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No. 9 Ohio State avoids season's first loss with late-game comeback vs Michigan
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- No. 9 Ohio State avoids season's first loss with late-game comeback vs Michigan
No. 9 Ohio State was less than 10 minutes away from losing for the first time this season, but the efforts of Jaloni Cambridge and Chance Gray led to a comeback 84-77 win over No. 25 Michigan.
Cambridge recorded 7 points in the first half Wednesday, and Gray had 2 points. The two guards sparkled in the second half, finishing with a team-leading 29 and 16 points, respectively. Cambridge also had four assists to one turnover.
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In fact, Ohio State totaled just 10 turnovers on the evening. Despite this, Ohio State was playing from behind for nearly the entire game.
"We all knew what we needed to do after a talk at halftime," Gray said. "We knew we needed to get back to our basketball, Ohio State basketball and that's what we did. And the group out there just kept working."
The Buckeyes were trailing by as much as 16 and never held the lead until the 4:30 mark in the fourth quarter. Senior Taylor Thierry recorded one of her four steals off a weak pass from Michigan freshman Syla Swords, and then Thierry took the ball to the basket for an uncontested layup to go ahead 68-66.
The Buckeyes never looked back.
Ohio State guards Chance Gray (21) and Jaloni Cambridge (22) celebrate during a Nov. 24, 2024 game against Bowling Green.
The groundwork for Ohio State's comeback was laid in the third quarter. Michigan was ahead 44-31 going into halftime, but Ohio State outscored Michigan 22-13 in the third. Cambridge and Gray combined to score 18 of those OSU points.
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"One of our weaknesses last season was our inconsistent 3-point shooting, and that is a big reason we added Chance (Gray)," Ohio State coach Kevin McGuff said, "and she certainly delivered tonight."
There was an opening for Ohio State to take its first lead with 1:50 remaining in the third quarter when the Buckeyes tied the score 53-53 off a Gray 3-point basket.
Coming out of a Michigan timeout, the Wolverines' turned over the ball. Cambridge got the Buckeyes into their half-court offense and passed to a driving Ajae Petty. The 6-foot-3 forward's layup was blocked by 6-foot-2 forward Alyssa Crockett.
In the first half, Michigan built its lead off 3-point shooting, shooting 63.6% compared to the Buckeyes' 27.3%. The Wolverines finished shooting 40% from behind the arc.
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"That was on us," Gray said. "We said it at halftime, we need to run them off the 3-point line. That was the only thing that had them in the game, if we stopped that, then we were able to just get what we wanted to get and then go from there."
Ohio State Buckeyes guard Chance Gray (21) shoots a three pointer during the NCAA women's basketball game against the Charlotte 49ers at Value City Arena on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024. Ohio State won 94-53.
Ohio State's worst stretch of the game came in the second quarter, when OSU went 5-for-14 from the field, a 35.7% shooting rate, while the Wolverines were shooting 57.1%. The Buckeyes, who started the quarter with an 8-point deficit, dug themselves a 13-point hole.
A last-second 3-point basket from graduate point guard Madison Greene from the left corner helped the Buckeyes avoid a larger 16-point deficit going into halftime.
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Ohio State's leading scorer, Cotie McMahon , who averages 17.5 points per game, was held to 13 points against the Wolverines on 4-for-10 shooting.
This was the only regular-season meeting on the schedule for Ohio State and Michigan, with the only Big Ten team the Buckeyes are facing twice is Maryland due to the conference's expansion to 18 teams.
The 15-0 Buckeyes return to Value City Arena on Sunday, Jan 12 to face Oregon with tipoff set for 1 p.m.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State women's basketball beats Michigan, avoids first loss
