The ‘Cats didn’t stand a chance against the Buckeyes’ hot shooting.
The ‘Cats simply crumpled under (full-court) pressure.
Northwestern (7-8, 0-4 B1G) fell to No. 10 Ohio State (14-0, 3-0 B1G) 92-62 on Sunday afternoon, falling behind from the first possession. The Wildcats coughed up a season-high 29 turnovers as the Buckeyes bothered the purple-and-white with their press defense for all 40 minutes.
For the ‘Cats, Kyla Jones led the team with 15 points, flaunting her ability to drive to the basket. Grace Sullivan added 13 points from the paint, while Melannie Daley contributed 12 points off the bench.
For the Buckeyes, first-year guard Jaloni Cambridge led all scorers with 20 points on 8-for-12 shooting from the field. Cotie McMahon added 16 points inside, while Ava Watson dropped 15 points with her hot shooting from deep.
The Buckeyes got on the board first, as McMahon made two free throws after getting hacked by Walsh. 30 seconds later, Casey Harter turned it back over to Ohio State, and Buckeyes guard Chance Gray sank a three-pointer. Following a tip shot off an offensive rebound by McMahon, the Buckeyes were up 7-0 heading into a timeout called by Northwestern.
After an airball by Gray, Daley sank a midrange jumper from the baseline to put the ‘Cats on the board. Daley kept it going with a one-handed push shot on the next possession to make it 7-4. The Buckeyes started to pressure NU with a full-court press, forcing Daley to travel. Despite that turnover, the purple-and-white struck next with a deep two by Walsh.
Coming off that basket, Ohio State pushed the pace, as Cambridge streaked past the defense for a layup to make it 9-6. On the next possession, McMahon powered through Harter for a close shot and drew a foul, hitting the free throw to increase the lead to 12-6. Daley immediately responded on the other end with a jumper to cut the Buckeyes’ lead to four.
With five minutes left in the opening quarter, both Walsh and Harter had already notched two personal fouls. Ohio State capitalized on the opportunity, making three straight baskets to increase its lead to 19-10. After two free throws from Jones, McMahon reached the charity stripe yet again, hitting one to make it 20-12.
Following a foul by Mercy Ademusayo, Buckeyes forward Ajae Petty sank two free throws to deepen NU’s deficit to 22-12. The ‘Cats were able to respond, with Daley finding Tayla Thomas for a three from the left wing. But Ohio State refused to slow the pace, as Ava Watson hit her second three of the game on a fastbreak to make it 25-15. After Daley found a cutting Sullivan for a layup, Madison Greene hit two shots from the line to increase Ohio State’s lead by double digits once more.
The Buckeyes started the second quarter with a silky midrange jumper by Cambridge. After Gray converted an and-one, they were up 32-17. On the other end, Daley hit her patented middie and a fast-break layup on consecutive possessions to cut the Buckeyes’ lead to 11. After a scoop lay-in by McMahon, Joe McKeown called a Northwestern timeout to settle down his team.
With less than six minutes to go in the half, Walsh snapped a four-minute scoring drought with a smooth baby hook inside to make it 36-23. After a quick layup by Cambridge, Sullivan responded with a paint shot of her own. Cambridge hit yet another tough shot inside on the next possession, sinking the free throw to inflate Ohio State’s lead to 41-25.
Following a layup by Gray, Walsh gobbled an offensive rebound and converted the and-one to make it 43-28. After an offensive foul by Daley, Gray splashed a three from the right wing to balloon Ohio State’s lead to 18 points. With less than three minutes remaining, Jones forced a turnover and allowed Walsh to reach the line, hitting both of her free throws.
With 90 seconds to go, Watson picked Jones’ pocket and found a streaking McMahon for a layup in transition. After Caroline Lau missed a deep three, Watson converted another three to make it 51-31. On the other end, Walsh netted a falling shot and converted the and-one to chip away at Ohio State’s lead. The Buckeyes got the final word in the first half, as McMahon hit a last-second layup to make it 53-34 heading into the locker room.
At halftime, McMahon led all scorers with 16 points on 5-for-9 shooting from the field, including 6-for-9 on free throws. The ‘Cats struggled with Ohio State’s full-court pressure, turning the ball over 16 times in the first 20 minutes. Walsh led NU with 12 points and six rebounds, while Daley notched 10 points of her own.
The Buckeyes continued to pressure the hapless ‘Cats, forcing a 10-second violation within the first two minutes of the half. Sullivan scored NU’s first basket of the quarter with a smooth midrange jumper. Cambridge converted an and-one floater on the other end to put Ohio State up 58-37. The ‘Cats halted a 7-0 run when Jones drove home for a layup heading into a media timeout.
After another 12-0 run by the Buckeyes, Thomas tipped in a miss by Ademusayo to make it 67-41 halfway through the third quarter. Several minutes later, Walsh found Sullivan for a close finish to cut into Ohio State’s massive lead. On the other end, Watson immediately fired back with a three to inflate NU’s deficit to 75-43.
Two minutes into the final quarter, Sullivan hit a hook shot to make it 82-49. The Buckeyes responded with a layup by Eboni Walker and compounded their success with another basket by Elsa Lemmilä on the next possession. Ademusayo got on the board with a short jumper to cut Ohio State’s lead to 88-53. The remaining minutes dwindled without much fanfare, as the Buckeyes finished their strong performance in front of their fans.
This certainly wasn’t the result that the ‘Cats wanted, and things won’t get much easier from here. Northwestern will host Indiana (10-4, 2-1 B1G) on Wednesday night at Welsh-Ryan Arena. The game will be broadcast at 7 p.m. CT on B1G+.