaning crowd. Iowa hit its first two shots of the quarter, a three-point shot by Clark and a running layup by 5-foot-7 Molly Davis over the taller Buckeye defender to increase the lead to 12 points. That forced a quick timeout by Coach McGuff with 8:49 remaining.
Out of the timeout, McMahon showed what the strategy could be to end the game, going straight at the basket, and earning a foul and a free throw in the process. It gave Ohio State a more manageable nine-point deficit.
McMahon hit another layup. Then Sheldon followed up with one of her own. It was like Coach McGuff was daring Iowa to try and defend and hear more whistles. That earned an Iowa timeout by head coach Lisa Bluder, taking time to play chess with strategy in the final minutes of the game as the Buckeyes began to mount a run.
Iowa’s response wasn’t as strong as Ohio State’s out of the timeout. McMahon, scoring six out of the next eight points of the game, put the Buckeyes within a point with 3:59 remaining. Unfortunately for the Buckeyes, three starters were also at four fouls. Taylor, Thierry, and McMahon, who led Ohio State with 23 points up to that point, had to play carefully.
Continuing to slow the Hawkeyes’ defense, the Buckeyes turned the 12-point deficit into a one-point lead, but it wouldn’t last. Iowa responded hitting the next two baskets in a game that became a yo-yo of back-and-forth opportunities.
McMahon continued her game-changing play. Down three, the forward missed a layup and ripped the ball away from Martin under the basket to get a second chance shot. That shot went in and although McMahon missed a follow-up free throw, Taylor helped.
On the next offensive possession, Taylor had the ball with only 8 seconds remaining on the shot clock, feeling the pressure, the graduate senior responded, hitting a running layup to put the Buckeyes up one.
Then, on defense, Iowa missed a wide-open layup, but Stuelke had two shots at the line. Missing one, it was a tied game, and that’s how it'd stay. Sheldon took the last shot of the game, clanging off the rim on a three-attempt, sending the game to overtime.
McMahon hit the first shot of the overtime period, a minute into the five, with Iowa missing its first two attempts with the ball. Then, the Buckeyes benefited from a miss by the referees, giving Ohio State possession on a play that looked out on Thierry. From that extra possession, McMahon made it to the line, making it a three-point Ohio State lead.
Clark cut the lead to one, going solo on a layup attempt against Taylor, still playing cautiously with the next foul taking her out. Then McMahon kept attacking. The forward hit a layup and went to the line, thanks to a foul by Clark. The sophomore loved the moment and scored her 31st points of the game, making it a two-possession contest.
Responding was Clark again, hitting a three-point shot, making it a one-point game, with Sheldon hitting a midrange effort to put it back at three points. Then Mikulášiková blew the roof off the arena. With 1:14 remaining, the Slovakian hit the Buckeyes’ fourth shot in a row, a three-point shot, to put Ohio State up six.
McMahon followed up two free throws by Clark with a layup, putting Ohio State up six points. That put McMahon at 33 points, a career-high after hitting 30 last season against the USF Bulls.
In the bonus, Iowa had to send the Buckeyes to the line with 30.3 seconds remaining. Despite having the best player in the world, the Hawkeyes couldn’t come back like Ohio State, falling 100-92 to the Buckeyes in front of a sold-out crowd.
Regardless of the outcome, it’s no hyperbole to say the Schottenstein Center was louder than it has ever been for an Ohio State women’s basketball game. The previous record, 17,525 against the Penn State Nittany Lions on Feb. 27, 2005, was beaten-handedly with the sellout crowd of the fully open Value City Arena.
The Buckeyes crowd hit 18,860, creating a new record-holder that may not be broken anytime in the near future. That is unless Clark returns for a final season.
After today, the Buckeyes head to Champaign, Illinois for a matchup against the Illinois Fighting Illini. Ohio State took the lone game against Illinois last season, coming back from a third-quarter 17-point deficit. Illini sit at 8-9 this season, a down year after Illinois surprised the conference last season with a 22-10 record for first-year Illini coach Shauna Green.
Continue reading...
ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jason Mowry/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Buckeyes outlast Caitlin Clark to upset the No. 2 Hawkeyes on a record-breaking day.
The Schottenstein Center on Sunday was at a whole new level of excitement for Ohio State women’s basketball. That’s because of the presence of Iowa Hawkeyes guard Caitlin Clark. In front of a record-breaking, sellout, women's basketball crowd, the odds were stacked against the Buckeyes.
Despite the odds and foul troubles by three starters, Ohio State fed off the crowd, defeating the favored No. 2 Hawkeyes 100-92. Including a 12-point deficit comeback and five minutes of Buckeye-dominant overtime.
From the jump, the energy and noise were palpable. Entering it, the matchup within the matchup was Iowa’s Clark versus former Duke shooting guard Celeste Taylor. The former National Defensive Player of the Year finalist gave Ohio State a defensive matchup it can feel better about going up against the leading scorer and assist-creator in the nation.
Unfortunately for the Buckeyes, Taylor’s presence was missing within the first two minutes of the game thanks to foul trouble. While a single person alone can’t stop Clark, Taylor gave Ohio State the best like-for-like matchup. However, even without Taylor, Ohio State showed that it was up to the task early.
Leading the charge was sophomore forward Cotie McMahon. Seemingly feeding off the crowd, the Centerville, Ohio native gave the capacity crowd something to cheer about. McMahon aggressively went to the basket. It was a performance fans were used to seeing last season in the postseason run where Ohio State went to the Elite Eight.
McMahon led Ohio State with 11 points. Clark responded scoring 13 and sprinkling in two assists.
It was clear early though that head coach Kevin McGuff wanted to break any Iowa attempt at setting up its zone defense. With the three-point shot eluding the Scarlet and Gray, leveraging forwards looked like it was working. At the end of the first quarter it was 26-24 in the Hawkeyes favor, but considering the loss of Taylor, a one-possession game against the No. 2 team in the country was a foundation-builder.
In place of Taylor was guard Rikki Harris. The Buckeyes’ sixth player, also known as the “bench starter,” entered the game and hit two of the three made shots from deep for Ohio State, marking just the third time this season the senior from Indianapolis has knocked down multiple three-point attempts.
Ohio State returned all five starters to the court for the second quarter and continued the inside game with McMahon. Although the forward missed two free throws to start the 10 minutes, it did put the Hawkeyes bigs in foul trouble. Both Hannah Stuelke, who started after missing Iowa’s Tuesday game against Wisconsin, and Sharon Goodman went to the bench with two fouls apiece.
Defensively, the Buckeyes' strong first-quarter presence had a lull in the second. After going up two points, Iowa went on an 11-3 run to go up 38-32. On most of the Hawkeyes’ five scoring possessions, Ohio State wasn’t back fast enough on defense to stop easy transition baskets. It forced a timeout by McGuff with 5:41 left in the half, down six, hoping to stop the bleeding on defense.
The Buckeyes responded well out of that timeout, with Iowa only getting off five shots the rest of the quarter, hitting two. Ohio State then found the deep shot, courtesy of guard Jacy Sheldon. After missing all three of her shots in the first quarter, Sheldon led Ohio State with eight points in the second quarter.
Of those eight points, two came from deep. On the first, forward Rebeka Mikulášiková, who had five points and three assists in the first half, drove to the basket from beyond the arc but quickly threw a no-look pass to Sheldon, converting the attempt. Then, with the Buckeyes down five with less than a minute to play, the Dublin, Ohio native hit her second, from the corner, to put Ohio State down two points heading into the halftime locker room.
Clark did what she does in the first half, scoring 20 points, but rebounds and assists were down slightly. The superstar senior from Des Moines had four assists and only two rebounds in the first half, with Ohio State winning the rebounding margin 17-16 in the first 20 minutes. McMahon’s 12 points led all Buckeyes.
To start the second half, fouls crept up again on Taylor while trying to defend Clark. After stopping a Clark drive to the basket, and knocking the ball free. With a review, the call stood and Taylor went back to the bench. Joining her soon after was Iowa forward Kate Martin, as the Iowa senior quickly picked up her fourth. At that point in the game, nine players across both teams had at least two fouls, with the teams combing for 28 in two and a half quarters, leaving a game that didn’t feature too much flow.
Iowa responded, playing a strong inside game themselves, mirroring what made the Buckeyes successful in the first quarter. The Hawkeyes went on a seven-point run, extending the lead to eight points, the largest of the game to that point. In the run, the Buckeyes missed all five attempted shots and needed to help themselves to make it a game again. It came from an unlikely source.
Guard Emma Shumate, who had just entered the game in the third quarter, hit a three on her first touch of the ball in the game. Then, on the next offensive possession did it again. If you’re keeping track at home, that’s six points in 44 seconds for the sophomore from Dresden, Ohio. The six-point run cut the lead down to two, but it didn’t last long. The Hawkeyes continued pummeling under the basket, responding with the final five points of the quarter to go back up seven with 10 minutes remaining.
The start of the fourth quarter didn’t instill much confidence in the Buckeyes-leaning crowd. Iowa hit its first two shots of the quarter, a three-point shot by Clark and a running layup by 5-foot-7 Molly Davis over the taller Buckeye defender to increase the lead to 12 points. That forced a quick timeout by Coach McGuff with 8:49 remaining.
Out of the timeout, McMahon showed what the strategy could be to end the game, going straight at the basket, and earning a foul and a free throw in the process. It gave Ohio State a more manageable nine-point deficit.
McMahon hit another layup. Then Sheldon followed up with one of her own. It was like Coach McGuff was daring Iowa to try and defend and hear more whistles. That earned an Iowa timeout by head coach Lisa Bluder, taking time to play chess with strategy in the final minutes of the game as the Buckeyes began to mount a run.
Iowa’s response wasn’t as strong as Ohio State’s out of the timeout. McMahon, scoring six out of the next eight points of the game, put the Buckeyes within a point with 3:59 remaining. Unfortunately for the Buckeyes, three starters were also at four fouls. Taylor, Thierry, and McMahon, who led Ohio State with 23 points up to that point, had to play carefully.
Continuing to slow the Hawkeyes’ defense, the Buckeyes turned the 12-point deficit into a one-point lead, but it wouldn’t last. Iowa responded hitting the next two baskets in a game that became a yo-yo of back-and-forth opportunities.
McMahon continued her game-changing play. Down three, the forward missed a layup and ripped the ball away from Martin under the basket to get a second chance shot. That shot went in and although McMahon missed a follow-up free throw, Taylor helped.
On the next offensive possession, Taylor had the ball with only 8 seconds remaining on the shot clock, feeling the pressure, the graduate senior responded, hitting a running layup to put the Buckeyes up one.
Then, on defense, Iowa missed a wide-open layup, but Stuelke had two shots at the line. Missing one, it was a tied game, and that’s how it'd stay. Sheldon took the last shot of the game, clanging off the rim on a three-attempt, sending the game to overtime.
McMahon hit the first shot of the overtime period, a minute into the five, with Iowa missing its first two attempts with the ball. Then, the Buckeyes benefited from a miss by the referees, giving Ohio State possession on a play that looked out on Thierry. From that extra possession, McMahon made it to the line, making it a three-point Ohio State lead.
Clark cut the lead to one, going solo on a layup attempt against Taylor, still playing cautiously with the next foul taking her out. Then McMahon kept attacking. The forward hit a layup and went to the line, thanks to a foul by Clark. The sophomore loved the moment and scored her 31st points of the game, making it a two-possession contest.
Responding was Clark again, hitting a three-point shot, making it a one-point game, with Sheldon hitting a midrange effort to put it back at three points. Then Mikulášiková blew the roof off the arena. With 1:14 remaining, the Slovakian hit the Buckeyes’ fourth shot in a row, a three-point shot, to put Ohio State up six.
McMahon followed up two free throws by Clark with a layup, putting Ohio State up six points. That put McMahon at 33 points, a career-high after hitting 30 last season against the USF Bulls.
In the bonus, Iowa had to send the Buckeyes to the line with 30.3 seconds remaining. Despite having the best player in the world, the Hawkeyes couldn’t come back like Ohio State, falling 100-92 to the Buckeyes in front of a sold-out crowd.
Record-Breaking Crowd
Regardless of the outcome, it’s no hyperbole to say the Schottenstein Center was louder than it has ever been for an Ohio State women’s basketball game. The previous record, 17,525 against the Penn State Nittany Lions on Feb. 27, 2005, was beaten-handedly with the sellout crowd of the fully open Value City Arena.
The Buckeyes crowd hit 18,860, creating a new record-holder that may not be broken anytime in the near future. That is unless Clark returns for a final season.
What’s Next
After today, the Buckeyes head to Champaign, Illinois for a matchup against the Illinois Fighting Illini. Ohio State took the lone game against Illinois last season, coming back from a third-quarter 17-point deficit. Illini sit at 8-9 this season, a down year after Illinois surprised the conference last season with a 22-10 record for first-year Illini coach Shauna Green.
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LGHL Ohio State uses blazing hot start to race past Penn State, 79-67
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Ohio State uses blazing hot start to race past Penn State, 79-67
Connor Lemons via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Joseph Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports
The Buckeyes blitzed Penn State with a 16-0 run to start the game and never looked back.
The thing about “must-win” games that many people forget is that you actually have to win them. Or, at least the Ohio State men’s basketball team (13-5, 3-4) forgot that on Monday against Michigan, when they lost to the last-place Wolverines on the road in Ann Arbor, extending their losing streak to three games. Saturday afternoon’s game against Penn State (9-10, 3-5) was a self-billed must-win game after sophomore guard Roddy Gayle called it as much on Friday afternoon.
“It’s extremely important to defend our home court. It would be an amazing turnaround for us to be able to get rolling a little bit, especially in conference play.” Gayle said. “This is a must win game for us.”
The last time these two teams faced off, Penn State overcame an 18-point second-half deficit and stunned Ohio State in the Bryce Jordan Center, 83-80. Saturdfay afternoon was a chance for the Buckeyes to even the score.
Despite recent struggles, Chris Holtmann did not deviate from the starting lineup, going with sophomores Bruce Thornton, Roddy Gayle, Evan Mahaffey, and Felix Okpara alongisde senior forward Jamison Battle. Penn State went with a starting five of Kanye Clary, Ace Baldwin, Qudus Wahab, Nick Kern, and Zach Hicks.
The Buckeyes were blazing out of the game, opening things up with a 16-0 run to start the game. Gayle had Ohio State’s first four points, but after picking up a quick foul on a rebound three minutes into the game, he was pulled in favor of Dale Bonner. Gayle was out, Mahaffey took over the heavy lifting, scoring six consecutive points — which made Saturday his second-highest scoring game in 2024, just five minutes into the game.
Mike Rhoades used two of his four allotted timeouts in the first eight minutes of the game, as his Nittany Lions were doing nothing right while Ohio State was getting the ball to the basket pretty much at will. Through the first 12 minutes, Ohio State had 18 points in the paint, compared to just two for Penn State.
After missing its first 13 shots and falling behind 16-0, Penn State hit four of its next seven, getting on the scoreboard and a little more comfortable on the road. By the under-eight media timeout with 7:13 left in the first half, Ohio State’s lead stood at 24-11. Jameel Brown, a 6-foot-4 sophomore guard who came into this game averaging 4.2 points per game, knocked down two three-pointers to get Penn State on the board in the first half. Brown’s threes were Penn State’s first two made shots of the game.
The Buckeyes didn’t maintain that 16-point lead for the entirety of the first half, but still went into the locker room up 33-19 and feeling pretty good about themselves, especially on the defensive end. Ohio State held Penn State to 19 first-half points on 21.9% shooting, and that was despite Penn State hitting 5-of-13 of three-pointers. Ohio State really was not impressive after the opening blitz, shooting 35.6% as a team after that opening 16-0 run.
Gayle led Ohio State with 10 first-half points, while both Brown and Baldwin had six apiece for Penn State. Ohio State won the rebounding battle in the first half, 23-18.
The two squads shot an identical 40% of the first 4:44 of the second half, shooting 4-for-10. Ohio State maintained that 14-point lead into the first media timeout of the second half, sitting pretty with a 41-27 lead with 15:16 left in the game. Meanwhile, they missed three more three-pointers, meaning they’d hit 3 of their last 36, going back to the Michigan game.
The Buckeyes extended their lead out to 22 points at one point, but held firm with a 61-43 lead at the under-eight media timeout. Both teams were making shots at a higher level in the second half, but Penn State needed way more stops than they were getting if they wanted to erase that big of a deficit.
While there were some nervous murmurs in the crowd when Penn State cut the lead to nine with two minutes and some change to go , the Nittany Lions never got back within shouting range of Ohio State after getting shoved into a locker during the first seven minutes. The three-point stroke did not return for the Buckeyes, but that didn’t matter at all in a 79-67revenge win of the Nittany Lions Saturday afternoon.
If you weren’t around Saturday afternoon to catch Ohio State get back on track with a sweet victory over the Nittany Lions, here are some of the key moments and plays that caried the Buckeyes to the win:
Considering the Buckeyes are 0-1 this season in games where they author a 16-0 run, doing so was an ominous signal for today’s game, but Ohio State didn’t give a damn. Powered by Gayle and Mahaffey, the Buckeyes raced out to a scalding 16-0 lead over the first six-plus minutes of the game. Both Gayle and Mahaffey had six apiece during that run, while on the other end the Nittany Lions hit just one of their first 14 shots. Mike Rhoades used two of his four timeouts in the first eight minutes, trying to get something or anything out of his guys as the game slipped away in the opening minutes.
Gayle was shooting 6.3% from three (1-for-16) over his last four games, and has not looked confident at all letting it rip from deep. He’s asked his teammates and coaches to stick on him so that he doesn’t lose confidence, and afternoon that translated into Ohio State’s first four points of the game, and 10 in the first half for the sophomore guard.
Roddy played 14 minutes in the first half and did not attempt a three-pointer. Instead, he drove to the basket with pretty much every opportunity, knocking down four of his five shots and finishing the first half with 10 points. He did have one turnover, but after a stretch where he had three or more turnovers in seven consecutive games, just one in the opening 20 minutes was a solid showing for the sophomore.
Penn State sophomore guard Jameel Brown was averaging 4.2 points per game heading into Saturday’s showdown with the Buckeyes, and was held scoreless in seven of Penn State’s last eight games. But with his team down 16-0 early, Brown (a 38.9% three-point shooter) knocked down consecutive three-pointers to get his team on the board with 12:57 left in the first half. Brown’s threes made it 18-6 Ohio State.
The Buckeyes went into the locker room at halftime up 14 despite going 0-for-8 from three-point range in the first half, which meant they had hit exactly 3 out of 33 triples over their last three halves of basketball.
Ohio State has capable shooters on the roster, and it seems like it’s just a matter of time until those shots start to fall. But as this team’s struggles from beyond the arc continue, it’s reasonable to wonder if this is just something Chris Holtmann and the coaching staff will have to deal with for the forseeable future... 3-for-33 is a big enough sample size to wonder about it.
No Ohio State fan is ever going to forget the name Leo O’Boyle. The Penn State transfer senior, who is averaing 2.6 points per game, lit Ohio State up for 15 points when these teams met last month in State College. Since then, he’s scored 11 points over Penn State’s last eight games
O’Boyle played sparingly this afternoon against the Buckeyes, but there was a stretch early in the second half when Zed Key and Devin Royal took him to town below the basket, getting payback for what the Scranton, Pennsylvania-native did to them in December.
With Ohio State leading 50-31 and just over 12 minutes left in the game, Key had a one-on-one matchup with O’Boyle below the basket, and immediately called for the basketball. Gayle passed from the wing and found Key, who spun around, went under the outstretched arms of O’Boyle, and scored through contact. He knocked down the free throw as well, making it 53-31.
After a Penn State basket, Royal had the same matchup below the basket. He took one dribble, spun away from O’Boyle, and hit a one-legged jumper from about six feet out to make it 55-34.
Mahaffey set a new career-high Saturday afternoon with 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting, and did it against his former team, to boot. Mahaffey also had five rebounds, two blocks, and two steals.
Ohio State (13-5, 3-4) has a quick turnaround after this one, as they’ll head to Lincoln on Tuesday to tangle with the upstart Nebraska Cornhuskers (13-5, 3-4). Fred Hoiberg’s team raced out to a 13-3 start to the season, which included a home win over top-ranked Purdue two weeks ago. Since then, Nebraska has lost back-to-back road games to Iowa and Rutgers, with a home date against Northwestern on the docket for Saturday afternoon.
The Buckeyes’ road match against the ‘Huskers will tip off at 7:00 and will be broadcast exclusively on Peacock.
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Connor Lemons via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Joseph Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports
The Buckeyes blitzed Penn State with a 16-0 run to start the game and never looked back.
The thing about “must-win” games that many people forget is that you actually have to win them. Or, at least the Ohio State men’s basketball team (13-5, 3-4) forgot that on Monday against Michigan, when they lost to the last-place Wolverines on the road in Ann Arbor, extending their losing streak to three games. Saturday afternoon’s game against Penn State (9-10, 3-5) was a self-billed must-win game after sophomore guard Roddy Gayle called it as much on Friday afternoon.
“It’s extremely important to defend our home court. It would be an amazing turnaround for us to be able to get rolling a little bit, especially in conference play.” Gayle said. “This is a must win game for us.”
The last time these two teams faced off, Penn State overcame an 18-point second-half deficit and stunned Ohio State in the Bryce Jordan Center, 83-80. Saturdfay afternoon was a chance for the Buckeyes to even the score.
Despite recent struggles, Chris Holtmann did not deviate from the starting lineup, going with sophomores Bruce Thornton, Roddy Gayle, Evan Mahaffey, and Felix Okpara alongisde senior forward Jamison Battle. Penn State went with a starting five of Kanye Clary, Ace Baldwin, Qudus Wahab, Nick Kern, and Zach Hicks.
The Buckeyes were blazing out of the game, opening things up with a 16-0 run to start the game. Gayle had Ohio State’s first four points, but after picking up a quick foul on a rebound three minutes into the game, he was pulled in favor of Dale Bonner. Gayle was out, Mahaffey took over the heavy lifting, scoring six consecutive points — which made Saturday his second-highest scoring game in 2024, just five minutes into the game.
Mike Rhoades used two of his four allotted timeouts in the first eight minutes of the game, as his Nittany Lions were doing nothing right while Ohio State was getting the ball to the basket pretty much at will. Through the first 12 minutes, Ohio State had 18 points in the paint, compared to just two for Penn State.
After missing its first 13 shots and falling behind 16-0, Penn State hit four of its next seven, getting on the scoreboard and a little more comfortable on the road. By the under-eight media timeout with 7:13 left in the first half, Ohio State’s lead stood at 24-11. Jameel Brown, a 6-foot-4 sophomore guard who came into this game averaging 4.2 points per game, knocked down two three-pointers to get Penn State on the board in the first half. Brown’s threes were Penn State’s first two made shots of the game.
The Buckeyes didn’t maintain that 16-point lead for the entirety of the first half, but still went into the locker room up 33-19 and feeling pretty good about themselves, especially on the defensive end. Ohio State held Penn State to 19 first-half points on 21.9% shooting, and that was despite Penn State hitting 5-of-13 of three-pointers. Ohio State really was not impressive after the opening blitz, shooting 35.6% as a team after that opening 16-0 run.
Gayle led Ohio State with 10 first-half points, while both Brown and Baldwin had six apiece for Penn State. Ohio State won the rebounding battle in the first half, 23-18.
The two squads shot an identical 40% of the first 4:44 of the second half, shooting 4-for-10. Ohio State maintained that 14-point lead into the first media timeout of the second half, sitting pretty with a 41-27 lead with 15:16 left in the game. Meanwhile, they missed three more three-pointers, meaning they’d hit 3 of their last 36, going back to the Michigan game.
The Buckeyes extended their lead out to 22 points at one point, but held firm with a 61-43 lead at the under-eight media timeout. Both teams were making shots at a higher level in the second half, but Penn State needed way more stops than they were getting if they wanted to erase that big of a deficit.
While there were some nervous murmurs in the crowd when Penn State cut the lead to nine with two minutes and some change to go , the Nittany Lions never got back within shouting range of Ohio State after getting shoved into a locker during the first seven minutes. The three-point stroke did not return for the Buckeyes, but that didn’t matter at all in a 79-67revenge win of the Nittany Lions Saturday afternoon.
If you weren’t around Saturday afternoon to catch Ohio State get back on track with a sweet victory over the Nittany Lions, here are some of the key moments and plays that caried the Buckeyes to the win:
Ohio State lights up a 16-0 run to start the game
Considering the Buckeyes are 0-1 this season in games where they author a 16-0 run, doing so was an ominous signal for today’s game, but Ohio State didn’t give a damn. Powered by Gayle and Mahaffey, the Buckeyes raced out to a scalding 16-0 lead over the first six-plus minutes of the game. Both Gayle and Mahaffey had six apiece during that run, while on the other end the Nittany Lions hit just one of their first 14 shots. Mike Rhoades used two of his four timeouts in the first eight minutes, trying to get something or anything out of his guys as the game slipped away in the opening minutes.
Roddy Gayle, getting to the tin
Gayle was shooting 6.3% from three (1-for-16) over his last four games, and has not looked confident at all letting it rip from deep. He’s asked his teammates and coaches to stick on him so that he doesn’t lose confidence, and afternoon that translated into Ohio State’s first four points of the game, and 10 in the first half for the sophomore guard.
Roddy played 14 minutes in the first half and did not attempt a three-pointer. Instead, he drove to the basket with pretty much every opportunity, knocking down four of his five shots and finishing the first half with 10 points. He did have one turnover, but after a stretch where he had three or more turnovers in seven consecutive games, just one in the opening 20 minutes was a solid showing for the sophomore.
Jameel Brown gets Penn State on the board
Penn State sophomore guard Jameel Brown was averaging 4.2 points per game heading into Saturday’s showdown with the Buckeyes, and was held scoreless in seven of Penn State’s last eight games. But with his team down 16-0 early, Brown (a 38.9% three-point shooter) knocked down consecutive three-pointers to get his team on the board with 12:57 left in the first half. Brown’s threes made it 18-6 Ohio State.
Three-point struggles persist
The Buckeyes went into the locker room at halftime up 14 despite going 0-for-8 from three-point range in the first half, which meant they had hit exactly 3 out of 33 triples over their last three halves of basketball.
Ohio State has capable shooters on the roster, and it seems like it’s just a matter of time until those shots start to fall. But as this team’s struggles from beyond the arc continue, it’s reasonable to wonder if this is just something Chris Holtmann and the coaching staff will have to deal with for the forseeable future... 3-for-33 is a big enough sample size to wonder about it.
Key, Royal cook O’Boyle below the basket
No Ohio State fan is ever going to forget the name Leo O’Boyle. The Penn State transfer senior, who is averaing 2.6 points per game, lit Ohio State up for 15 points when these teams met last month in State College. Since then, he’s scored 11 points over Penn State’s last eight games
O’Boyle played sparingly this afternoon against the Buckeyes, but there was a stretch early in the second half when Zed Key and Devin Royal took him to town below the basket, getting payback for what the Scranton, Pennsylvania-native did to them in December.
With Ohio State leading 50-31 and just over 12 minutes left in the game, Key had a one-on-one matchup with O’Boyle below the basket, and immediately called for the basketball. Gayle passed from the wing and found Key, who spun around, went under the outstretched arms of O’Boyle, and scored through contact. He knocked down the free throw as well, making it 53-31.
After a Penn State basket, Royal had the same matchup below the basket. He took one dribble, spun away from O’Boyle, and hit a one-legged jumper from about six feet out to make it 55-34.
Mahaffey sets new career-high in scoring
Mahaffey set a new career-high Saturday afternoon with 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting, and did it against his former team, to boot. Mahaffey also had five rebounds, two blocks, and two steals.
Up Next:
Ohio State (13-5, 3-4) has a quick turnaround after this one, as they’ll head to Lincoln on Tuesday to tangle with the upstart Nebraska Cornhuskers (13-5, 3-4). Fred Hoiberg’s team raced out to a 13-3 start to the season, which included a home win over top-ranked Purdue two weeks ago. Since then, Nebraska has lost back-to-back road games to Iowa and Rutgers, with a home date against Northwestern on the docket for Saturday afternoon.
The Buckeyes’ road match against the ‘Huskers will tip off at 7:00 and will be broadcast exclusively on Peacock.
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