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What Indiana win over Iowa means 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
Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images
Three days after Indiana made the Big Ten title race less interesting, it turns around and gives the Buckeyes a gift
Thursday night featured a double-header of games at the top of the Big Ten women’s basketball standings. The top three teams in the conference all took to the court, with the No. 1 and 2 teams in the Big Ten controlling their title fate.
Ohio State women’s basketball sat atop the standings, needing four wins in a row for an outright conference title. The Iowa Hawkeyes needed to win its final four games to overthrow the Buckeyes in the process.
The Scarlet and Gray took care of its business, amassing a 30-point lead in State College, Pennsylvania, before settling for a 13-point win after starters went to the bench in the fourth quarter. Ohio State’s win kept the team at the top of the conference, needing to win its next two games for at least a share of the Big Ten title.
A couple states over, the Hawkeyes headed to Assembly Hall to face a wounded Indiana Hoosiers side. The same team that lost to the unranked Illinois Fighting Illini by 20 points on Monday had a test on its hands in superstar guard Caitlin Clark.
On Jan. 13, the Hawkeyes beat the Hoosiers by a 27-point margin of victory in Iowa City, eight days before Iowa traveled to Ohio State and became one of the Buckeyes’ 13 conference wins in a row.
Thursday night, in front of a sold out Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Indiana, the Hoosiers returned the favor to the Hawkeyes. With the crowd in white out garb, and Indiana donning special black uniforms, the Hoosiers looked like they were mourning a loss.
The loss wasn’t its own.
The Hoosiers led from the last shot of the fourth quarter through the final buzzer, holding Clark to four second half points and a Big Ten season low 24 points. On the home side, guard Sara Scalia and forward Mackenzie Holmes combined for 49 of the Hoosiers’ 86 points.
Indiana’s victory over Iowa has ramifications across the top of the Big Ten, puts itself back in the regular season championship picture and sets a clear road for Ohio State to travel in order to claim the sole ownership of the conference title.
Here’s the top of the Big Ten standings following Thursday’s games:
Ohio State and Iowa each play three more regular season games, while the Indiana Hoosiers have only two. Championship-wise, the top teams in the Big Ten don’t have a tiebreaker for who wins a trophy; It goes solely on conference record.
Tiebreakers come into play only for tournament seeding, which Ohio State will earn the No. 1 seed if it wins one more game. That’s because its 1-0 record against Indiana is better than Iowa’s 1-1 record, and an Iowa win over Ohio State locks the first tiebreaker of one-on-one record with each side going 1-1.
Here are the regular season scenarios for the Buckeyes:
In simpler terms, if the Buckeyes win its next two games, both at home against the Maryland Terrapins and Michigan Wolverines, Ohio State wins the championship all to itself. It would be the 17th regular season crown in program history.
Sunday could start with an emotional senior day celebration, and end with a trophy.
Continue reading...
ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images
Three days after Indiana made the Big Ten title race less interesting, it turns around and gives the Buckeyes a gift
Thursday night featured a double-header of games at the top of the Big Ten women’s basketball standings. The top three teams in the conference all took to the court, with the No. 1 and 2 teams in the Big Ten controlling their title fate.
Ohio State women’s basketball sat atop the standings, needing four wins in a row for an outright conference title. The Iowa Hawkeyes needed to win its final four games to overthrow the Buckeyes in the process.
The Scarlet and Gray took care of its business, amassing a 30-point lead in State College, Pennsylvania, before settling for a 13-point win after starters went to the bench in the fourth quarter. Ohio State’s win kept the team at the top of the conference, needing to win its next two games for at least a share of the Big Ten title.
A couple states over, the Hawkeyes headed to Assembly Hall to face a wounded Indiana Hoosiers side. The same team that lost to the unranked Illinois Fighting Illini by 20 points on Monday had a test on its hands in superstar guard Caitlin Clark.
On Jan. 13, the Hawkeyes beat the Hoosiers by a 27-point margin of victory in Iowa City, eight days before Iowa traveled to Ohio State and became one of the Buckeyes’ 13 conference wins in a row.
Thursday night, in front of a sold out Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Indiana, the Hoosiers returned the favor to the Hawkeyes. With the crowd in white out garb, and Indiana donning special black uniforms, the Hoosiers looked like they were mourning a loss.
The loss wasn’t its own.
The Hoosiers led from the last shot of the fourth quarter through the final buzzer, holding Clark to four second half points and a Big Ten season low 24 points. On the home side, guard Sara Scalia and forward Mackenzie Holmes combined for 49 of the Hoosiers’ 86 points.
Indiana’s victory over Iowa has ramifications across the top of the Big Ten, puts itself back in the regular season championship picture and sets a clear road for Ohio State to travel in order to claim the sole ownership of the conference title.
Here’s the top of the Big Ten standings following Thursday’s games:
Ohio State and Iowa each play three more regular season games, while the Indiana Hoosiers have only two. Championship-wise, the top teams in the Big Ten don’t have a tiebreaker for who wins a trophy; It goes solely on conference record.
Tiebreakers come into play only for tournament seeding, which Ohio State will earn the No. 1 seed if it wins one more game. That’s because its 1-0 record against Indiana is better than Iowa’s 1-1 record, and an Iowa win over Ohio State locks the first tiebreaker of one-on-one record with each side going 1-1.
Here are the regular season scenarios for the Buckeyes:
Ohio State Scenarios
Sole Conference Title:
- Win two of the remaining three games
Share Conference Title:
- Share with Iowa: Beat Maryland or Michigan and lose to Iowa, if Iowa wins out
- Share with Indiana: Win one of the last three games, if Indiana wins out and Iowa loses one game or more
- Share with Indiana and Iowa: Beat Maryland or Michigan, lose to Iowa, if Indiana and Iowa win out
No Conference Title:
- Lose remaining three games and both Iowa and Indiana win out
In simpler terms, if the Buckeyes win its next two games, both at home against the Maryland Terrapins and Michigan Wolverines, Ohio State wins the championship all to itself. It would be the 17th regular season crown in program history.
Sunday could start with an emotional senior day celebration, and end with a trophy.
Continue reading...