ThomasCostello
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New Year’s resolutions 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
Doral Chenoweth/The Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
It’s the time of the year for improvement, and here are three areas for the Buckeyes.
Should auld acquaintance be forgot, include the No. 10 Ohio State women’s basketball non-conference schedule. It’s the time of the year when a calendar flip means a little bit more, with the year getting one number higher. That small swap of a single digit turns weeks of indulgence into self-reflection and hopes for a better future.
For the Buckeyes, there are areas where a resolution might be the one thing to propel a top-10 team in the country into a contender with Big Ten teams on the schedule from now until March. Here are three resolutions for the Scarlet and Gray before games tip back off Sunday at the Schottenstein Center.
This does not mean a new gym membership. The Buckeyes are a highly conditioned machine built to wreak havoc on opposing teams, and so far are hitting those marks sitting seventh in the nation with 14.4 steals per game. No, this is about keeping players available for selection.
Head coach Kevin McGuff took a slight risk this season, opting for a pool of 10 active players for selection. It’s slight because in past seasons, McGuff’s rotation consisted of only around 10 players averaging double-digit minutes per game. However, this season the injuries have come with consistency.
In 13 games, Ohio State has used three different starting lineups. Not much when comparing it to other programs, but McGuff appreciates a lineup he can expect each time they step on the court.
So far this season, forward Cotie McMahon and guards Jaloni and Kennedy Cambridge have each missed multiple games for various ailments. For McMahon, Ohio State’s leading scorer missed four games due to a lower leg injury. the same injury for Kennedy Cambridge who missed two games.
The younger Cambridge, Jaloni, missed three for a right shoulder injury, and left two games early due to taking hard falls. The second leading to the freshman missing the Buckeyes’ lone non-conference game against a power four school.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25813607/2191088741.jpg "Grand Valley v Ohio State")
Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images
Now it’s the Big Ten gauntlet, where the non-conference schedule brought mostly home games with ample time for rest, the Buckeyes now have games at a higher clip and will travel from coast-to-coast in their remaining 16 conference games. For a 10-player roster to work, staying healthy is vital.
It’s nice to say it but how does it work in practice? Having a shorter bench means less chances for rest. Is there a moment where McGuff takes from the pool of four players hoping to earn a redshirt at the end of the season? Do players normally coming off the bench get a chance to start to ensure more when it comes to the postseason? Maybe not for energy sake, as McGuff’s said many times that he’s not worried about minutes and tiring out college athletes, but to give less chance for injuries to happen.
“A year older, a year wiser” is the old adage for the growth that comes with growing experience. For Ohio State, that means using more of their veterans on the bench, which fans saw two days before the ball dropped in Times Square.
That’s when, just down the road in New Jersey, the Buckeyes faced the Rutgers Scarlet Knights for their last game of the 2024 calendar. In it, McGuff strayed from his normal rotation for his top six-to-seven players.
Until last weekend, the first substitute into games was freshman center Elsa Lemmilä. Coming in for starting forward Ajae Petty, from the first game of the season McGuff’s shown trust in his freshman, and to give her time to adjust to the college game. In most of those appearances, Lemmilä gave the Buckeyes an advantage in the paint with a 6-foot-6 wingspan leading to blocks and making life tough for opposing bigs.
Against Rutgers, the Scarlet Knights’ Destiny Adams wasn’t being stopped by traditional means.
Adams pummeled Ohio State inside, scoring 12 points, grabbing four rebounds and forcing four charging calls against the Buckeyes in the first quarter alone.
McGuff brought in Lemmilä in his usual first quarter substitution, but the coach knew that it was a leap from playing forwards on mid majors to playing someone the likes of Adams. After two minutes, Lemmilä came out of the game and didn’t return.
It’s one appearance that likely won’t dictate the career of the talented Finnish center. After all, even McMahon had rough outings in her freshman season only to become the star she is today, but McGuff realized that he needed to bring in experience, and he did that through forward Eboni Walker.
In Walker’s three seasons, she’s gone from consistent bench weapon to starter to rarely used, but on Sunday McGuff knew what the game needed and that trend should continue.
Walker played 17 minutes, her most in conference play since Feb. 8, 2024. Sunday, Walker rewarded the Buckeyes with play that doesn't jump off a stat sheet, but played with composure and energy. Walker doesn’t bring the same game as Petty or Lemmilä, but it was a look that benefited Ohio State.
Walker’s given the Buckeyes performances like Sunday’s over the years, and when the graduate senior excels, the Scarlet and Gray usually follow suit. When Walker talks about doing whatever needs done for the team, performances like the one against Rutgers is what she means and Ohio State will be better off getting Walker more minutes as the season progresses.
For those who don’t believe in resolutions, that’s fine. There are a lot of good things being done by the Buckeyes this season.
After all, Ohio State is 13-0, beating everyone they’ve faced, even if the competition didn’t create the strongest schedule when compared to other Big Ten sides. However, the new look Scarlet and Gray from past seasons is still doing what they did with different personnel. There’s also an argument to be made that they’re doing those things better.
The Buckeyes have three new starters this season, but are playing stronger in the press and only giving the ball away .4 more turnovers per game, which isn’t much when considering this starting five only just began playing with each other this summer.
McGuff addressed last year’s issues of a lack of rebounding and inconsistent three-point shooting, grabbing seven more rebounds per game and guard Chance Gray sitting second in the Big Ten in three-point shooting.
Will these improvements change as conference opponents get better? The Big Ten currently has seven ranked teams in the top-25, and Ohio State hasn’t played a single one of them yet.
With that said, the competencies of a winning team are there. Now Ohio State needs to do those things for a consistent 40 minutes. Going up against opponents, the Buckeyes tend to start sitting back and abandoning what got them their leads in the first place. That won’t happen against top-10 teams like the Maryland Terrapins, USC Trojans and UCLA Bruins.
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
Doral Chenoweth/The Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
It’s the time of the year for improvement, and here are three areas for the Buckeyes.
Should auld acquaintance be forgot, include the No. 10 Ohio State women’s basketball non-conference schedule. It’s the time of the year when a calendar flip means a little bit more, with the year getting one number higher. That small swap of a single digit turns weeks of indulgence into self-reflection and hopes for a better future.
For the Buckeyes, there are areas where a resolution might be the one thing to propel a top-10 team in the country into a contender with Big Ten teams on the schedule from now until March. Here are three resolutions for the Scarlet and Gray before games tip back off Sunday at the Schottenstein Center.
Health
This does not mean a new gym membership. The Buckeyes are a highly conditioned machine built to wreak havoc on opposing teams, and so far are hitting those marks sitting seventh in the nation with 14.4 steals per game. No, this is about keeping players available for selection.
Head coach Kevin McGuff took a slight risk this season, opting for a pool of 10 active players for selection. It’s slight because in past seasons, McGuff’s rotation consisted of only around 10 players averaging double-digit minutes per game. However, this season the injuries have come with consistency.
In 13 games, Ohio State has used three different starting lineups. Not much when comparing it to other programs, but McGuff appreciates a lineup he can expect each time they step on the court.
So far this season, forward Cotie McMahon and guards Jaloni and Kennedy Cambridge have each missed multiple games for various ailments. For McMahon, Ohio State’s leading scorer missed four games due to a lower leg injury. the same injury for Kennedy Cambridge who missed two games.
The younger Cambridge, Jaloni, missed three for a right shoulder injury, and left two games early due to taking hard falls. The second leading to the freshman missing the Buckeyes’ lone non-conference game against a power four school.
Now it’s the Big Ten gauntlet, where the non-conference schedule brought mostly home games with ample time for rest, the Buckeyes now have games at a higher clip and will travel from coast-to-coast in their remaining 16 conference games. For a 10-player roster to work, staying healthy is vital.
It’s nice to say it but how does it work in practice? Having a shorter bench means less chances for rest. Is there a moment where McGuff takes from the pool of four players hoping to earn a redshirt at the end of the season? Do players normally coming off the bench get a chance to start to ensure more when it comes to the postseason? Maybe not for energy sake, as McGuff’s said many times that he’s not worried about minutes and tiring out college athletes, but to give less chance for injuries to happen.
Wisdom
“A year older, a year wiser” is the old adage for the growth that comes with growing experience. For Ohio State, that means using more of their veterans on the bench, which fans saw two days before the ball dropped in Times Square.
That’s when, just down the road in New Jersey, the Buckeyes faced the Rutgers Scarlet Knights for their last game of the 2024 calendar. In it, McGuff strayed from his normal rotation for his top six-to-seven players.
Until last weekend, the first substitute into games was freshman center Elsa Lemmilä. Coming in for starting forward Ajae Petty, from the first game of the season McGuff’s shown trust in his freshman, and to give her time to adjust to the college game. In most of those appearances, Lemmilä gave the Buckeyes an advantage in the paint with a 6-foot-6 wingspan leading to blocks and making life tough for opposing bigs.
Against Rutgers, the Scarlet Knights’ Destiny Adams wasn’t being stopped by traditional means.
Adams pummeled Ohio State inside, scoring 12 points, grabbing four rebounds and forcing four charging calls against the Buckeyes in the first quarter alone.
McGuff brought in Lemmilä in his usual first quarter substitution, but the coach knew that it was a leap from playing forwards on mid majors to playing someone the likes of Adams. After two minutes, Lemmilä came out of the game and didn’t return.
It’s one appearance that likely won’t dictate the career of the talented Finnish center. After all, even McMahon had rough outings in her freshman season only to become the star she is today, but McGuff realized that he needed to bring in experience, and he did that through forward Eboni Walker.
In Walker’s three seasons, she’s gone from consistent bench weapon to starter to rarely used, but on Sunday McGuff knew what the game needed and that trend should continue.
Walker played 17 minutes, her most in conference play since Feb. 8, 2024. Sunday, Walker rewarded the Buckeyes with play that doesn't jump off a stat sheet, but played with composure and energy. Walker doesn’t bring the same game as Petty or Lemmilä, but it was a look that benefited Ohio State.
Walker’s given the Buckeyes performances like Sunday’s over the years, and when the graduate senior excels, the Scarlet and Gray usually follow suit. When Walker talks about doing whatever needs done for the team, performances like the one against Rutgers is what she means and Ohio State will be better off getting Walker more minutes as the season progresses.
Consistency
For those who don’t believe in resolutions, that’s fine. There are a lot of good things being done by the Buckeyes this season.
After all, Ohio State is 13-0, beating everyone they’ve faced, even if the competition didn’t create the strongest schedule when compared to other Big Ten sides. However, the new look Scarlet and Gray from past seasons is still doing what they did with different personnel. There’s also an argument to be made that they’re doing those things better.
The Buckeyes have three new starters this season, but are playing stronger in the press and only giving the ball away .4 more turnovers per game, which isn’t much when considering this starting five only just began playing with each other this summer.
McGuff addressed last year’s issues of a lack of rebounding and inconsistent three-point shooting, grabbing seven more rebounds per game and guard Chance Gray sitting second in the Big Ten in three-point shooting.
Will these improvements change as conference opponents get better? The Big Ten currently has seven ranked teams in the top-25, and Ohio State hasn’t played a single one of them yet.
With that said, the competencies of a winning team are there. Now Ohio State needs to do those things for a consistent 40 minutes. Going up against opponents, the Buckeyes tend to start sitting back and abandoning what got them their leads in the first place. That won’t happen against top-10 teams like the Maryland Terrapins, USC Trojans and UCLA Bruins.
Continue reading...