Ohio State senior guard Kelsey Mitchell shoots a shot during the Buckeyes’ game against Washington on Nov. 19. Credit: Colin Hass-Hill | Sports Editor
The No. 9 Ohio State women’s basketball team (7-1) trailed No. 14 Stanford (4-3) for the first 35 minutes, but recovered to defeat the Cardinal 94-82 in overtime and win the Play4Kay Showcase in Las Vegas Saturday night.
Ohio State preseason All-American senior guard Kelsey Mitchell hit a jumper with eight second remaining to break the tie and give her team a 76-74 lead. But with four second remaining, forward Alanna Smith hit a layup to tie the game and send it into overtime.
The Buckeyes dominated the extra period and held an 18-6 edge in overtime. They scored the final 13 points of the contest to clinch the victory.
Mitchell set her season-high with 37 points on 8-of-22 shooting. She did most of her damage from the free-throw line, where she hit 19-of-20 shots. Mitchell scored 31 of her points in the second half and overtime.
She only hit 2-of-7 3-pointers, highlighting an area of weakness for her team. Ohio State made 8-of-26 triples, while Stanford drilled 8-of-21 3s.
The Buckeyes forced Stanford to commit 23 turnovers and picked up nine steals. Ohio State turned the ball over just nine times, though, and had eight assists.
Guards Sierra Calhoun and Asia Doss each added 15 points for the Buckeyes. Calhoun went 4-for-9 from beyond the arc.
Smith and guard Anna Wilson were the only players in double-figures for Stanford. Smith led the team with 33 points and Wilson added 21 points.
Ohio State played a condensed rotation of just seven players despite playing its third game in as many days. Stanford played 10 players at least seven minutes. The Cardinal held a 27-5 edge in bench points.
This was Ohio State’s second victory against Stanford of the season. The Buckeyes defeated the Cardinal 85-64 on Nov. 10 to kick off both teams’ respective seasons. In the matchup, redshirt senior forward Stephanie Mavunga scored 23 points and pulled down a program-record 26 rebounds. She had 10 points and nine rebounds against Stanford on Saturday.
Ohio State will be back in action against Duke in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge at 7 p.m. Thursday in Durham, North Carolina.
