Oregon battles back late but its not enough to make up for second quarter slump
For the first time in program histories, No. 9 Ohio State women’s basketball (16-0, 5-0) welcomed the Oregon Ducks (12-5, 3-3) to Columbus, Ohio. The Buckeyes sent the Ducks back West with a 69-60 loss. Ohio State senior Taylor Thierry’s 15-point second quarter led a 27-point run to continue the unbeaten start of the 2024-25 season for the Scarlet and Gray.
The end weekend-ending Big Ten matchup between the Bucks and Ducks looked similar to Ohio State’s first quarter against the Michigan Wolverines on Wednesday. Head coach Kevin McGuff’s side struggled shooting from the floor, going 4-of-21 with freshman Jaloni Cambridge going 1-of-8 from the floor.
It was a better quarter for older sister Kennedy Cambridge. The sophomore guard came off the bench like a bolt of lighting for the struggling Ohio State offense. Kennedy Cambridge came into the game and stopped two straight possessions from turning back to Oregon, grabbing offensive rebounds while taking contact. On the second, Kennedy Cambridge grabbed the board and dove to the ground to knock the loose ball off an Oregon player to retain possession.
Oregon took a three-point lead into the second quarter, a lead that didn’t last too long with the Scarlet and Gray going on a 27-point run in 4:58 of the period. A highlight of the run was another big play by Kennedy Cambridge. The guard fell to the ground on a layup attempt, tripped up without a whistle going her way, and nailed an acrobatic circus layup.
On the in-bound pass that followed, Kennedy Cambridge stole the ball in the Buckeye press, ending in another two points for the Buckeyes. During the run, senior guard/forward Taylor Thierry went perfect from beyond the arc, hitting all three attempts and leading Ohio State with 15 points in the quarter. On the last three-point shot, Thierry crossed over her defender, hit the shot and showed a rare moment of emotion when she stuck her tongue out.
Ohio State turned their three-point deficit at the end of the first into a 17-point lead at halftime. Absent from much of the run was junior forward Cotie McMahon, who played eight minutes due to foul trouble. McMahon went to the bench in the first with two fouls and when she tried coming back in during the third quarter, picked up a charge almost immediately, ending a brief moment of respite for Thierry.
In the third quarter, Oregon showed fight and went on a seven-point run, cutting the Ohio State lead down to 13 points. The Buckeyes responded to get it back to a 17-point lead at the end of the quarter. Jaloni Cambridge led the way, showing another second half shooting improvement, like the freshman did against Michigan. The freshman went 4-of-4 from the floor in five minutes, with graduate senior Madison Greene getting substantial minutes.
A big difference between the two sides was the rebounding of Ohio State. The Buckeyes out-rebounded Oregon 40-38, leading to the Scarlet and Gray scoring seven more second chance points than the Ducks. It is the first game this season where the Buckeyes out rebounded a Big Ten opponent. The third quarter was good representation of the hustle of the Buckeyes in the paint, grabbing seven and holding Oregon to three in the quarter.
However, in the fourth quarter Oregon mounted a comeback. The Ducks scored 13 of the first 17 points to cut the lead down to eight points. Inversely, Ohio State went cold shooting in the first seven minutes, going 2-of-9 from the floor. Forward Ajae Petty scored timely baskets in the period and grabbed five rebounds on her way to a fourth double-double on the season.
Thierry led Ohio State with a season high 20 points for the senior, with Petty adding 13 points and 14 rebounds. Jaloni Cambridge added 13 points.
Amina Muhammed and Nani Falatea scored 11 each for the Ducks, with leading scorers Deja Kelly and Lynchburg, Ohio native Peyton Scott scoring a combined 17 points.
What’s Next
The Buckeyes are off until Thursday, then it’s a two-game road trip starting in Wisconsin. Ohio State takes on the Wisconsin Badgers (10-7, 1-5), who come into the game after falling to the Maryland Terrapins 83-68.
Even though it looks like a comfortable Terrapins win, the Badgers were down two points at the start of the fourth quarter. Forward Sarah Williams leads the team with 18.5 points and 11.2 rebounds per game, one of three players in the Big Ten averaging a double-double on the season.
Ohio State has three wins in a row against the Badgers, last falling 75-70 on Feb. 10, 2021. Overall, the Buckeyes have a 21-4 record against Wisconsin.