Ohio State Buckeyes Women’s Basketball Team Clinches Outright Big Ten Regular Season Crown

By Danielle Daniels

Kevin McGuff, the architect of the successful Ohio State Women’s Basketball Program (courtesy IMAGN, photo by Adam Cairns, Columbus Dispatch via USA Today Sports Syndication)

2/28/2024

 

GAME BOX SCORE

https://ohiostatebuckeyes.com/sports/womens-basketball/stats/2023-24/michigan/boxscore/19687

 

Ohio State beat Michigan by a 67-51 margin on Wednesday to clinch its first outright regular season title since 2009-10.

 

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The No. 2/2 Ohio State Buckeyes (25-3, 16-1 B1G) defeated Michigan (17-12, 8-9 B1G) by a 67-51 margin on Wednesday in OSU’s final home game of the regular season to capture the Big Ten regular season championship outright.

Ohio State scored the first two baskets of the game and led 13-9 after 10 minutes. Michigan battled back to take its first lead of the game during the second quarter and the teams were tied at 22 heading into the locker room. The 27-16 third-quarter advantage gave the Buckeyes a 49-38 lead going into the final quarter. Ohio State closed the game with a 67-51 advantage after the 18-13 advantage in the fourth quarter.

Jacy Sheldon was the first in the game to double figures and finished with a game-high 22 points, including making 4-of-6 from long range. Cotie McMahon (18) and Celeste Taylor (12) also scored in double figures. The Ohio State defense forced 29 turnovers and tallied 19 steals in the game.

How it Happened
Ohio State opened scoring with back-to-back baskets before the teams alternated scoring up to the media timeout with the Buckeyes leading 11-7. The defenses picked it up with each team making one basket out of the media timeout. The Buckeyes led 13-9 after 10 minutes.

The Buckeyes began the second quarter with the first two baskets as well, building the lead to 18-9 with just under seven minutes to play before halftime. OSU led by a 20-14 margin midway through the quarter. The Wolverines used an 8-0 run to tie the game at 20 with 3:22 remaining in the quarter and took their first lead at 22-20 with less than a minute to go in the half. The teams were tied at 22 at halftime.

Ohio State scored the first six points of the third quarter and kept Michigan scoreless for more than 3:30 as the Buckeyes led 28-22. A pair of Sheldon triples gave the Buckeyes a 34-27 lead midway through the third quarter. OSU extended its run to 10-0 and its lead to 41-27 with 3:32 remaining in the third. The teams traded scoring with the Buckeyes holding onto a 49-38 lead after 30 minutes.

The Buckeyes scored six of the fourth quarter’s first eight points to extend their lead to 55-40 with just under eight minutes remaining to force a Michigan timeout. Ohio State increased the lead to 58-41 with 5:50 to play. The Buckeyes used a 9-0 run on its way to a 67-51 victory.

Ohio State Women’s Basketball Team celebrating 2023-24 Big Ten regular season Championship (courtesy OSU Athletic Communications)

Highlights

Game Notes

  • Ohio State is the outright Big Ten regular season champions for the first time since the 2009-10 season.
  • The Buckeyes’ 16 Big Ten regular season titles are the most in the conference.
  • OSU is riding a 15-game win streak in Big Ten play, the second-longest in program history and trailing only the 1984-85 season when the Buckeyes were a perfect 18-0.
  • This is the 18th game of the season that the Buckeye defense has totaled at least 10 steals, totaling 19 steals tonight.
  • The Ohio State defense forced at least 20 turnovers for the 19th time this season as Michigan finished with 29 turnovers tonight.
  • Jacy Sheldon reached double figures for the 25th time this season and finished with a game-high 22 points. This is her 12th 20-point game of the season.
  • Cotie McMahon’s 22nd double-figure game of the season was good for 18 points.
  • Celeste Taylor scored in double figures for the 16th time this season and totaled 12 points.
  • Q1: The Buckeye defense forced seven turnovers and had four steals in the first 10 minutes.
  • Q3: Ohio State used runs of 10-0 and 6-0 to earn the 27-16 advantage in the quarter.
  • Q4: The Buckeyes shot 6-of-10 (.600) from the floor in the quarter.

Up Next
The Buckeyes wrap up the regular season with a trip to No. 6/6 Iowa on Sunday for a 1 p.m. ET tip. The game will be broadcast on FOX and 97.1 FM.

Single game, group tickets and suites for the 2023-24 season are still available. 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. Season tickets for the 2024-25 season are now on sale and can be purchased HERE.

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