By Danielle Daniels
Ohio State improved to 4-1 in conference play with the 70-65 victory on Sunday.
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – The No. 17/16 Ohio State Buckeyes (13-3, 4-1 B1G) beat RV/RV Michigan State (12-4, 2-3 B1G) by a 70-65 margin on Sunday afternoon in the awareness game.
The first quarter featured five lead changes and Ohio State found itself with a 20-18 lead after 10 minutes. Back-and-forth play continued in the second quarter with Michigan State holding a 37-34 lead going into the locker room. The teams headed into the final quarter tied at 50. Ohio State scored the first eight points of the fourth quarter and did not surrender the lead.
Cotie McMahon was the first Buckeye to reach double figures and finished with 11 points. Jacy Sheldon (18), Rikki Harris (11), Taylor Thierry (13) and Rebeka Mikulášiková (10) also scored in double figures. Thierry added a game-high 11 rebounds for her second double-double of the season. Celeste Taylor totaled a career-high five blocks.
How it Happened
Each team scored on its first possession before the defenses buckled down. Ohio State used a 6-0 run to take its first lead of the game at 8-6 with 4:48 to play in the opening quarter. There were four more lead changes before the end of the quarter as the Buckeyes held a 20-18 lead.
McMahon opened scoring in the second quarter before Michigan State tied the game at 22 with 6:35 to play before halftime. The Spartans used a 7-0 run to take a 31-26 lead with 3:22 remaining. The Buckeyes tied the game at 31 out of a timeout but Michigan State held the 37-34 lead at halftime.
Thierry tied the game at 37 with a triple to start the third quarter. The teams traded baskets before a 6-0 Buckeye run gave OSU a 45-41 lead just past the midway point of the quarter. Michigan State tied the game at 45 with two minutes to play and the teams were tied 50-50 after three quarters.
Ohio State scored the first eight points of the quarter, building a 58-50 lead with 6:33 to play. Michigan State responded with the next five points to trim OSU’s lead to 58-55 with 5:27 remaining and got as close as two points at 60-58. The Buckeyes scored the next four points and held the Spartans scoreless for a span of three minutes. Michigan State hung around with a couple late shots but Ohio State earned the 70-65 win.
Highlights
- Q1: McMahon in transition
- Q1: Sheldon triple
- Q1: Great passing
- Q2: Greene steal, Harris fastbreak
- Q2: McMahon block
- Q3: Mikulášiková drive
- Q4: Taylor steal, Thierry finish
- Q4: Thierry double-double
Game Notes
- Ohio State had five players score in double figures.
- Cotie McMahon was the first Buckeye to reach double figures, doing so for the 11th time this season and totaling 11 points today.
- Jacy Sheldon’s 14th double-figure game of the season was good for 18 total points.
- Rikki Harris scored in double figures for the third time in her last four games off the bench. She matched her season-high 11 points on 4-of-4 shooting.
- Taylor Thierry recorded her 12th game of the season with at least 10 points, totaling 13 points today on 6-of-7 shooting, making all five of her attempts from inside the arc. She added 11 rebounds for her second double-double of the season.
- Rebeka Mikulášiková had her sixth double-figure performance of the season with 10 points.
- Celeste Taylor recorded a career-high five blocks.
- Q1: Ohio State grabbed the 10-6 advantage on the boards, also recording seven assists on eight baskets.
- Q4: The Buckeyes scored first in the final quarter and did not surrender the lead as they shot 6-of-9 (.667) in the quarter.
What They Said
- Head Coach Kevin McGuff
- “We’ve gotten a little bit better to put ourselves in a position to win games like this, which is amazing and where we always need to be. Our defense has gotten better and we’ll keep focused on that.”
- Redshirt senior guard Rikki Harris
- “Michigan State is a good team, a physical team and they can rebound the ball so getting an extra chance on offense or defense to get the ball back was very important. We made some big rebounds at big times.”
- Graduate forward Rebeka Mikulášiková
- “We knew that I was one of the biggest people on the court so I tried to take advantage of that, ask for the ball and be more active. My teammates did a great job of getting me the ball.”
Up Next
Ohio State travels to Maryland on Wednesday for a 7 p.m. game. The game will be broadcast on Peacock and AM1460.
Tickets for the 2023-24 season are now on sale. For more information, visit ohiostatebuckeyes.com. Contact the ticket office with any questions at 1-800-GOBUCKS (select option 2) or athletic.tix@osu.edu.
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