Fifth-year guard Madison Greene (0) attempts a three-pointer during the No. 17 Ohio State-Rutgers game Thursday. The Buckeyes won 90-55 at the Schottenstein Center. Credit: Caleb Blake | Photo Editor
The Buckeyes jumped out to a 35-point lead within the blink of an eye, thanks to a hot shooting performance from distance.
No. 17 Ohio State (12-3, 3-1 Big Ten) defeated Rutgers (6-12, 0-5 Big Ten) 90-55 Thursday night at Value City Arena at the Schottenstein Center behind 11 3-pointers, with eight coming in the first half.
Redshirt senior Madison Greene led the Buckeyes with three triples in the first half. The guard scored a season-high 16 points after coming off two ACL tears in back-to-back seasons.
Greene said she was happy to be back on the court and playing big minutes for the Buckeyes.
“I think it really helps me to build my confidence and continue to get better and play,” Greene said.
Graduate guard Celeste Taylor also added a team-high 12 points for the Buckeyes.
Ohio State jumped out to an early 10-2 lead, thanks to two threes from graduate guard Jacy Sheldon and graduate forward Rebeka Mikulasikova. The Buckeyes also forced two turnovers in less than a minute, leading to an early Rutgers timeout.
Still, the threes continued to fall with the Buckeyes’ interior defense ratcheting up, giving the Scarlet Knights trouble as they shot just 2-of-6 in the first five minutes.
However, Rutgers was able to hang around as they out-rebounded Ohio State 11-6 in the first quarter. A putback layup from junior guard/forward Destiny Adams with 4:50 to go pulled Rutgers within eight.
Adams scored 7 of the Knights’ 12 points in the first period, but it wasn’t enough to keep up with the Buckeyes’ hot hand from distance.
Greene hit two threes in the first quarter, which allowed the Buckeyes to build a double-digit lead entering the second quarter.
“I felt good today,” Greene said. “I feel like my teammates did a great job of just getting me the ball and creating openings for me to be able to shoot.”
The Buckeyes continued their streaky shooting from beyond the arc, with their bench joining in on the fun. A three from redshirt-sophomore guard Emma Shumate put the Buckeyes at 46% shooting, making it their sixth 3-pointer.
Fueled by its offense, Ohio State then began turning it into defense as a steal from Taylor led to an and-one layup less than two minutes into the second quarter, extending its lead to 20.
Ohio State head coach Kevin McGuff said it was really important to keep the intensity on the defensive side in this game.
“Our press is sort of all or nothing,” McGuff said. “Tonight, we really had great intensity, ball pressure and execution.”
Senior Scarlet Knight center Chyna Cornwell stopped a 10-0 run from the Buckeyes with a layup, making it 37-17 with 6:12 to go in the second quarter.
That run turned into an even bigger gap as the Buckeyes extended their scoring run to 17-2 while Rutgers went on multiple scoring droughts.
Greene continued to stay hot from deep, hitting her third three of the half with 4:39 to go in the second. The Buckeyes finished the first half with eight 3-pointers while Rutgers struggled, going 0-for-8 from deep.
On the other side, Ohio State ended the half on a good note, capped off by a Diana Collins three at the buzzer to give the Buckeyes a 51-22 halftime lead. Ohio State came out of the halftime locker room cold, missing their first seven field goals.
McGuff praised Greene after the game for her tough grit and determination. He said she helps space out the floor for the Buckeyes to knock down threes.
“She makes everybody around her better,” McGuff said. “She’s just really efficient on the offensive end and making the extra pass and executing the offense and she’s gonna make open shots.”
However, junior guard/forward Taylor Thierry put the Buckeyes on the board with a layup at the 6:05 mark to give the Buckeyes their first field goal of the half.
It was the Taylor show in the third quarter, as she scored nearly half of the Buckeyes’ points. Taylor hit a three with 4:55 left in the third, while Shumate and Greene added a three of their own.
Greene’s fourth three of the game put her in double figures for the first time since Dec. 20, 2022.
The Scarlet Knights made their first triple of the game with 1:45 left in the quarter from freshman guard Lisa Thompson.
The Buckeyes would go on to lead by as many as 42 in the fourth, marking it their 12th win of the season.
“I thought this was the best performance we had where our intensity and focus was as close to 40 minutes; the best we’ve had in terms of as close to 40 minutes all year,” McGuff said.
Ohio State faces Michigan State Sunday at Value City Arena at 4 p.m. on BTN.
