Last season, Ohio State’s 16-2 record collected a Big Ten championship that was followed by collective disappointment. Actually, the disappointment began in the last conference game with an 83-93 loss in Iowa City. That was followed by a first game exit from the Big Ten tournament when Maryland laid a 61-82 hurt on the Buckeyes. Then the season ground to a halt on OSU’s home court as the 2nd seeded Buckeyes were ousted from the NCAA tournament by the 7th seeded Duke Blue Devils.
That was the end of the road for three of Ohio State’s leading scorers:
Jacy Sheldon 18.4 ppg,
Celeste Taylor 12 ppg and
Rebeka Mikulaskova 9.5 ppg. The trio also contributed to OSU’s prowess from beyond the arc (.363). The departures would appear to be good news for the Gophers who have dropped 13 straight to the Buckeyes. Minnesota last defeated Ohio State in a 90-88 OT thriller in February of 2016. OSU’s 9-3 record indicates some slippage has occurred-especially from three where they are bricking at a .289 clip.
Like Minnesota, the Buckeyes were 0-2 on their So Cal trip. Unlike Minnesota, the Buckeyes lost to Penn State. So we have that going for us.
Leading the way for OSU is 6’0” junior forward
Cotie McMahon averaging 15.6 points and 5.4 rebounds in 34.4 minutes. McMahon makes all the watch lists; but her primary asset may be her consistency.
Next up is highly regarded 5’7” freshman guard
Jaloni Cambridge averaging 14.9 points and 5.3 rebounds in 28.4 minutes. She makes up for some of Sheldon’s scoring if not her three-point shooting. (Cambridge had 29 points versus Michigan while going 1-5 from three.)
The transfer portal delivered from Oregon 5’9” junior guard
Chance Gray averaging 11.7 points and 1.8 rebounds in 29,9 minutes.
Returning from last season is 6’1” senior swing player Taylor Thierry averaging 10.8 points and 4.3 rebounds in 32.4 minutes.
Rounding out the starters is Kentucky transfer
Ajae Petty. The 6’3” graduate forward averages 7.2 points and 5.8 rebounds in 22.5 minutes. Petty had 20 points and 12 rebounds last season when Kentucky lost to Minnesota in Lexington,
Off the bench:
Kennedy Cambridge is a Kentucky transfer who red shirted last season. The 5’8” senior guard averages 4.2 points and 2.6 rebounds in 14.1 minutes.
Madison Green is a 5’8” graduate guard averaging 3.3 points and .9 rebounds in 14.4 minutes.
Elsa Lemmilia is a 6’6” freshman center averaging 3.1 points and 3.8 rebounds in 12.4 minutes.
Following a disappointing 63-84 loss at Southern Cal, Ohio State returns to the Midwest to face visiting Minnesota. McMahon’s early foul trouble versus SC removed her from the point of the OSU press and the Buckeye pressure became sporadic. It hurt that Petty also accumulated fouls. Hopefully, the Gophers have similar luck against the Buckeye bigs.
Let’s enjoy a speedy Jolani Cambridge
Jaloni Cambridge Highlights vs. Michigan | Ohio State Women's Basketball | 01/08/2025
