Ohio State and Iowa had a classic last year when the Buckeyes upset the #2 Hawkeyes and GOAT Caitlin Clark. The 100-92 overtime victory was the signature moment for the 2023-2024 lady Buckeyes basketball team. Even with Clark and Buckeye greats like Jacy Sheldon gone to the WNBA, Iowa and Ohio State had a great game today.
Iowa’s Lucy Olsen led the way for the Hawkeyes with 27 points, but Ohio State had fantastic games from Cotie McMahon and the Cambridge sisters. McMahon had 25 points and eight rebounds while Jaloni Cambridge had 29, and her sister, Kennedy Cambridge, scored 16 off the bench. Together, they were a perfect four-for-four from beyond the arc. These three powered the Buckeyes to the 86-78 overtime victory.
Iowa won the battle of the boards 41-34, but Ohio State won the turnover battle. The Buckeyes had 12 turnovers to the Hawkeyes’ 20 and 23 points off of those turnovers to Iowa’s 17. Ohio State also had more points in the paint (36-30) despite not having the rebound advantage.
The Buckeyes also hit more of their foul shots, 26 to 17. While Iowa came roaring back in the fourth quarter, Ohio State dominated in overtime, 12-4. The Buckeyes took the ball to the rim all game long, causing three of Iowa’s five starters to foul out before the game ended.
With the win, Ohio State is now 22-3 (11-3) on the season after two overtime wins at home. They are in third place in the Big Ten and travel to Indiana this Thursday to take on another solid team, the 16-9 (8-6) Hoosiers. They’ll then return home to play Purdue and Michigan State before wrapping up the regular season on the road at Maryland.
It's clear that the women need to figure out how to play more consistently down the stretch of games. They can't be blowing games like this at the end of regulation.