How Ohio State women’s basketball won a share of the Big Ten title

On Mar 1, 2022

Ohio State won 13 of its final 15 games to win a share of the Big Ten title and get the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament.

When the Ohio State women’s basketball team concluded its regular season with a 61-55 win over Michigan State in East Lansing on Sunday, the first instinct everyone had was to check what was happening in Iowa City.

Ohio State’s game finished about 30 minutes after a winner-take-all game between Michigan and Iowa began. If the Wolverines won, they would be the Big Ten champions. If the Hawkeyes won, Ohio State would be crowned co-champ and earn the top seed in the conference tournament.

The Buckeyes had done their part by winning their final three games to have a shot at claiming their first conference title since 2018. That finish came after a loss at Maryland that seemed to knock them out of contention.

As the coaches, players and staff filed onto a plane to go back to Columbus on Sunday, everyone was watching on their phones. Coach Kevin McGuff had to decide whether they should wait for the game to finish before they took off.

“I made the decision, no, I don’t want to do that. That may jinx us,” he said.

Players lobbied to hold the plane so they could watch their championship moment, but at the time it was obvious there would be no suspense as they were in the air without internet.

They had witnessed Iowa make a 20-2 run at the end of the third and beginning of the fourth quarters to go up 26 points, all but guaranteeing that when the Buckeyes landed they had earned the right to hang a banner in Value City Arena.

“By the time we got out there, we were literally on the runway when they kind of secured the win and everybody kind of erupted,” McGuff said. “It was a pretty cool scene.”

This was perhaps the most unexpected of the program’s now 16 Big Ten regular-season championships.

The Buckeyes lost one of their best players, point guard Madison Greene, before the season began. In the offseason, their two leading rebounders — Dorka Juhasz and Aaliyah Patty — transferred, giving the Buckeyes very little inside presence that has hurt them throughout the year.

But Maryland and Oregon transfer Taylor Mikesell stepped in and gave Ohio State one of the best guard duos in the country alongside Jacy Sheldon. Rikki Harris asserted herself into a starting role as a defensive catalyst. Freshman Taylor Thierry became a force on the defensive end late in the season, and graduate seniors Braxtin Miller and Tanaya Beacham provided leadership.

“Losing (Madison) has been tough for sure … but I think in a way it made us stronger,” Sheldon said. “I think we kind of learned how to play together. We became closer, and I think a lot of people stepped up and they’re starting to show it. I think we’re playing at an all-time high chemistry wise right now, and hopefully we keep that up going into the postseason.”

When Greene missed the final couple of weeks last season, the Buckeyes folded, knowing there was a postseason ban. McGuff saw a different resolve this season.

“Nobody looked at this as an obstacle for us having a great year,” McGuff said. “We still kind of showed tremendous competitive character and togetherness to be able to put this season together without one of our key pieces.”

Before 2021 ended, it looked like the Buckeyes wouldn’t come close to where they are today. On Dec. 12, they lost to Indiana at home by 20, and lost at Michigan on New Years’ Eve by 19. Even after that, it took a few games for Ohio State to find its groove. The Buckeyes eventually did, winning 13 of their final 15 games and knocking off Maryland at home and Iowa on the road, having to score 90-plus points to come out on top.

“We got our butts kicked those games (against Indiana and Michigan). It made us stronger,” Sheldon said. “I think we came closer as a team and I think we’re playing our best basketball right now.”

Midway through the season, McGuff shifted Sheldon to point guard after Kateri Poole was injured. That allowed Ohio State’s best shot creator to constantly have the ball in her hands while the team tried to get Mikesell — one of the nation’s top 3-point shooters — an open shot as often as it could.

Even after the loss at Maryland, the mood of the team didn’t seem to reflect a group of players whose chances of a Big Ten title were severely diminished. The confidence remained high, which allowed the team to focus on what it could control. Over the past two weeks, McGuff said, the preparation and focus has been as strong as it has been all year, especially defensively.