How the undeniable Ohio State freshman growth shined against Minnesota

Three freshmen stepped up in moments when the Buckeyes needed it the most.

Over the past few seasons, Ohio State women’s basketball head coach Kevin McGuff hasn’t been known for regularly leveraging a lot of freshmen in big game moments. Outside of exceptions like a young Jacy Sheldon or experienced AAU and youth Team USA star Cotie McMahon, it’s always been a case of earning your spot and earning your moments.

That hasn’t changed this season for the Buckeyes, but Thursday night against the Minnesota Golden Gophers, the future of Ohio State basketball was on full display with a trio of young athletes taking over the game at key moments.

It started at the end of the first quarter with guard Ava Watson. Entering Thursday, Watson was on a cold shooting streak, going 2-of-17 in seven games, plus 0-of-4 from beyond the arc.

When Watson entered the game against the Golden Gophers the Buckeyes had a two-point lead with 2:21 remaining in the quarter, a shrinking lead thanks to a five-point run from Minnesota. Watson missed her first shot, a layup, but wouldn’t miss another shot in the game.

“She made shots and she gave us a huge boost in the first quarter,” said McGuff. “We haven’t been shooting it very well.”

That’s an understatement, with Ohio State shooting 29.4 percent from the floor in each of their last two defeats in Los Angeles, against the No. 1 UCLA Bruins and then No. 7 USC Trojans.

Watson hit a three-point shot on the wing and followed it with the next three shots for the Buckeyes, all helping Ohio State hold on to its slight lead in the first half. In eight minutes across the first and second quarters, Watson went 3-of-3 from deep with 11 points.

In the second half, Watson hit another three and two free throws but left the game early in the fourth quarter with an ankle sprain. Watson scored 16 points, one more than her previous single-game conference high of 15 points against the Northwestern Wildcats.

Quiet in the first half though was fellow freshman Jaloni Cambridge. The point guard took an uncharacteristically low two shots, not hitting either, but adding two steals and four rebounds.

Out of the halftime locker room, that changed. Cambridge picked up the intensity on defense, resulting in four steals in the first 5:36 of the third quarter, resulting in five points and helping the Ohio State lead grow.

With that intensity came foul troubles, and with 1:16 remaining Cambridge fouled out of the game. At the time, the Buckeyes had a nine-point lead, but Minnesota scored 13 of the last 14 points to send the game into overtime and just like how Cambridge picked up the game Watson left for her in the second half, freshman center Elsa Lemmilä joined the conversation in overtime.

To say Ohio State struggled in the final minutes of regulation is an understatement, but it didn’t lead to momentum for Minnesota in overtime thanks to junior forward Cotie McMahon. After starting the extra period attacking the basket, the 6-foot-6 Lemmilä put together a string of three plays that secured the conference win for the Buckeyes. A win that could go a long way in securing the Scarlet and Gray a top-four spot in the upcoming Big Ten Tournament.

First up was a midrange jumper. With the game tied, Lemmilä set two screens in support of guard Madison Greene, who took over point guard duties with Cambridge out of the game. With the shot clock winding down, Lemmilä set her second screen then stepped back along the baseline, receiving a pass from Greene and sinking the jumper as the clock expired.

Ohio State scored again quickly, but the Golden Gophers sunk a three-point shot to pull the game back to within a point. Lemmilä responded with a layup off a well-timed hesitation as the Minnesota defense closed in on the humble Finnish center.

“I’m just glad I can play my part. I mean, I don’t do too much offensively. I kind of let my teammates do that,” said Lemmilä. “But I’m happy to be able to play my part.”

McMahon, who led the Buckeyes with 25 points, wasn’t going to let Lemmilä downplay her impact.

“As a freshman, Elsa makes reads that not a lot of freshmen can make, so when she says that she doesn’t really do much on offense she does but she just makes the right reads at the right time,” said McMahon. “And on defense like I feel like that’s where she really thrives and she really locks in and knows when to make the right play, and knows that she’s capable of being a very strong force on defense.”

That defense was on full display with five seconds remaining when the Gophers tried to pull off a similar result to the end of the fourth quarter when their first made three-point shot of the second half went in.

Minnesota didn’t have as much on the clock left to run a play but needed another deep shot. At the end of regulation, the visitors used screens and mismatches to find their chance. Without the luxury of time, Lemmilä read the pass perfectly, closed down on the shooter, and blocked the final shot.

Lemmilä played 17 minutes of the second half, including all five overtime minutes, playing over graduate forward Ajae Petty. Coach McGuff cited Lemmilä’s length as the reason for the swap, with Minnesota big Sophie Hart pummeling Ohio State inside with 20 points in the paint.

Height and wingspan aside, Lemmilä’s play showed the future of Ohio State.

“I think she’s just scratching the surface. I think, you know, even for the last however long we play this year, you’ll see her continue to get better,” said McGuff. “I think she’s got more skill on the perimeter than she’s shown that I think by next year she’ll really be utilizing. And we’ll look a little more like we have in the past with like Rebecca [Mikulášiková] and some people like that.”

“But she’s really got a lot of talent. She’s a great athlete and she’s a very, very bright and disciplined player who’s going to only get better.”

Lemmilä ended the game with six points on 3-of-3 shooting, with 4 rebounds and 2 blocks. She also made a strong case not only for more minutes but more minutes in moments where the Buckeyes need them the most.