All five starters scored in double figures during No. 4 Ohio State’s 105-52 win over Wright State Wednesday at the Schottenstein Center. Credit: Zachary Rilley | Photo Editor
All five starters scored in double figures during No. 4 Ohio State’s 105-52 win over Wright State Wednesday at the Schottenstein Center.
The Buckeyes (5-0) continue to climb the Associated Press women’s basketball poll, entering the top five after picking up wins over Ohio and McNeese State (1-3) within the week.
It’s no secret that Ohio State has played great defensively this year, entering Wednesday leading the country in opponent turnovers at 34 per contest. A large part of that has to do with senior guard Jacy Sheldon, but the NCAA steals leader was forced to miss the contest with a lower leg injury, head coach Kevin McGuf said.
Even without one of their top players, the Buckeye offense came out firing with senior guard Taylor Mikesell leading the charge. The Massillon, Ohio, native scored 12 points in the opening quarter, making her first four 3-pointers.
Wright State was effective in beating the press in the first quarter, only committing four turnovers in the period. However, Mikesell and the fast pace of the Buckeyes gave them a 26-13 lead after the first 10 minutes.
Senior forward Rebeka Mikulasikova was perfect from the field in the second quarter. With the tallest Wright State player being 6-foot-1, Mikulasikova used her 6-foot-4 frame to dominate inside and out, scoring 11 points on a perfect 4-for-4 on field goals in the period.
Even with its defense being less effective than normal, Ohio State’s offense was just too much for the Raiders to keep up. The Buckeyes shot 58 percent from the field in the first half, doubling Wright State’s point total to lead 56-28 at the break.
To open the second half, the Buckeyes got back to their defensive principles and forced 11 turnovers in the third quarter. The offense didn’t let up either, as the Buckeyes boosted their shooting numbers to 64 percent from the field to hold an 85-41 advantage entering the final period.
With the game out of reach, Ohio State hit the century mark after freshman forward Cotie McMahon made a layup to cap off an 11-3 run. The Buckeyes’ 53-point victory was the largest win against Wright State in program history.
It was the first time the two teams have played in over a decade, with Ohio State going a flawless 5-0 against the Raiders all-time.
McGuff said he was happy with the offensive output from his team, but he thought the defense could have been better.
“They [Wright State] had seven turnovers in the first half. And then in the first five minutes of the third quarter they had eight just to sum up,” McGuff said.” All because of how hard we played coming out of halftime, but we didn’t play as hard as we should have in the first half.”
In Sheldon’s absence, redshirt junior guard Madison Greene delivered one of her best games of the young season. The point guard was in full command of the offense, dishing out eight assists while scoring 17 points of her own.
One of the benefactors of Greene’s playmaking was sophomore forward Taylor Thierry, who scored 15 points on a perfect 7-for-7 shooting. After the game Thierry said Greene was “amazing” in the contest.
“She brings in so much energy and she’s very consistent offensively and defensively,” Thierry said. “We know she can do whatever our team needs her to do and she really stepped up big time today.”
Ohio State will play the last opponent of a three-game home stretch when North Alabama comes to town on Sunday. The game is scheduled for a 1 p.m. start at the Schottenstein Center and will be available on BTN+.
