McGuff vs. McGuff. Buckeyes' Kevin McGuff set to coach against his daughter, Kilyn McGuff
Story by
McGuff vs. McGuff. Buckeyes' Kevin McGuff set to coach against his daughter, Kilyn McGuff
Dec 16, 2022; Columbus, OH, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Kevin McGuff motions from the bench during the second half of the NCAA women's basketball game against the UAlbany Great Danes at Value City Arena. Ohio State won 82-57. Mandatory Credit: Adam Cairns-The Columbus Dispatch
Brianna Mac Kay, Columbus Dispatch·The Columbus Dispatch
·
4 min read
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
When Ohio State women's basketball coachKevin McGuff'swife, Letitia McGuff, walks into Value Center Arena on Friday afternoon, she will be doing something uncommon for someone as supportive of their partner as she is. She'll be wearing his opponent's gear.
On the day of their 21st wedding anniversary, Letitia will be wearing a Belmont jersey as Ohio State takes on the Bruins. This isn't any old shirt, though. This is a No. 12 Belmont jersey, for their daughter Kilyn, a junior starter for the Bruins who is facing her dad's team for the first time.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
"Because this is my dad's season, he's never actually gotten to see me play in person," Kilyn said. "This game will be the first time he gets to see me play a college basketball game. And it'll be weird because he's also coaching against me."
The game against Belmont has been something Kevin has had in the works for a little while. Weird and exciting for both, one thing is for certain: Kevin and Kilyn have never had so much knowledge on an opponent.
"It'll be an interesting experience for sure," Kevin said. "I'm just happy for her. She's doing a great job."
Kevin McGuff in the front of a car with his daughter Kilyn McGuff in the back.
Heading into Buckeye territory as an opponent, Kilyn is hoping her hometown crowd will welcome her with open arms.
One person not letting the competition get in the way of her excitement to face Kilyn is Ohio State's Jacy Sheldon. With both of their families living in Dublin, the two have trained together and now possibly could be matched up against each other.
"I know her really well," Sheldon said. "She's a really good player, a really good person. I respect her game. I know she respects ours. So we're looking forward to it."
Belmont guard Kilyn McGuff (12) dribbles the ball.
Along with Letitia and most of the McGuffs' five other kids, the family has relatives coming in from Atlanta, Albany and Florida.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
"I'm really joyous for Kilyn, to be able to have a game and come home," Letitia said. "To play in front of her coaches, her friends and family that are coming up in the area. So, it's really a great blessing to be able to have that for her and right before Christmas."
Besides being on the same day as Kevin and Letitia's wedding anniversary, the game is three days before Christmas, meaning Kilyn is already home for the holidays.
No back-and-forth from Georgia to Tennessee then up to Ohio, like Kilyn had to do last year before her break. She can jump right into her mom's car after the game, but once she does jump in that car the McGuffs' day of basketball will be far from over.
'I don't know if you could ask for anything better'
Letitia played and coached at Notre Dame under the last name Bowen and is a huge part in making the McGuffs a true basketball family.
After the Ohio State-Belmont game, the next stop for the McGuffs will be Dublin Coffman to see their son Lukas play for the freshman team. Then, the family is going to try to catch Keiryn's game, as she's taking on Indiana in a road matchup for Bowling Green.
"I feel like basketball is a platform that allows us to share our gifts and we love it so much and we're really passionate about it," Letitia said. "To be able to on this day, to celebrate our family, celebrate the manifestation of our family through our children playing this game and watching them do it at this level, I don't know if you can ask for better."
With Kevin and Kilyn getting the unique opportunity to face each other as father and daughter, the next thing on both their checklists is a game against Bowling Green.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
"I would love to compete against my sister," Kilyn said. "I think that would be really fun because we've always been competitive growing up and helped each other get better at basketball. So, I think that would also be really fun matchup."
