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LGHL Power Two Podcast: The best games of 2024, plus an MVP snub?
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Power Two Podcast: The best games of 2024, plus an MVP snub?
JordanW330 via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Bruce Yeung/Getty Images
Ranking which games had us on the edge of our seats this year. Plus, did Josh Allen get a undeserving MVP Award?
Welcome to a new episode of Land-Grant Podcast Network’s Power Two Podcast. On this show, we talk about Big Ten and SEC football… and everyone else. This show is for the die-hard fans and the casual college football fans. My name is Jordan Williams, and I am joined by my co-host DaNaysia Jones. Lock in as we run a power sweep through the college football landscape.
In this episode, Jordan and DJ discuss more coach hirings in the news. They also chatted about Anthony Davis’ debut with the Dallas Mavericks. He may already be injured, which is disheartening for our resident Mavs fan. Shockwaves are still going through Dallas as the public continues to digest that Luka Doncic is really gone.
In the two-minute drill, Jordan and DJ react to the 2024 NFL Award Honorees. They are in agreement on every award except for a couple. There is genuine disbelief about Lamar Jackson losing the MVP Award. DJ is not too happy with the justifications for why Josh Allen won over Lamar Jackson. There was extensive discussion on what the most valuable player actually means and if the decision was fair.
Jordan starts the campaign to get Reggie Wayne into the NFL Hall of Fame. DJ shares her joy at Shannon and Sterling Sharpe being the first brothers to get into the Hall of Fame. Jordan shares his thoughts on what qualifies someone to be a first-ballot selection.
In the power sweep, DJ and Jordan share their top games of the season and why they chose them. Some of the highlights were the Ohio State vs. Oregon game, the Clemson vs. SMU game, and the Georgia vs. Georgia Tech game. They reminisced about what it felt like to watch those games and discussed the impact they had on the season.
In the two-minute warning, DJ and Jordan give their thoughts on who may win the Unrivaled 1V1 Tournament next week. DJ and Jordan also share their excitement for the Kendrick Lamar Super Bowl halftime show and what they hope to see from it.
If you like the show, please share it with friends and family and leave a five-star review. If you want to keep up with the show, subscribe to the Land-Grant Podcast Network Feed where new episodes drop every Monday.
You can also find Jordan’s article ‘B1G Thoughts’ on Land-Grant Holy Land.
Follow the show on YouTube: @GetDefensiveSportsNetwork
Follow the podcast on Instagram: @GetDefensiveSportsNetwork
Connect with us on Twitter: Jordan: @JordanW330 and DJ:@dj_danaysia
Continue reading...
JordanW330 via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Bruce Yeung/Getty Images
Ranking which games had us on the edge of our seats this year. Plus, did Josh Allen get a undeserving MVP Award?
Welcome to a new episode of Land-Grant Podcast Network’s Power Two Podcast. On this show, we talk about Big Ten and SEC football… and everyone else. This show is for the die-hard fans and the casual college football fans. My name is Jordan Williams, and I am joined by my co-host DaNaysia Jones. Lock in as we run a power sweep through the college football landscape.
In this episode, Jordan and DJ discuss more coach hirings in the news. They also chatted about Anthony Davis’ debut with the Dallas Mavericks. He may already be injured, which is disheartening for our resident Mavs fan. Shockwaves are still going through Dallas as the public continues to digest that Luka Doncic is really gone.
In the two-minute drill, Jordan and DJ react to the 2024 NFL Award Honorees. They are in agreement on every award except for a couple. There is genuine disbelief about Lamar Jackson losing the MVP Award. DJ is not too happy with the justifications for why Josh Allen won over Lamar Jackson. There was extensive discussion on what the most valuable player actually means and if the decision was fair.
Jordan starts the campaign to get Reggie Wayne into the NFL Hall of Fame. DJ shares her joy at Shannon and Sterling Sharpe being the first brothers to get into the Hall of Fame. Jordan shares his thoughts on what qualifies someone to be a first-ballot selection.
In the power sweep, DJ and Jordan share their top games of the season and why they chose them. Some of the highlights were the Ohio State vs. Oregon game, the Clemson vs. SMU game, and the Georgia vs. Georgia Tech game. They reminisced about what it felt like to watch those games and discussed the impact they had on the season.
In the two-minute warning, DJ and Jordan give their thoughts on who may win the Unrivaled 1V1 Tournament next week. DJ and Jordan also share their excitement for the Kendrick Lamar Super Bowl halftime show and what they hope to see from it.
If you like the show, please share it with friends and family and leave a five-star review. If you want to keep up with the show, subscribe to the Land-Grant Podcast Network Feed where new episodes drop every Monday.
You can also find Jordan’s article ‘B1G Thoughts’ on Land-Grant Holy Land.
Follow the show on YouTube: @GetDefensiveSportsNetwork
Follow the podcast on Instagram: @GetDefensiveSportsNetwork
Connect with us on Twitter: Jordan: @JordanW330 and DJ:@dj_danaysia
Continue reading...
LGHL Way-too-early 2025 Ohio State depth chart projection: Offense
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Way-too-early 2025 Ohio State depth chart projection: Offense
Gene Ross via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images
Jeremiah Smith highlights the Buckeyes’ returnees on offense in 2025.
Now that the dust has settled on Ohio State’s national championship celebrations and the NFL season has come to a conclusion as well — with Parris Campbell’s Philadelphia Eagles winning the Super Bowl — now is as good a time as any to take a way-too-early look ahead at the 2025 Buckeyes.
Ryan Day has filled out his offensive coaching staff by promoting Brian Hartline to full-time offensive coordinator, in addition to the hiring of Tyler Bowen as offensive line coach. Hartline’s knowledge of the passing game mixed with Bowen’s familiarity with the run game should once again provide Ohio State with balance on that side of the ball, albeit the players running the show will look a lot different.
While we still have a long ways to go before the first depth charts are put together, here is how we think the starting lineup will look as we project ahead to Aug. 30.
Will Howard solidified himself as an Ohio State legend after just one season in Columbus, and he now passes the torch to Alabama transfer Julian Sayin. The No. 1 QB and No. 6 overall player in the 2024 class per the 247Sports Composite, the former five-star prospect transferred from the Crimson Tide to Ohio State following Nick Saban’s retirement. He has attempted only 12 passes with the Buckeyes — five completions for 84 yards and a touchdown — but is the heir apparent to Day’s QB machine.
Battling it out for the backup job will be sophomore Lincoln Kienholz and true freshman Tavien St. Clair. A top-200 player in the 2023 class, Kienholz attempted 22 passes for Ohio State in 2023, completing 10 for 111 yards, but threw no passes in his two appearances in 2024. St. Clair, meanwhile, is an incoming five-star as the No. 3 QB in the country in the 2025 class and the top player in Ohio.
RB1: James Peoples
Ohio State loses both of its top two running backs to the NFL in TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins, with the pair having been instrumental to the Buckeyes’ national title run. The two stud ball-carriers finished with eerily similar stands, with Judkins rushing for 1,060 yards and 14 TDs and Henderson with 1,016 yards and 10 TDs. Position coach Carlos Locklyn will look to replicate that successful two-back system with James Peoples and CJ Donaldson in 2025.
Peoples is in his second year with the program, coming to Ohio State as a top-10 running back in the 2024 class and a top-20 player out of Texas. The 5-foot-10 tailback got his feet wet as a freshman, rushing 49 times for 197 yards and two TDs in relief of Henderson and Judkins. Donaldson, meanwhile, comes to Columbus by way of Morgantown. The senior spent the past three years at West Virginia, racking up over 2,000 yards rushing and 30 touchdowns with the Mountaineers.
Locklyn adds a deep and supremely talented freshman class to his room as well, with a trio of first-year guys in Anthony “Turbo” Rogers, Bo Jackson and Isaiah West.
WR1: Jeremiah Smith
Even with the loss of Ohio State’s program record holder in career receptions, Emeka Egbuka, you know a Brian Hartline-led Buckeyes’ receiver core is going to be nasty. That will of course be the case again, headlined by the former freshman phenom himself, Jeremiah Smith. Smith more than lived up to the hype in 2024, leading Ohio State with more than 1,300 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns. Despite being NFL ready, the rules dictate he still must play two more years of collegiate ball, and for that Hartline is lucky.
Behind Smith will be a pair of stars in their own right in Carnell Tate and Brandon Inniss. Tate played a huge role for Ohio State as WR3 in 2024, catching 52 passes for 733 yards and four TDs, and will now see even more work come his way. Inniss, on the other hand, didn’t do a ton in the passing game, catching 14 balls for 176 yards and a touchdown, but was incredibly valuable on special teams and will be rewarded for the gritty work as a top-three receiver in this offense in 2025.
Outside the top three are a handful of guys who could very well play their way into a bigger role as the season goes on. Mylan Graham was a five-star prospect and the No. 7 WR in the 2024 class, while Quincy Porter is an incoming five-star as the No. 5 WR in the 2025 cycle. Bryson Rodgers was a top-400 player coming out of high school, but has impressed on the practice field during his first two years with the program and seems itching to break out.
TE1: Max Klare
Ohio State’s tight end room has a chance to be elite in 2025. That is largely a result of the addition of Purdue transfer Max Klare, the No. 1 TE and a top-15 overall player in this most recent transfer portal window. Entering his junior season, Klare is coming off a huge campaign for the Boilermakers with 51 catches for 685 yards and four TDs — all team-highs. The Buckeyes aren’t usually a team who looks to target their tight ends, but they also don't usually have a receiving threat at the position quite like Klare.
Behind Klare is Will Kacmarek, who will likely see the field along with Klare a ton due to his prowess as a blocker. The Ohio University transfer only caught eight passes for 86 yards for Ohio State this past season, but was functionally a sixth offensive lineman on the field more often than not. The Buckeyes also have Jelani Thurman waiting in the wings, as the massive 6-foot-6 target enters his junior campaign having shown improvement over each of his first two years on campus.
LT: Ethan Onianwa
It was a crazy season for Ohio State’s offensive line, and many of the bigger names up front are now gone. Tackle Josh Simmons and guard Seth McLaughlin were the stalwarts earlier in the year, but both went down with season-ending injuries, and are now moving on to the next level. Donovan Jackson slid over from guard to tackle to fill in for the injured Simmons, but now he as well as his bookend Josh Fryar are also off to the NFL. Tasked with replacing both starting tackles, the Buckeyes looked to the transfer portal.
It was there that they found Ethan Onianwa and Phillip Daniels. Onianwa is a veteran of 34 starts at Rice, and the 6-foot-6, 345-pound tackle allowed just one sack in 350 pass-blocking snaps all last season, per PFF. Daniels, meanwhile, is a Cincinnati native who began his collegiate career at Minnesota. The 6-foot-5, 315-pound blocker started the final four games of the year for the Gophers, and was slated to return to that starting role in 2025, which he will now do in Columbus instead.
Ohio State will have some options on the interior, as all four guys who played those positions down the stretch this past season are back. Carson Hinzman is the clear frontrunner to resume his starting job at center, while the trio of Luke Montgomery, Austin Siereveld and Tegra Tshabola will battle it out for the two guard spots. Based on how well Montgomery played in the CFP, I give him a slight edge over the other two, and expect him to start opposite either Siereveld or Tshabola.
Ohio State’s spring practices won’t begin until mid-March, with the program taking some extra time off following a 16-game season that only came to an end on Jan. 20. There is also the second transfer portal window, which opens on April 16. Needless to say, a lot can change between now and when the Buckeyes take the field against Texas this August, but it doesn’t hurt to look ahead and start getting excited for the defending national champs!
Continue reading...
Gene Ross via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images
Jeremiah Smith highlights the Buckeyes’ returnees on offense in 2025.
Now that the dust has settled on Ohio State’s national championship celebrations and the NFL season has come to a conclusion as well — with Parris Campbell’s Philadelphia Eagles winning the Super Bowl — now is as good a time as any to take a way-too-early look ahead at the 2025 Buckeyes.
Ryan Day has filled out his offensive coaching staff by promoting Brian Hartline to full-time offensive coordinator, in addition to the hiring of Tyler Bowen as offensive line coach. Hartline’s knowledge of the passing game mixed with Bowen’s familiarity with the run game should once again provide Ohio State with balance on that side of the ball, albeit the players running the show will look a lot different.
While we still have a long ways to go before the first depth charts are put together, here is how we think the starting lineup will look as we project ahead to Aug. 30.
QB1: Julian Sayin
Will Howard solidified himself as an Ohio State legend after just one season in Columbus, and he now passes the torch to Alabama transfer Julian Sayin. The No. 1 QB and No. 6 overall player in the 2024 class per the 247Sports Composite, the former five-star prospect transferred from the Crimson Tide to Ohio State following Nick Saban’s retirement. He has attempted only 12 passes with the Buckeyes — five completions for 84 yards and a touchdown — but is the heir apparent to Day’s QB machine.
Battling it out for the backup job will be sophomore Lincoln Kienholz and true freshman Tavien St. Clair. A top-200 player in the 2023 class, Kienholz attempted 22 passes for Ohio State in 2023, completing 10 for 111 yards, but threw no passes in his two appearances in 2024. St. Clair, meanwhile, is an incoming five-star as the No. 3 QB in the country in the 2025 class and the top player in Ohio.
RB1: James Peoples
RB2: CJ Donaldson
Ohio State loses both of its top two running backs to the NFL in TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins, with the pair having been instrumental to the Buckeyes’ national title run. The two stud ball-carriers finished with eerily similar stands, with Judkins rushing for 1,060 yards and 14 TDs and Henderson with 1,016 yards and 10 TDs. Position coach Carlos Locklyn will look to replicate that successful two-back system with James Peoples and CJ Donaldson in 2025.
Peoples is in his second year with the program, coming to Ohio State as a top-10 running back in the 2024 class and a top-20 player out of Texas. The 5-foot-10 tailback got his feet wet as a freshman, rushing 49 times for 197 yards and two TDs in relief of Henderson and Judkins. Donaldson, meanwhile, comes to Columbus by way of Morgantown. The senior spent the past three years at West Virginia, racking up over 2,000 yards rushing and 30 touchdowns with the Mountaineers.
Locklyn adds a deep and supremely talented freshman class to his room as well, with a trio of first-year guys in Anthony “Turbo” Rogers, Bo Jackson and Isaiah West.
WR1: Jeremiah Smith
WR2: Carnell Tate
WR3: Brandon Inniss
Depth: Mylan Graham, Bryson Rodgers, Quincy Porter
Even with the loss of Ohio State’s program record holder in career receptions, Emeka Egbuka, you know a Brian Hartline-led Buckeyes’ receiver core is going to be nasty. That will of course be the case again, headlined by the former freshman phenom himself, Jeremiah Smith. Smith more than lived up to the hype in 2024, leading Ohio State with more than 1,300 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns. Despite being NFL ready, the rules dictate he still must play two more years of collegiate ball, and for that Hartline is lucky.
Behind Smith will be a pair of stars in their own right in Carnell Tate and Brandon Inniss. Tate played a huge role for Ohio State as WR3 in 2024, catching 52 passes for 733 yards and four TDs, and will now see even more work come his way. Inniss, on the other hand, didn’t do a ton in the passing game, catching 14 balls for 176 yards and a touchdown, but was incredibly valuable on special teams and will be rewarded for the gritty work as a top-three receiver in this offense in 2025.
Outside the top three are a handful of guys who could very well play their way into a bigger role as the season goes on. Mylan Graham was a five-star prospect and the No. 7 WR in the 2024 class, while Quincy Porter is an incoming five-star as the No. 5 WR in the 2025 cycle. Bryson Rodgers was a top-400 player coming out of high school, but has impressed on the practice field during his first two years with the program and seems itching to break out.
TE1: Max Klare
TE2: Will Kacmarek OR Jelani Thurman
Ohio State’s tight end room has a chance to be elite in 2025. That is largely a result of the addition of Purdue transfer Max Klare, the No. 1 TE and a top-15 overall player in this most recent transfer portal window. Entering his junior season, Klare is coming off a huge campaign for the Boilermakers with 51 catches for 685 yards and four TDs — all team-highs. The Buckeyes aren’t usually a team who looks to target their tight ends, but they also don't usually have a receiving threat at the position quite like Klare.
Behind Klare is Will Kacmarek, who will likely see the field along with Klare a ton due to his prowess as a blocker. The Ohio University transfer only caught eight passes for 86 yards for Ohio State this past season, but was functionally a sixth offensive lineman on the field more often than not. The Buckeyes also have Jelani Thurman waiting in the wings, as the massive 6-foot-6 target enters his junior campaign having shown improvement over each of his first two years on campus.
LT: Ethan Onianwa
LG: Luke Montgomery
C: Carson Hinzman
RG: Austin Siereveld OR Tegra Tshabola
RT: Phillip Daniels
It was a crazy season for Ohio State’s offensive line, and many of the bigger names up front are now gone. Tackle Josh Simmons and guard Seth McLaughlin were the stalwarts earlier in the year, but both went down with season-ending injuries, and are now moving on to the next level. Donovan Jackson slid over from guard to tackle to fill in for the injured Simmons, but now he as well as his bookend Josh Fryar are also off to the NFL. Tasked with replacing both starting tackles, the Buckeyes looked to the transfer portal.
It was there that they found Ethan Onianwa and Phillip Daniels. Onianwa is a veteran of 34 starts at Rice, and the 6-foot-6, 345-pound tackle allowed just one sack in 350 pass-blocking snaps all last season, per PFF. Daniels, meanwhile, is a Cincinnati native who began his collegiate career at Minnesota. The 6-foot-5, 315-pound blocker started the final four games of the year for the Gophers, and was slated to return to that starting role in 2025, which he will now do in Columbus instead.
Ohio State will have some options on the interior, as all four guys who played those positions down the stretch this past season are back. Carson Hinzman is the clear frontrunner to resume his starting job at center, while the trio of Luke Montgomery, Austin Siereveld and Tegra Tshabola will battle it out for the two guard spots. Based on how well Montgomery played in the CFP, I give him a slight edge over the other two, and expect him to start opposite either Siereveld or Tshabola.
Ohio State’s spring practices won’t begin until mid-March, with the program taking some extra time off following a 16-game season that only came to an end on Jan. 20. There is also the second transfer portal window, which opens on April 16. Needless to say, a lot can change between now and when the Buckeyes take the field against Texas this August, but it doesn’t hurt to look ahead and start getting excited for the defending national champs!
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LGHL No. 8 Ohio State women’s basketball can’t handle No. 7 USC Trojans, lose 84-63
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No. 8 Ohio State women’s basketball can’t handle No. 7 USC Trojans, lose 84-63
ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images
The Buckeyes head back to Columbus with two losses in Los Angeles.
The No. 8 Ohio State women’s basketball team (20-3, 9-3) finished their West Coast road trip Saturday night against the No. 7 USC Trojans (21-2, 11-1). Despite holding USC guard JuJu Watkins to under her conference-leading 24.2 points per game, Ohio State couldn’t find consistent offense and lost 84-61.
Like the Buckeyes did on Wednesday against the No. 1 UCLA Bruins, Ohio State got off to a quick start from the jump. Saturday night it came defensively, when the visitors forced five turnovers while USC shot 0-of-7 from the floor. Regardless, offensively it didn’t mean Ohio State built up a big lead.
Ohio State had a three-point lead thanks to forward Ajae Petty. After scoring no points against the Bruins, Petty scored the team with four points, all inside the paint. The reason was that the Buckeyes couldn’t find many opportunities with USC’s man coverage locking down OSU’s shooters.
Point guard Jaloni Cambridge and forward Cotie McMahon were kept out of the paint too by the towering size of the Trojans starting four players at least six feet tall. USC outrebounded the Buckeyes 17-9, with two blocks, in the first quarter.
McMahon also ran into foul trouble, picking up two in the first four minutes, requiring the Buckeyes vocal leader to sit on the bench for the remainder of the quarter.
USC began hitting shots and went into the second quarter up a point, thanks to two three-point shots, but none by guard JuJu Watkins. In the first 15 minutes, Ohio State held Watkins to two points, both from the free-throw line. The sophomores' seven shots from the field were all missed, with Buckeye guard/forward Taylor Thierry on Watkins, which caused issues for the star from Los Angeles.
By the media timeout in the second quarter, the Buckeyes were down five points. They quickly went to three, with Petty scoring her eighth point of the game. Then, the wheels began to fall off a bit, and USC went on a run, scoring 11 of the last 17 points of the quarter.
During the run, Petty, the lone player consistently producing on offense, picked up two quick fouls. The second occurred when the Trojans were dribbling up the court, a situation that did not require a foul from the graduate senior. It sent Petty to the bench with three fouls before halftime.
Ohio State entered the locker room down 34-26, needing to find some way around the USC defense to compete with the home side.
Out of the locker room, it looked like head coach Kevin McGuff saw how the Trojans were getting foul calls (10-4) and wanted some of his own. The Buckeyes entered the game and went right at the paint.
McMahon went to the basket twice, one time landing hard on her face and needing to leave the game for a short period of time. Then Cambridge and Thierry followed. The fouls started building against the home side, with forward Kiki Iriafen picking up three quick fouls in the first three minutes of the third quarter.
That sent the Trojans leading scorer of the game (18 points) to the bench.
Even with Iriafen out, the Trojans came out of a quick timeout by head coach Lindsay Gottlieb and went on a five-point run that gave the home side a 13-point lead. Just 52 seconds later, coach McGuff called one of his own to try and stop the game from getting too away from his side.
Out of the timeout, the Buckeyes went small, forced turnovers, and kept going to the basket. Ohio State cut the deficit back to single digits but USC wasn’t easily overcome. With 2:02 remaining in the third, Watkins hit her first shot from the floor, after missing her first 11 attempts.
It started a seven-point run for the Trojans, which increased their lead to a game-high 14 points. That lead held through the end of the third quarter, giving Ohio State the toughest climb of the season to date, a peak the Buckeyes could not reach.
USC extended the lead to 17 points and while the visitors kept pushing, Ohio State couldn’t find enough consistent shooting or stops on defense to make the game close. In the process of the comeback, Thierry also fouled out of the game, making that battle even more difficult.
The Trojans continued to dominate, pushing the lead up to 20 points, taking away any sort of positive for the Buckeyes’s trip west. USC out rebounded the Buckeyes 60-29 and blocked 10 shots, including blocks all the way up to the final moments of the fourth quarter.
Thierry scored in the loss with 14 points, 5 steals, and 5 rebounds, while four of five starters for Ohio State scored at least 10 points.
For the Trojans, three players had double-doubles against the Buckeyes. Iriafen led all scorers with 24 points and 13 rebounds, with Watkins scoring 17 points with 10 rebounds, and six of those points came from the free throw line.
The Buckeyes head back to Ohio, with four of the remaining six games of the regular season played in Columbus. It begins on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET when the Minnesota Golden Gophers travel to the Schottenstein Center for the first time since Feb. 8, 2023.
Ohio State has a 13-game winning streak against the Golden Gophers, a program that made it into the AP Top 25 on January 13 for the first time this season after starting 16-1. Since then, Minnesota has lost five of the last seven games, including losses to the then-ranked Michigan Wolverines, UCLA Bruins, USC Trojans, and unranked Iowa Hawkeyes.
Minnesota guard Mara Braun returned after a foot injury took her out after 22 games last season, but it only lasted five games. Braun hasn’t played since Nov. 17. Instead, guard Amaya Battle and forward Grace Gracholski lead the Golden Gophers with each scoring 11.6 points per game.
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ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images
The Buckeyes head back to Columbus with two losses in Los Angeles.
The No. 8 Ohio State women’s basketball team (20-3, 9-3) finished their West Coast road trip Saturday night against the No. 7 USC Trojans (21-2, 11-1). Despite holding USC guard JuJu Watkins to under her conference-leading 24.2 points per game, Ohio State couldn’t find consistent offense and lost 84-61.
Like the Buckeyes did on Wednesday against the No. 1 UCLA Bruins, Ohio State got off to a quick start from the jump. Saturday night it came defensively, when the visitors forced five turnovers while USC shot 0-of-7 from the floor. Regardless, offensively it didn’t mean Ohio State built up a big lead.
Ohio State had a three-point lead thanks to forward Ajae Petty. After scoring no points against the Bruins, Petty scored the team with four points, all inside the paint. The reason was that the Buckeyes couldn’t find many opportunities with USC’s man coverage locking down OSU’s shooters.
Point guard Jaloni Cambridge and forward Cotie McMahon were kept out of the paint too by the towering size of the Trojans starting four players at least six feet tall. USC outrebounded the Buckeyes 17-9, with two blocks, in the first quarter.
McMahon also ran into foul trouble, picking up two in the first four minutes, requiring the Buckeyes vocal leader to sit on the bench for the remainder of the quarter.
USC began hitting shots and went into the second quarter up a point, thanks to two three-point shots, but none by guard JuJu Watkins. In the first 15 minutes, Ohio State held Watkins to two points, both from the free-throw line. The sophomores' seven shots from the field were all missed, with Buckeye guard/forward Taylor Thierry on Watkins, which caused issues for the star from Los Angeles.
By the media timeout in the second quarter, the Buckeyes were down five points. They quickly went to three, with Petty scoring her eighth point of the game. Then, the wheels began to fall off a bit, and USC went on a run, scoring 11 of the last 17 points of the quarter.
During the run, Petty, the lone player consistently producing on offense, picked up two quick fouls. The second occurred when the Trojans were dribbling up the court, a situation that did not require a foul from the graduate senior. It sent Petty to the bench with three fouls before halftime.
Ohio State entered the locker room down 34-26, needing to find some way around the USC defense to compete with the home side.
Out of the locker room, it looked like head coach Kevin McGuff saw how the Trojans were getting foul calls (10-4) and wanted some of his own. The Buckeyes entered the game and went right at the paint.
McMahon went to the basket twice, one time landing hard on her face and needing to leave the game for a short period of time. Then Cambridge and Thierry followed. The fouls started building against the home side, with forward Kiki Iriafen picking up three quick fouls in the first three minutes of the third quarter.
That sent the Trojans leading scorer of the game (18 points) to the bench.
Even with Iriafen out, the Trojans came out of a quick timeout by head coach Lindsay Gottlieb and went on a five-point run that gave the home side a 13-point lead. Just 52 seconds later, coach McGuff called one of his own to try and stop the game from getting too away from his side.
Out of the timeout, the Buckeyes went small, forced turnovers, and kept going to the basket. Ohio State cut the deficit back to single digits but USC wasn’t easily overcome. With 2:02 remaining in the third, Watkins hit her first shot from the floor, after missing her first 11 attempts.
It started a seven-point run for the Trojans, which increased their lead to a game-high 14 points. That lead held through the end of the third quarter, giving Ohio State the toughest climb of the season to date, a peak the Buckeyes could not reach.
USC extended the lead to 17 points and while the visitors kept pushing, Ohio State couldn’t find enough consistent shooting or stops on defense to make the game close. In the process of the comeback, Thierry also fouled out of the game, making that battle even more difficult.
The Trojans continued to dominate, pushing the lead up to 20 points, taking away any sort of positive for the Buckeyes’s trip west. USC out rebounded the Buckeyes 60-29 and blocked 10 shots, including blocks all the way up to the final moments of the fourth quarter.
Thierry scored in the loss with 14 points, 5 steals, and 5 rebounds, while four of five starters for Ohio State scored at least 10 points.
For the Trojans, three players had double-doubles against the Buckeyes. Iriafen led all scorers with 24 points and 13 rebounds, with Watkins scoring 17 points with 10 rebounds, and six of those points came from the free throw line.
What’s Next
The Buckeyes head back to Ohio, with four of the remaining six games of the regular season played in Columbus. It begins on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET when the Minnesota Golden Gophers travel to the Schottenstein Center for the first time since Feb. 8, 2023.
Ohio State has a 13-game winning streak against the Golden Gophers, a program that made it into the AP Top 25 on January 13 for the first time this season after starting 16-1. Since then, Minnesota has lost five of the last seven games, including losses to the then-ranked Michigan Wolverines, UCLA Bruins, USC Trojans, and unranked Iowa Hawkeyes.
Minnesota guard Mara Braun returned after a foot injury took her out after 22 games last season, but it only lasted five games. Braun hasn’t played since Nov. 17. Instead, guard Amaya Battle and forward Grace Gracholski lead the Golden Gophers with each scoring 11.6 points per game.
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LGHL Nebraska sprints past Ohio State men in second half, 79-71
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Nebraska sprints past Ohio State men in second half, 79-71
ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Dylan Widger-Imagn Images
Despite a 30-point day by Micah Parrish, supporting Buckeyes floundered offensively to lose a winnable game in Lincoln.
It was Super Sunday in the Midwest, but before the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs grabbed the nation’s collective attention, Ohio State men’s basketball headed to Lincoln, Nebraska to try and put an end to the Nebraska Cornhuskers (16-8, 6-7) three-game winning streak. Even with a career game for Micah Parrish, Nebraska extended their winning streak with a 76-66 win over the Buckeyes.
Nebraska came out the aggressors, and after the two sides combined to make their first five shots, the Cornhuskers went on a run. Nebraska’s Brice Williams scored six points in a 13-2 ‘Huskers run that put the home side up nine points in front of a loud Pinnacle Bank Arena.
Bringing the Buckeyes back into the conversation was forward Micah Parrish. The graduate senior transfer scored the next eight points for Ohio State and guard Bruce Thornton, fresh off his 31-point game in the comeback win over the Maryland Terrapins, joined in, scoring four points. The two put Ohio State back in the lead, outscoring Nebraska 18-8 in 7:57 of game clock.
Aiding the Buckeyes was forward Juwan Gary going to the bench with foul troubles. The senior picked up two in the first half, limiting him to nine minutes in the first half. When Gary sat, Ohio State capitalized by allowing only two points in the run of play in nearly six minutes of the half.
The Scarlet and Gray benefited from the aggressive Nebraska defense, going to the line eight times in the first half, compared to four for the home side. Ohio State couldn’t capitalize much on the free shots, going 50 percent in the half, which included the trio of “bigs” Aaron Bradshaw, Sean Stewart, and Evan Mahaffey going 2-for-6.
Despite allowing the Cornhuskers to shoot 51.9 percent in the first half, the Buckeyes entered halftime up 39-34 thanks to strong defense in the final three minutes of the first half. Nebraska missed all four shots they took, scoring three points from the free throw line while Mobley hit his third three-point shot of the half and Thornton scoring his eighth point of the game, putting him in 29th place in Ohio State’s record books.
Parrish didn’t slow down to start the second half, and the Buckeyes needed it. After hitting a three-point shot to start the scoring, the Cornhuskers went on an eight-point run led by Gary, scoring the first five points. Parrish responded with a layup of his own to stop the run and put Ohio State back in the lead.
The forward single-handedly kept the Buckeyes in the game to start the second half, scoring the first nine points of the period while the Cornhuskers tried to erase their one possession deficit.
However, Parrish couldn’t do it alone and the Cornhuskers tied the game and went into the lead on a poor turnover in the Buckeyes’ defensive end. Forward Aaron Bradshaw had his pocket picked, giving Nebraska a fast break layup that put them in the lead and prompted head coach Jake Diebler to call a timeout.
At the timeout, Buckeyes not named Micah Parrish shot 0-for-8 from the floor and Diebler saw the his team needed to stop the Cornhusker momentum to keep the game close.
A brief pause didn’t help and the Cornhuskers went on an 11-point run, led by five points from Williams. Thankfully for the Buckeyes, a player not in a Parrish jersey joined the scoring when Mobley hit the next five Ohio State points. Parrish added a three of his own on the back end of Mobley’s points to quickly turn an eight-point deficit into a single possession with 6:25 remaining in the game.
In the next three minutes, Nebraska tried to find separation but Ohio State kept fighting, After hitting two free throws, Mobley hit his fifth three-point shot of the game, this time from far behind the arc, assisted by Parrish for his first assist of the game. This got Ohio State back within two, 62-60, with just under four minutes remaining.
Ohio State still needed another player to add to the production in the second half, with only Parrish and Mobley scoring to that point of the half. Then, with 3:02 remaining, guard Ques Glover burned the final timeout for the Buckeyes after running baseline and getting caught in the corner without an outlet. At the same time, Nebraska got into the bonus and controlled the clock for the rest of the game.
Out of the timeout, Mobley took another three, but this time it couldn’t fall and Nebraska capitalized with Williams scoring his 20th point of the game on a midrange jumper. It put the home side up seven points, and erased some hope for the visiting Buckeyes.
Parrish again tried to add to the hope, hitting a corner three to bring the game within five points, but the Buckeyes had to foul to stop the game from that point. Nebraska had the ball in the hands of Williams who entered the game shooting 90 percent from the free throw line. Each time Williams got to the charity stripe, he added to his double-double performance and stretched the lead further.
It wasn’t all good for the Cornhuskers late. With 45 seconds remaining, forward Berke Buyuktuncel landed hard on his ankle, needing help off the court and not putting any weight on his left ankle. The Turkish big started 20 of 22 games for Nebraska.
Nebraska saw the win through behind 24 points and 10 rebounds by Williams and 17 points by Gary. Mobley was the only other Buckeye in double figures on the day, adding 19 points on 5-of-10 shooting from beyond the arc.
John Mobley Jr. Keeps Shooting Deep
The guard continued his nation-leading three-point shooting efficiency for a freshman from the jump. Mobley hit his first two three-point shots of the game, and his efficiency was important with the Cornhuskers hitting their first three shots of the game. It gave the Buckeyes an early lead, albeit a short-lived advantage with the Cornhuskers responding with 13 of the next 15 points.
In the second half of the first period, the Buckeyes faced two quick injuries taking players out of the game for additional care. First, forward Sean Stewart received an elbow to the face from forward Juwan Gary on a follow through under the basket. Then, forward Devin Royal and forward Andrew Morgan collided under the basket, with the Cornhusker Morgan landing on Royal’s ankle.
Both times, the Nebraska faithful actively booed the two injured Buckeyes, as if the injuries somehow stopped the Cornhuskers.
Stewart was able to return to the game shortly, but Royal did not return until the start of the second half. After going to the locker room for some time, he came back to the bench and watched the final seven or so minutes from the pine.
The former San Diego State and Oakland forward has been hit or miss in the scoring column in his final year of NCAA basketball, but not in the first half. Parrish’s 14 points in the first half paced all Ohio State scorers. In the hot streak, it seemed like Parrish could do no wrong, including one play where the graduate senior stole the ball, went on a fast break and then earned an and-one after forcing contact on a made layup. Nebraska’s Rollie Worster was called for the foul.
Entering the game, Nebraska’s leading scorer Williams was on a tear, scoring 13 points on 6-of-10 shooting with five rebounds, but the Buckeye defense played so well against the rest of the Cornhuskers that it didn’t bury the visitors.
The rest of Nebraska shot 7-of-17 in the first half.
With 13 minutes remaining in the second half, Parrish’s hot shooting hand continued, and the graduate’s basket was representative of how important he was to the Buckeyes on Sunday. Following a missed layup by Royal, Parrish grabbed the offensive rebound and battled through three Nebraska defenders in the paint to hit a layup.
It gave Parrish 23 points, eclipsing his previous single game career high of 22 points scored in the Buckeyes’ upset win of the Purdue Boilermakers on Jan. 21.
After strong defense in the first half, Nebraska broke through in the second half, going on an 11-point run for four and a half minutes. It swung the Buckeyes’ lead into a seven-point Cornhusker advantage.
While Mobley ended the run, also becoming only the second player to score for Ohio State in over half of the second period, the Cornhuskers hit a three in response to keep the lead strong, requiring another comeback for the Buckeyes if they hoped to continue their current form of four wins in the last five games.
After Mobley hit a midrange jumper, the freshman scored his fourth three of the contest, which motivated Parrish to do the same. Alone on the wing, Nebraska tried to close out the graduate senior but Parrish stayed patient, let the Cornhusker jump past him and hit a crucial shot from beyond the arc for Ohio State mens hoops.
Out of the Nebraska timeout to slow down the pair, Parrish played lockdown defense on starting guard Rollie Worster when he tried to go to the basket but Parrish stuck with it, knocking the ball away and requiring a Cornhusker timeout with just over a second remaining on the shot clock. The play ended with a shot clock violation.
Parrish and Mobley scored 49 of the Buckeyes’ 69 points in the loss, with only six points of the second half not coming from one of the two. The lack of offensive diversity for Ohio State meant added attention on the two and nobody ended up saving the Scarlet and Gray, with Thornton adding one made free throw and five points for Evan Mahaffey.
Ohio State (14-10, 6-7) returns home for three games at the Schottenstein Center in eight days. It begins with the Washington Huskies, a team the Buckeyes have only played once in their program histories, ending in a 77-66 win for Ohio State.
Then The Rivalry renews when the No. 24 Michigan Wolverines head to Columbus on Sunday in the lone matchup in the regular season between the sides.
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ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Dylan Widger-Imagn Images
Despite a 30-point day by Micah Parrish, supporting Buckeyes floundered offensively to lose a winnable game in Lincoln.
It was Super Sunday in the Midwest, but before the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs grabbed the nation’s collective attention, Ohio State men’s basketball headed to Lincoln, Nebraska to try and put an end to the Nebraska Cornhuskers (16-8, 6-7) three-game winning streak. Even with a career game for Micah Parrish, Nebraska extended their winning streak with a 76-66 win over the Buckeyes.
Nebraska came out the aggressors, and after the two sides combined to make their first five shots, the Cornhuskers went on a run. Nebraska’s Brice Williams scored six points in a 13-2 ‘Huskers run that put the home side up nine points in front of a loud Pinnacle Bank Arena.
Bringing the Buckeyes back into the conversation was forward Micah Parrish. The graduate senior transfer scored the next eight points for Ohio State and guard Bruce Thornton, fresh off his 31-point game in the comeback win over the Maryland Terrapins, joined in, scoring four points. The two put Ohio State back in the lead, outscoring Nebraska 18-8 in 7:57 of game clock.
Aiding the Buckeyes was forward Juwan Gary going to the bench with foul troubles. The senior picked up two in the first half, limiting him to nine minutes in the first half. When Gary sat, Ohio State capitalized by allowing only two points in the run of play in nearly six minutes of the half.
The Scarlet and Gray benefited from the aggressive Nebraska defense, going to the line eight times in the first half, compared to four for the home side. Ohio State couldn’t capitalize much on the free shots, going 50 percent in the half, which included the trio of “bigs” Aaron Bradshaw, Sean Stewart, and Evan Mahaffey going 2-for-6.
Despite allowing the Cornhuskers to shoot 51.9 percent in the first half, the Buckeyes entered halftime up 39-34 thanks to strong defense in the final three minutes of the first half. Nebraska missed all four shots they took, scoring three points from the free throw line while Mobley hit his third three-point shot of the half and Thornton scoring his eighth point of the game, putting him in 29th place in Ohio State’s record books.
Parrish didn’t slow down to start the second half, and the Buckeyes needed it. After hitting a three-point shot to start the scoring, the Cornhuskers went on an eight-point run led by Gary, scoring the first five points. Parrish responded with a layup of his own to stop the run and put Ohio State back in the lead.
The forward single-handedly kept the Buckeyes in the game to start the second half, scoring the first nine points of the period while the Cornhuskers tried to erase their one possession deficit.
However, Parrish couldn’t do it alone and the Cornhuskers tied the game and went into the lead on a poor turnover in the Buckeyes’ defensive end. Forward Aaron Bradshaw had his pocket picked, giving Nebraska a fast break layup that put them in the lead and prompted head coach Jake Diebler to call a timeout.
At the timeout, Buckeyes not named Micah Parrish shot 0-for-8 from the floor and Diebler saw the his team needed to stop the Cornhusker momentum to keep the game close.
A brief pause didn’t help and the Cornhuskers went on an 11-point run, led by five points from Williams. Thankfully for the Buckeyes, a player not in a Parrish jersey joined the scoring when Mobley hit the next five Ohio State points. Parrish added a three of his own on the back end of Mobley’s points to quickly turn an eight-point deficit into a single possession with 6:25 remaining in the game.
In the next three minutes, Nebraska tried to find separation but Ohio State kept fighting, After hitting two free throws, Mobley hit his fifth three-point shot of the game, this time from far behind the arc, assisted by Parrish for his first assist of the game. This got Ohio State back within two, 62-60, with just under four minutes remaining.
Ohio State still needed another player to add to the production in the second half, with only Parrish and Mobley scoring to that point of the half. Then, with 3:02 remaining, guard Ques Glover burned the final timeout for the Buckeyes after running baseline and getting caught in the corner without an outlet. At the same time, Nebraska got into the bonus and controlled the clock for the rest of the game.
Out of the timeout, Mobley took another three, but this time it couldn’t fall and Nebraska capitalized with Williams scoring his 20th point of the game on a midrange jumper. It put the home side up seven points, and erased some hope for the visiting Buckeyes.
Parrish again tried to add to the hope, hitting a corner three to bring the game within five points, but the Buckeyes had to foul to stop the game from that point. Nebraska had the ball in the hands of Williams who entered the game shooting 90 percent from the free throw line. Each time Williams got to the charity stripe, he added to his double-double performance and stretched the lead further.
It wasn’t all good for the Cornhuskers late. With 45 seconds remaining, forward Berke Buyuktuncel landed hard on his ankle, needing help off the court and not putting any weight on his left ankle. The Turkish big started 20 of 22 games for Nebraska.
Nebraska saw the win through behind 24 points and 10 rebounds by Williams and 17 points by Gary. Mobley was the only other Buckeye in double figures on the day, adding 19 points on 5-of-10 shooting from beyond the arc.
John Mobley Jr. Keeps Shooting Deep
The guard continued his nation-leading three-point shooting efficiency for a freshman from the jump. Mobley hit his first two three-point shots of the game, and his efficiency was important with the Cornhuskers hitting their first three shots of the game. It gave the Buckeyes an early lead, albeit a short-lived advantage with the Cornhuskers responding with 13 of the next 15 points.
Nebraska Fans Stay Classy
In the second half of the first period, the Buckeyes faced two quick injuries taking players out of the game for additional care. First, forward Sean Stewart received an elbow to the face from forward Juwan Gary on a follow through under the basket. Then, forward Devin Royal and forward Andrew Morgan collided under the basket, with the Cornhusker Morgan landing on Royal’s ankle.
Both times, the Nebraska faithful actively booed the two injured Buckeyes, as if the injuries somehow stopped the Cornhuskers.
Stewart was able to return to the game shortly, but Royal did not return until the start of the second half. After going to the locker room for some time, he came back to the bench and watched the final seven or so minutes from the pine.
Parrish Takes Over
The former San Diego State and Oakland forward has been hit or miss in the scoring column in his final year of NCAA basketball, but not in the first half. Parrish’s 14 points in the first half paced all Ohio State scorers. In the hot streak, it seemed like Parrish could do no wrong, including one play where the graduate senior stole the ball, went on a fast break and then earned an and-one after forcing contact on a made layup. Nebraska’s Rollie Worster was called for the foul.
First Half Defense
Entering the game, Nebraska’s leading scorer Williams was on a tear, scoring 13 points on 6-of-10 shooting with five rebounds, but the Buckeye defense played so well against the rest of the Cornhuskers that it didn’t bury the visitors.
The rest of Nebraska shot 7-of-17 in the first half.
Parrish Hits Career Mark
With 13 minutes remaining in the second half, Parrish’s hot shooting hand continued, and the graduate’s basket was representative of how important he was to the Buckeyes on Sunday. Following a missed layup by Royal, Parrish grabbed the offensive rebound and battled through three Nebraska defenders in the paint to hit a layup.
It gave Parrish 23 points, eclipsing his previous single game career high of 22 points scored in the Buckeyes’ upset win of the Purdue Boilermakers on Jan. 21.
Nebraska’s Run
After strong defense in the first half, Nebraska broke through in the second half, going on an 11-point run for four and a half minutes. It swung the Buckeyes’ lead into a seven-point Cornhusker advantage.
While Mobley ended the run, also becoming only the second player to score for Ohio State in over half of the second period, the Cornhuskers hit a three in response to keep the lead strong, requiring another comeback for the Buckeyes if they hoped to continue their current form of four wins in the last five games.
Big Mobley and Parrish Moments
After Mobley hit a midrange jumper, the freshman scored his fourth three of the contest, which motivated Parrish to do the same. Alone on the wing, Nebraska tried to close out the graduate senior but Parrish stayed patient, let the Cornhusker jump past him and hit a crucial shot from beyond the arc for Ohio State mens hoops.
Out of the Nebraska timeout to slow down the pair, Parrish played lockdown defense on starting guard Rollie Worster when he tried to go to the basket but Parrish stuck with it, knocking the ball away and requiring a Cornhusker timeout with just over a second remaining on the shot clock. The play ended with a shot clock violation.
Two Isn’t Enough
Parrish and Mobley scored 49 of the Buckeyes’ 69 points in the loss, with only six points of the second half not coming from one of the two. The lack of offensive diversity for Ohio State meant added attention on the two and nobody ended up saving the Scarlet and Gray, with Thornton adding one made free throw and five points for Evan Mahaffey.
What’s Next
Ohio State (14-10, 6-7) returns home for three games at the Schottenstein Center in eight days. It begins with the Washington Huskies, a team the Buckeyes have only played once in their program histories, ending in a 77-66 win for Ohio State.
Then The Rivalry renews when the No. 24 Michigan Wolverines head to Columbus on Sunday in the lone matchup in the regular season between the sides.
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LGHL West Coast swing revealed sizable gap between Ohio State women and Big Ten’s top tier
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West Coast swing revealed sizable gap between Ohio State women and Big Ten’s top tier
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 Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The issues that haunted the Buckeyes against the Trojans, and a player who can bring them out of it.
Traveling to Los Angeles, California to play two top teams in the nation is no easy task, which Ohio State women’s basketball learned firsthand last week. The Buckeyes returned home to Columbus following two games where the Scarlet and Gray didn’t only fall, but fall hard.
After double-digit defeats to the No. 1 UCLA Bruins and No. 7 USC Trojans, the Buckeyes play four of their last six games regular season games at home, but it can’t be the same side returning home. These two defeats showed that there is a sizable gap between the two top teams in the Big Ten and Ohio State.
Against the Bruins on Wednesday, things went ok for Ohio State for three of four quarters. Defensively, UCLA had trouble scoring on the Buckeyes but offensively the Scarlet and Gray struggled. Shots were there for the taking but didn’t fall with any sort of regularity.
Saturday night was a different story with USC’s defense. The Trojans played strong man coverage and with the home side’s size and defensive pressure, the Buckeyes didn’t have nearly the same number of open looks as they did further north against the Bruins.
Ohio State went into the game hoping to be multidimensional on offense. Teams expect the Buckeyes to attack the basket with forward Cotie McMahon and guard Jaloni Cambridge, but instead, it was forward Ajae Petty starting the game strong under the basket. Petty received passes and took on USC defenders one-on-one, scoring eight first-half points.
“When we played Wednesday night, we took a lot of jump shots and a lot of drives we didn’t get a lot of post-ups,” said head coach Kevin McGuff. “It’s hard because Betts is so big and protects the rim and so we just wanted to challenge them around the basket a little bit just to see you know if we could get some some easy shots just because we really hadn’t gotten a lot here recently.”
The inside game didn't open up much on the outside. USC didn’t send another player to help defend Petty, and Ohio State shot 1-of-5 from beyond the arc in the first half. Not only was the offense not there for the second game in a row, but the Buckeyes were giving away possessions to the Trojans.
In terms of turnovers, Ohio State forced 23 for the second game in a row but didn’t convert them consistently into points. What especially hurt was a lack of activity on the boards.
USC outrebounded the Buckeyes 62-30, resulting in 18 second-chance points for the Trojans compared to none for Ohio State. The Trojans had three starters earn double-doubles, and the other two starters each had eight a piece. Look at the rebounds for the Buckeyes only two players even reached five rebounds and they were Cambridge, who stands at 5-foot-7, and guard/forward hybrid Taylor Thierry.
“We got our ass kicked on boards,” said McGuff. “if we’re not going to compete and fight better than that we’re not going to be a team like USC.”
When a shot clanged off the backboard or the rim, there were normally two to three Trojans ready to go for the ball. Ohio State failed to crash the boards as a group or try to make it difficult for the home side to get into position. Instead, they left Petty. and fellow bigs Elsa Lemmilä and Eboni Walker on their own to fend for themselves.
Offensively, McGuff’s side mostly abandoned what made them effective in the first place. Outside of not converting turnovers to points, the half-court offense lacked any sort of bite. When things stopped working, plays broke down.
“When things didn’t go right we kind of just started playing ‘me ball’ and a little bit of one-on-one and just that’s just not what we do,” said McMahon. “Our system is very move-the-ball from side to side and then get what’s easy, get what’s cut like what comes to us.”
That wasn’t happening, leading to an even worse shooting performance than Wednesday, with the Buckeyes matching the season-low 29.4% shooting they sunk to against UCLA.
Overall, Ohio State struggled for 40 minutes on their way to an 84-63 defeat to a team ranked just one spot above them nationally. The idea that in every loss there’s a lesson means there’s a lot of studying to be done for Ohio State before they get back onto the court Thursday, against the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
There was a bright spot on the team, and that was Thierry's play. The senior led the team with 14 points, 5 rebounds and 5 steals. Also, defensively, Thierry was the catalyst behind a tough night for USC guard JuJu Watkins.
In three quarters, Thierry held Watkins to 10 points on 2-of-13 shooting from the floor, with six of those points coming from the free-throw line. Thierry was aggressive, resulting in some fouls, but the usual pearl-clutching that comes with stars like Watkins getting fouled narrative doesn’t work considering Thierry was fouled more times than the superstar sophomore. Including a strong hack from Watkins from behind on a fast break.
Regardless, Thierry showed what happens when the team sticks to what they know and what is expected of them on the court.
“I mean her actions just speak louder than words,” said McMahon. “I mean she’s been doing this like I said for four years, so her just doing what she’s doing is just very impactful because I mean people just if they don’t want to, they should want to follow in TT’s footsteps because I’m telling you she almost does everything right. So, I feel like her just continuing doing what she’s doing and then me continuing to push my teammates into just trusting the process I feel like we’ll go along with it.”
Should the team follow McMahon’s advice, there are six games ahead that the Buckeyes can win. If Ohio State can do that, it will ensure that the program earns a top-four spot in the Big Ten Tournament, meaning a bye into the quarterfinals.
Sitting below McGuff’s side in the standings are three teams in their next six who are within 1.5 games of Ohio State’s current third-place position. Including the Michigan State Spartans and Maryland Terrapins that sit just below the Buckeyes in the standings.
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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 Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The issues that haunted the Buckeyes against the Trojans, and a player who can bring them out of it.
Traveling to Los Angeles, California to play two top teams in the nation is no easy task, which Ohio State women’s basketball learned firsthand last week. The Buckeyes returned home to Columbus following two games where the Scarlet and Gray didn’t only fall, but fall hard.
After double-digit defeats to the No. 1 UCLA Bruins and No. 7 USC Trojans, the Buckeyes play four of their last six games regular season games at home, but it can’t be the same side returning home. These two defeats showed that there is a sizable gap between the two top teams in the Big Ten and Ohio State.
Against the Bruins on Wednesday, things went ok for Ohio State for three of four quarters. Defensively, UCLA had trouble scoring on the Buckeyes but offensively the Scarlet and Gray struggled. Shots were there for the taking but didn’t fall with any sort of regularity.
Saturday night was a different story with USC’s defense. The Trojans played strong man coverage and with the home side’s size and defensive pressure, the Buckeyes didn’t have nearly the same number of open looks as they did further north against the Bruins.
Ohio State went into the game hoping to be multidimensional on offense. Teams expect the Buckeyes to attack the basket with forward Cotie McMahon and guard Jaloni Cambridge, but instead, it was forward Ajae Petty starting the game strong under the basket. Petty received passes and took on USC defenders one-on-one, scoring eight first-half points.
“When we played Wednesday night, we took a lot of jump shots and a lot of drives we didn’t get a lot of post-ups,” said head coach Kevin McGuff. “It’s hard because Betts is so big and protects the rim and so we just wanted to challenge them around the basket a little bit just to see you know if we could get some some easy shots just because we really hadn’t gotten a lot here recently.”
The inside game didn't open up much on the outside. USC didn’t send another player to help defend Petty, and Ohio State shot 1-of-5 from beyond the arc in the first half. Not only was the offense not there for the second game in a row, but the Buckeyes were giving away possessions to the Trojans.
In terms of turnovers, Ohio State forced 23 for the second game in a row but didn’t convert them consistently into points. What especially hurt was a lack of activity on the boards.
USC outrebounded the Buckeyes 62-30, resulting in 18 second-chance points for the Trojans compared to none for Ohio State. The Trojans had three starters earn double-doubles, and the other two starters each had eight a piece. Look at the rebounds for the Buckeyes only two players even reached five rebounds and they were Cambridge, who stands at 5-foot-7, and guard/forward hybrid Taylor Thierry.
“We got our ass kicked on boards,” said McGuff. “if we’re not going to compete and fight better than that we’re not going to be a team like USC.”
When a shot clanged off the backboard or the rim, there were normally two to three Trojans ready to go for the ball. Ohio State failed to crash the boards as a group or try to make it difficult for the home side to get into position. Instead, they left Petty. and fellow bigs Elsa Lemmilä and Eboni Walker on their own to fend for themselves.
Offensively, McGuff’s side mostly abandoned what made them effective in the first place. Outside of not converting turnovers to points, the half-court offense lacked any sort of bite. When things stopped working, plays broke down.
“When things didn’t go right we kind of just started playing ‘me ball’ and a little bit of one-on-one and just that’s just not what we do,” said McMahon. “Our system is very move-the-ball from side to side and then get what’s easy, get what’s cut like what comes to us.”
That wasn’t happening, leading to an even worse shooting performance than Wednesday, with the Buckeyes matching the season-low 29.4% shooting they sunk to against UCLA.
Overall, Ohio State struggled for 40 minutes on their way to an 84-63 defeat to a team ranked just one spot above them nationally. The idea that in every loss there’s a lesson means there’s a lot of studying to be done for Ohio State before they get back onto the court Thursday, against the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
There was a bright spot on the team, and that was Thierry's play. The senior led the team with 14 points, 5 rebounds and 5 steals. Also, defensively, Thierry was the catalyst behind a tough night for USC guard JuJu Watkins.
In three quarters, Thierry held Watkins to 10 points on 2-of-13 shooting from the floor, with six of those points coming from the free-throw line. Thierry was aggressive, resulting in some fouls, but the usual pearl-clutching that comes with stars like Watkins getting fouled narrative doesn’t work considering Thierry was fouled more times than the superstar sophomore. Including a strong hack from Watkins from behind on a fast break.
Regardless, Thierry showed what happens when the team sticks to what they know and what is expected of them on the court.
“I mean her actions just speak louder than words,” said McMahon. “I mean she’s been doing this like I said for four years, so her just doing what she’s doing is just very impactful because I mean people just if they don’t want to, they should want to follow in TT’s footsteps because I’m telling you she almost does everything right. So, I feel like her just continuing doing what she’s doing and then me continuing to push my teammates into just trusting the process I feel like we’ll go along with it.”
Should the team follow McMahon’s advice, there are six games ahead that the Buckeyes can win. If Ohio State can do that, it will ensure that the program earns a top-four spot in the Big Ten Tournament, meaning a bye into the quarterfinals.
Sitting below McGuff’s side in the standings are three teams in their next six who are within 1.5 games of Ohio State’s current third-place position. Including the Michigan State Spartans and Maryland Terrapins that sit just below the Buckeyes in the standings.
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