The Big Ten awarded the duo for career days against the Michigan State Spartans
On Monday, the Big Ten announced weekly awards for the best player and freshman of the previous week. For the fourth time this season, the conference selected Ohio State women’s basketball point guard Jaloni Cambridge for Freshman of the Week. Forward Ajae Petty won a spot on the Honor Roll, given to players who had standout performances in the conference.
The Buckeye freshman had a career day on Wednesday night against the Michigan State Spartans, scoring 33 points with five assists and four rebounds. Cambridge led Ohio State in the ranked victory, which gave the Buckeyes a 15-0 season at the Schottenstein Center.
In the win, Cambridge went 5-of-9 from beyond the arc, a career high for the first year Buckeye. In the third quarter, Cambridge went a perfect 3-of-3 to help Ohio State build a 20-point lead late in the game.
After the game, Cambridge addressed her motivation in the game, citing the physical play of Michigan State and their actions towards the freshman. Cambridge took her perceived disrespect and turned it into an important victory for Ohio State with the postseason looming.
Cambridge won the award despite a rough follow-up against the Maryland Terrapins on Sunday, in College Park. The freshman scored 10 points with three assists but only played 18 minutes. In the first quarter, Cambridge picked up two fouls but head coach Kevin McGuff brought the guard back out for the second quarter where she earned a third foul.
In the second half, Cambridge picked up a foul when Maryland forward Christina Dalce grabbed an offensive rebound and hit a second chance basket. Cambridge’s back was turned to the rebound and shot but the officiating crew called a foul on the point guard. Then, in the fourth quarter, Cambridge was whistled for a charge, sending the guard to the bench.
Even so, Cambridge continued a streak of nine games scoring at least double digit points and grabbing three rebounds.
With four Freshman of the Week awards, Cambridge sits behind guard Kelsey Mitchell and forward Cotie McMahon who each won six.
For Petty, the forward went 11-of-11 against the Spartans, becoming only the third Buckeye in program history to hit every shot when attempting at least 10 shots. In two games, Petty had 35 points and 25 rebounds, with nine offensive boards.
Petty is on a run of three straight games with a double-double. Against Maryland, Petty had 12 points and 10 rebounds, returning to her home state after graduating from high school north of College Park, in Baltimore.
On Tuesday, the Big Ten announces the full slate of postseason awards, including Player of the Year, Freshman of the Year, Sixth Player of the Year and All-Big Ten sides. “B1G Today” on the Big Ten Network shares the winners live at noon ET.