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LGHL Predicting the starting five for Ohio State women’s basketball
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Predicting the starting five for Ohio State women’s basketball
ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Ohio State Athletic Department
Before the season starts, here’s who is likely to start for head coach Kevin McGuff.
College basketball season is fast approaching and Land-Grant Holy Land is getting you ready with a series of player previews. Before the season starts this fall, check back regularly for more player previews, schedule news, features, and more heading into the 2024-25 Ohio State women’s basketball season.
There are less than 20 days until the 2024-25 season tips off for Ohio State women’s basketball. Each season, LGHL does its best at trying to get into the mind of head coach Kevin McGuff to see what the starting five will look like for the Buckeyes.
This season, there’s more intrigue than past years, with three regular starters leaving college basketball following Ohio State’s early exit from the NCAA Tournament.
Here’s position by position, starting with the most likely picks.
Since the first game of Cotie McMahon’s college career, the Centerville, Ohioan’s been in McGuff’s starting five. Don’t expect that to change this season.
After grabbing attention with blistering moves to the paint in her first season, and a standout national performance against the UConn Huskies in the 2023 NCAA Tournament, McMahon showed that you can’t see her ceiling yet last year.
The forward began to show that she could be a triple-double threat. In an eight game January stretch, McMahon averaged 16.8 points and 9.8 rebounds. McMahon had at least five assists in three of those games, sitting only two assists away from a triple-double against the Purdue Boilermakers on Jan. 28. McMahon ended the win with 10 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists.
Now McMahon comes in after a summer representing Team USA’s 3x3 youth team in multiple competitions. That means McMahon’s played a faster form of basketball where she’s practiced her drives to the court and one-on-one defense.
There’s no way McMahon doesn’t start every game this season, injury aside.
Taylor Thierry enters her final NCAA season as McGuff’s Swiss Army knife. Thierry plays the third guard role but jumps between guard play and work inside the paint. The athletic Thierry can make moves nobody else in the arena can make, making her an outlet for the likes of McMahon and her fellow starters.
The Cleveland, Ohio area native is also efficient. Rarely does Thierry take bad shots, In two seasons starting for McGuff, Thierry started every game and shot 61.9% from the floor, averaging 12.4 points and 5.9 rebounds per game.
Should Thierry’s confidence improve in her final season, that play will also include more shots from deep, something McGuff wants from the senior. Thierry’s taken those deep shots but after missing, you can see Thierry holding back when she gets her chances in the corners and on the wings.
Having Thierry start basically guarantees the Buckeyes 10 points and five rebounds a game. With the playmakers around her, Thierry’s final season has the makings of being her career best.
Playing the five is Kentucky transfer Ajae Petty. There’s no way McGuff is bringing in someone recruited by Dawn Staley at South Carolina and who averaged over 10 rebounds a game in the SEC and not starting. Especially considering its Petty’s final NCAA year of eligibility.
Rebounds have been the Buckeyes’ achilles’ heel over the past three seasons, and Petty is an answer to help improve in the paint.
How will that go long term? McGuff has a well known high-paced offense. It usually takes new players time to adjust to the sheer pace of play the Ohio State coach demands of his players.
The only other option for the de facto center position are Eboni Walker and freshman Elsa Lemmilä. Petty’s size makes her the choice over Walker and Lemmilä lacks the college experience and is returning from injury.
The backcourt duo is where most of the questions come in McGuff’s starting five, but Chance Gray is a safe choice to slide into the shooting guard role. After starting two seasons at Oregon, the junior who returned to her home state and will bring an offensive spark the shooting guard role hasn’t brought to Ohio State since Taylor Mikesell left after the 22-23 season.
Now, Gray won’t shoot from deep as much as Mikesell, but the guard is strong on all three levels of shooting. Gray will draw defenses out to the perimeter and make moves to give her teammates space or to take the ball and head to the basket on her own.
That diverse offensive ability hasn’t been there the past few seasons, with Mikesell most effective from deep and Celeste Taylor bringing a more defensive mindset to the court.
Oregon head coach Kelly Graves started Gray as a freshman and up until she transferred to the Buckeyes. McGuff will follow suit, likely having a two-year starter with Gray.
Other choices at shooting guard include Kennedy Cambridge and newcomer Ava Watson. Both don’t have the same experience as Gray, but will both likely play important roles in the McGuff system. That’s at least until Big Ten play starts.
This is the most difficult choice for McGuff, and skill-wise it’s not really that difficult. What makes choosing a freshman so tough is Madison Greene.
McGuff brought Greene into the Buckeyes program because she’s a natural winner and started her 21 times as a freshman at point guard. Not something that McGuff does often, usually going with veteran players to fill starting roles.
However, missing most of the 21-22 and 22-23 seasons due to ACL injuries hasn’t made the guard as available. Greene returned last season, and didn’t suffer another awful tear like the previous two years, but always from the bench. Then McGuff added the No. 1 point guard recruit in the country.
Even if Greene hadn’t missed games over the past three years, it’s hard to deny Cambridge the starting spot.
Something that McGuff cited as a reason why McMahon started from the start is the extra experience she had from Team USA entering into her first year. Cambridge has that, plus being named to the McDonald’s All-American team, winning a high school national title and doing all of that while putting together a highlight reel of some of the most clutch shots seen out of a high schooler.
Cambridge will learn from Greene, and Greene will get into the game, but Cambridge is the starter McGuff hopes to have for four seasons running the Buckeyes offense at point.
Expect Cambridge to produce on both sides of the court, using her speed and knowledge of the game to help run the McGuff press. On offense, Cambridge will make moves to the basket, shoot from deep, pull up for midrange shots and find her teammates.
McGuff is hoping to keep the spotlight off the young guard, considering its her first college year and there’s already a full steam ahead hype train for the guard, but once games start it’ll be hard to take the attention off the freshman.
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
Ohio State Athletic Department
Before the season starts, here’s who is likely to start for head coach Kevin McGuff.
College basketball season is fast approaching and Land-Grant Holy Land is getting you ready with a series of player previews. Before the season starts this fall, check back regularly for more player previews, schedule news, features, and more heading into the 2024-25 Ohio State women’s basketball season.
There are less than 20 days until the 2024-25 season tips off for Ohio State women’s basketball. Each season, LGHL does its best at trying to get into the mind of head coach Kevin McGuff to see what the starting five will look like for the Buckeyes.
This season, there’s more intrigue than past years, with three regular starters leaving college basketball following Ohio State’s early exit from the NCAA Tournament.
Here’s position by position, starting with the most likely picks.
Forward - Cotie McMahon
Since the first game of Cotie McMahon’s college career, the Centerville, Ohioan’s been in McGuff’s starting five. Don’t expect that to change this season.
After grabbing attention with blistering moves to the paint in her first season, and a standout national performance against the UConn Huskies in the 2023 NCAA Tournament, McMahon showed that you can’t see her ceiling yet last year.
The forward began to show that she could be a triple-double threat. In an eight game January stretch, McMahon averaged 16.8 points and 9.8 rebounds. McMahon had at least five assists in three of those games, sitting only two assists away from a triple-double against the Purdue Boilermakers on Jan. 28. McMahon ended the win with 10 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists.
Now McMahon comes in after a summer representing Team USA’s 3x3 youth team in multiple competitions. That means McMahon’s played a faster form of basketball where she’s practiced her drives to the court and one-on-one defense.
There’s no way McMahon doesn’t start every game this season, injury aside.
Guard/Forward - Taylor Thierry
Taylor Thierry enters her final NCAA season as McGuff’s Swiss Army knife. Thierry plays the third guard role but jumps between guard play and work inside the paint. The athletic Thierry can make moves nobody else in the arena can make, making her an outlet for the likes of McMahon and her fellow starters.
The Cleveland, Ohio area native is also efficient. Rarely does Thierry take bad shots, In two seasons starting for McGuff, Thierry started every game and shot 61.9% from the floor, averaging 12.4 points and 5.9 rebounds per game.
Should Thierry’s confidence improve in her final season, that play will also include more shots from deep, something McGuff wants from the senior. Thierry’s taken those deep shots but after missing, you can see Thierry holding back when she gets her chances in the corners and on the wings.
Having Thierry start basically guarantees the Buckeyes 10 points and five rebounds a game. With the playmakers around her, Thierry’s final season has the makings of being her career best.
Forward - Ajae Petty
Playing the five is Kentucky transfer Ajae Petty. There’s no way McGuff is bringing in someone recruited by Dawn Staley at South Carolina and who averaged over 10 rebounds a game in the SEC and not starting. Especially considering its Petty’s final NCAA year of eligibility.
Rebounds have been the Buckeyes’ achilles’ heel over the past three seasons, and Petty is an answer to help improve in the paint.
How will that go long term? McGuff has a well known high-paced offense. It usually takes new players time to adjust to the sheer pace of play the Ohio State coach demands of his players.
The only other option for the de facto center position are Eboni Walker and freshman Elsa Lemmilä. Petty’s size makes her the choice over Walker and Lemmilä lacks the college experience and is returning from injury.
Guard - Chance Gray
The backcourt duo is where most of the questions come in McGuff’s starting five, but Chance Gray is a safe choice to slide into the shooting guard role. After starting two seasons at Oregon, the junior who returned to her home state and will bring an offensive spark the shooting guard role hasn’t brought to Ohio State since Taylor Mikesell left after the 22-23 season.
Now, Gray won’t shoot from deep as much as Mikesell, but the guard is strong on all three levels of shooting. Gray will draw defenses out to the perimeter and make moves to give her teammates space or to take the ball and head to the basket on her own.
That diverse offensive ability hasn’t been there the past few seasons, with Mikesell most effective from deep and Celeste Taylor bringing a more defensive mindset to the court.
Oregon head coach Kelly Graves started Gray as a freshman and up until she transferred to the Buckeyes. McGuff will follow suit, likely having a two-year starter with Gray.
Other choices at shooting guard include Kennedy Cambridge and newcomer Ava Watson. Both don’t have the same experience as Gray, but will both likely play important roles in the McGuff system. That’s at least until Big Ten play starts.
Guard - Jaloni Cambridge
This is the most difficult choice for McGuff, and skill-wise it’s not really that difficult. What makes choosing a freshman so tough is Madison Greene.
McGuff brought Greene into the Buckeyes program because she’s a natural winner and started her 21 times as a freshman at point guard. Not something that McGuff does often, usually going with veteran players to fill starting roles.
However, missing most of the 21-22 and 22-23 seasons due to ACL injuries hasn’t made the guard as available. Greene returned last season, and didn’t suffer another awful tear like the previous two years, but always from the bench. Then McGuff added the No. 1 point guard recruit in the country.
Even if Greene hadn’t missed games over the past three years, it’s hard to deny Cambridge the starting spot.
Something that McGuff cited as a reason why McMahon started from the start is the extra experience she had from Team USA entering into her first year. Cambridge has that, plus being named to the McDonald’s All-American team, winning a high school national title and doing all of that while putting together a highlight reel of some of the most clutch shots seen out of a high schooler.
Cambridge will learn from Greene, and Greene will get into the game, but Cambridge is the starter McGuff hopes to have for four seasons running the Buckeyes offense at point.
Expect Cambridge to produce on both sides of the court, using her speed and knowledge of the game to help run the McGuff press. On offense, Cambridge will make moves to the basket, shoot from deep, pull up for midrange shots and find her teammates.
McGuff is hoping to keep the spotlight off the young guard, considering its her first college year and there’s already a full steam ahead hype train for the guard, but once games start it’ll be hard to take the attention off the freshman.
Continue reading...
