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OSU women's basketball is 'playing small ball' without Kylee Kitts
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- OSU women's basketball is 'playing small ball' without Kylee Kitts
With starting forward Kylee Kitts sidelined , Ohio State women's basketball learned the hard way that relying on a shorter lineup comes with challenges.
During the 11th-ranked Buckeyes' 90-71 loss to No. 8 Iowa on Jan. 25, they played just two forwards, Elsa Lemmila and Ella Hobbs.
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The 6-foot-4 Kitts, who averages a team-leading 7.1 rebounds per game, missed a second consecutive game due to a shoulder injury sustained against TCU on Jan. 19.
Ohio State forward Kylee Kitts had 9 points, six rebounds against Indiana.
Ohio State never played the 6-6 Lemmila and 6-4 Hobbs at the same time, leaving a four-guard lineup to face the Hawkeyes. The duo of 6-2 forward Hannah Stuelke and 6-4 center Ava Heiden easily took advantage of the matchup, combining for 36 points and 23 rebounds.
"We wanted to pressure them way more on the perimeter to make some of their interior passes harder," Ohio State coach Kevin McGuff said. "Tried to make them throw lobs and knock them down, and we didn't do it. ... Sometimes, you can have an idea or a plan, but if it doesn't carry over to the game, then it wasn't very good."
Iowa center Ava Heiden shoots over Ohio State center Elsa Lemmila on Jan. 25.
Along with the Buckeyes ' failing to execute their defensive game plan, the offense fell short. OSU failed to maneuver around Iowa near the basket, recording a season-low 14 points in the paint.
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"They did a good job of clogging the paint," Ohio State point guard Jaloni Cambridge said. "That's their defense, that's how they guard everybody. They try to make you take the outside shots. We just didn't make enough. We didn't move around enough."
Ohio State shot 34.8% from the field, 11.1% lower than its season average.
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It all points to one thing: With Kitts unavailable, the bulk of the Buckeyes' offense will need to come from outside shots and points in transition.
"We're playing small ball right now," Cambridge said. "Unfortunately, Kylee's not with us. So, it's hard to get points in the paint when we're missing one of our big players inside."
Ohio State guard Kennedy Cambridge drives against Iowa forward Hannah Stuelke on Jan. 25.
How Ohio State's defense adapted to playing without Kylee Kitts
When Lemmila got into foul trouble during the Buckeyes' first game without Kitts against Indiana on Jan. 22 , 5-8 Kennedy Cambridge was slotted in at center for the first time in her career.
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"We figured it out," Kennedy Cambridge said. "I mean, we ran some plays, I didn't know what I was doing, but we just figured it out. That just shows the heart and the grit from our team, because not everything's going to go our way."
The redshirt junior is in the running for Big Ten Defender of the Year and is one of 25 players on the 2026 Naismith Women's College Defensive Player of the Year watch list. She ranks second in the nation with 85 steals while also accumulating 17 blocks. Despite her defensive abilities, however, matching up against post players has been a tall task for Kennedy Cambridge.
Ohio State Buckeyes guard Kennedy Cambridge (3) fights for the ball against Indiana Hoosiers forward Zania Socka-Nguemen (23) in the first half of the NCAA basketball game at Value City Arena on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026 in Columbus, Ohio.
While Kennedy Cambridge contained Indiana's 6-3 center Maya Makalusky, she had little answer for Stuelke, who accounted for 14 of Iowa's 42 points in the paint.
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Even when Kitts returns, Ohio State's guards will still need to defend taller post players on occasion, given that OSU's average roster height is a mere 6 feet.
"We've got to figure out different ways to get around, different ways to fight," Jaloni Cambridge said. "They're obviously bigger and stronger. So, we try doubling, we try to do everything we can in our power just to stop them, but at the end of the day, it's hard."
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State women's basketball struggled vs Iowa without Kylee Kitts
