Sparked by lengthy scoring runs in the second and third quarters, No. 12 Ohio State got off to a perfect Big Ten start on Sunday against No. 21 Illinois in an 83-74 win.
In her first game back from a lower leg injury since the Belmont game, junior forward Cotie McMahon who knocked down a couple of key baskets early to help give the Buckeyes a 13-6 lead.
McMahon got in the scoring column off a 3-point basket with 8:33 to go in the first quarter off of a great pass from freshman point guard Jaloni Cambridge. 2:40 later, McMahon extended Ohio State’s lead to 13-6 with a layup and a free throw.
The Fighting Illini had a run of their own at the end of the first quarter. With the Buckeyes struggling on the offensive end with turnovers and poor shooting, the Fighting Illini used their speed and playmaking abilities to score buckets in transition, which fueled a 10-2 scoring run.
Facing a 16-15 deficit with 33 seconds left in the first quarter, senior guard Taylor Thierry made an and-1 layup to put the Buckeyes back up 18-16 heading into the second quarter.
After the Fighting Illini had a little spurt to start the second quarter to take a 23-20 lead, junior guard Chance Gray provided an answer on both ends, leading her team to a 16-2 scoring run over 3:41.
Gray started the run by knocking down a 3-point jumper, and then after Thierry came up with a steal, she made a layup to put the Buckeyes on top 25-23. Illinois responded with a layup, but on the Buckeyes’ next offensive possession, she created room for herself at the rim with a perfectly timed backup and made a layup to put her team up 27-25.
After Thierry added to the lead with a 3-point jumper, Gray forced a steal and found Theirry open for a layup. McMahon capped the run with four straight points as Ohio State held a 36-25 lead with 3:36 to go in the half.
The Buckeyes’ offense cooled down some at the end of the first half, as they scored 4 points in the last 3:36, but the defense was just solid and only allowed one point in that span. Ohio State took a 40-26 lead into the halftime break.
After a couple of buckets from Illinois senior guard Genesis Bryant, the Buckeyes responded with a lengthy 16-6 scoring run, which lasted over seven minutes and was marked by a dominant defensive effort.
The third straight quarter won by the Buckeyes allowed them to take a sizable 61-43 lead into the final period.
Illinois made things a little more interesting with a 9-2 scoring run to start the fourth quarter, but it didn’t take long for Ohio State to have a response.
The Buckeyes’ 8-3 scoring run put them up 71-55 with 5:02 to go in the game.
The Fighting Illini had one more run in them, which cut the Buckeye lead all the way down to eight at 73-65 with 3:04 to go, but Ohio State cemented its first conference win with seven straight points.
Ohio State was led by McMahon in the scoring department, who tallied 25 points on 7-of-12 shooting. Despite taking seven shots, Thierry was the Buckeyes’ second-leading scorer with 14 points. Surprisingly it was one of the Buckeyes’ forwards, Ajae Petty, to lead the team with five assists. Lemmila was the team’s leader in rebounds with 8.
The Buckeyes had a pretty efficient afternoon for their first Big Ten game, as they shot 29-of-60 from the field good enough for a 48.3 field goal percentage.
Bryant was Illinois’ biggest difference maker with 22 points while shooting 8-of-13 from the field, but her efforts were doomed by the Fighting Illini only shooting 29-of-70 from the field for a field goal percentage of 41.4.
