Women’s Basketball: Dominant second quarter leads No. 9 Ohio State past Oregon 69-60

The Buckeyes struggled out of the gate, scoring just eight points by the end of the first quarter.

But, over a six minute span in the second period, Ohio State more than tripled that number while holding Oregon to zero baskets. 

In the end, these 27 unanswered points fueled the Buckeyes (16-0, 5-0 Big Ten) to a 69-60 victory over the Oregon Ducks (12-5, 3-3 Big Ten) Sunday at the Schottenstein Center. 

After a scoreless opening two minutes, Buckeyes forward Ajae Petty drained a deep 2-pointer from the top of the key to open the scoring. Over the next three minutes, Oregon reeled off a 9-0 run to take a seven-point lead over the Buckeyes, who went 0-for-5 in the same time span. 

The Ducks had early momentum, as 6-foot-8 center Filippa Tilliander and 6-foot-4 forward Amina Muhammad dominated the Buckeyes with their physicality in the paint.

Then, Ohio State center Elsa Lemmilä grabbed an offensive board, kicking it out to guard Kennedy Cambridge for a baseline jumper as the buzzer sounded. This final first-quarter score cut Oregon’s lead to three and ignited the Schottenstein Center. 

Buckeyes head coach Kevin McGuff said he felt Cambridge’s effort shifted the game’s momentum. In addition, he said her plays that don’t end up on the stat sheet are often invaluable to the team’s success..

“I think what changed the game is when we put [Cambridge] in,” McGuff said. “I thought her effort, intensity and making hustle plays really ignited us.”

Oregon extended its lead back to five with a jumper by forward Alexis Whitfield, but that was the extent of the Ducks’ first-half success. 

An and-1 by guard Chance Gray gave the Buckeyes their first lead in nearly 10 minutes at 18-15.

Moments later, Cambridge stole the ball off a full-court trap. After chaos ensued in a struggle for the basketball, it bounced back into the hands of guard/forward Taylor Thierry, who put it back to give the Buckeyes a seven-point lead. 

The play caused a Ducks timeout and prompted a standing ovation from the home crowd.

Cambridge said she and her teammates must give maximum effort at all times, regardless of the score, as well as stay grounded without letting leads or deficits get to their heads.

“It’s important to not let the score dictate how we play, whether we’re up 20 or down 20,” Cambridge said. “Just trying to play our best, our hardest, for all 40 minutes.”

Two straight layups by Petty, followed by back-to-back 3-pointers from Thierry, extended Ohio State’s lead to 33-15.

But Thierry wasn’t quite done. She drove right along the 3-point arc, snatching the ball behind her back and to her left for a step-back 3-pointer, simultaneously breaking the ankles of Oregon guard Elisa Mevius to extend the Buckeyes’ lead to 22. 

After a nearly seven-minute scoring drought, Oregon guard Nani Falatea finally answered back with a 3-pointer to end Ohio State’s 27-0 run with just over two minutes left in the half. 

Thierry knocked down two free throws with 16 seconds remaining in the second quarter, ensuring the Buckeyes closed out the half with a 17-point lead. 

McGuff praised Thierry for her performance on both ends of the floor, noting that he believes her assertiveness helped her dominate the Ducks. 

“[Thierry] was great today,” McGuff said. “She played maybe her best game so far this year, and I thought she was really assertive and aggressive. She’s an extremely talented player, and hopefully this will maybe give her the confidence to continue to assert herself.”

The third quarter was a game of runs. Seemingly every time Oregon cut the lead, Ohio State answered, as the Buckeyes and Ducks matched each other’s totals in the period. 

Despite a 9-0 Ducks run early in the fourth quarter, the Buckeyes were simply too far ahead, and Ohio State survived Oregon’s late advances to hold on 69-60. 

Next up, the Buckeyes will journey to Madison, Wisconsin, to take on the Wisconsin Badgers 9 p.m. Thursday at the Kohl Center. Peacock will broadcast.