Greene’s Career Night Lifts Buckeyes Past #24 Michigan 78-69
1/9/2020 10:28:00 PM | Women's Basketball
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – Behind a career-high 23 points from freshman Madison Greene and a stellar performance in the fourth quarter, Ohio State knocked-off rival Michigan 78-69 on Thursday evening inside of Value City Arena.
The Buckeyes (9-6, 2-2) shot 64 percent in the second half including over 72 percent in the fourth quarter to secure a third win this season over a ranked team.
Greene came into the game having scored 22 points in the first three Big Ten games combined. On Thursday, she willed the Buckeyes to victory, scoring eight of her 23 points in the decisive fourth quarter. Greene was 8-of-10 shooting overall and 3-of-3 in the fourth quarter. She was also 2-of-3 from behind the arc and had game-high three steals.
Junior Braxtin Miller and freshman Kierstan Bell also played big roles for the Buckeyes. Miller scored 13 points and had a pair of assists. This was her second consecutive game of 10 or more points after having just one in the previous nine games. Bell, the reigning Big Ten Freshman of the Week, had 15 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals. She hit all three of her three-pointers in the first half which really kept the Buckeye in the game early as they were struggling to find their footing.
Another huge key in the game were turnovers. The Buckeyes committed a season-high 25 in Monday's loss at Maryland but turned around and had just nine on Thursday, which was a season-low.
Buckeye forwards Dorka Juhasz and Rebeka Mikulasikova combined for 17 points and did all of their work from beyond the arc. Juhasz was 3-of-4 from long range to finish with nine points while Mikulasikova was 2-of-4 from deep and had eight points.
Michigan's Naz Hillmon had a tremendous game but it was the Buckeyes' defense of her in the second half that made the difference. In the opening 20 minutes, Hillmon was dominant with 17 points on 7-of-7 shooting to go along with nine rebounds. In the second half, she was limited to just seven points, six rebounds and only one field goal.
Behind Hillmon, Michigan (11-4, 2-2) led 18-14 after the first quarter and 38-35 at the break. The Wolverines shot 48 percent and held a 25-10 advantage on the boards in the opening half. Miller, who played the entire second half, scored six points in the third quarter and the Buckeyes were able to tie the game at 55-55 headed the fourth.
OSU used a 9-0 run over a three-minute span in the fourth quarter to turn a two-point deficit into a 68-61 lead with under three minutes to play. Miller had a nice jumper and Aixa Wone Aranaz and Bell each finished around the rim during the run. Down the stretch, it was Greene who took over. She had a runner in the paint with 1:15 to play and then her twisting finish with :26 seconds left sealed the victory.
The Buckeyes will complete their three games in six days stretch on Sunday by hosting Penn State. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. Penn State is one of just two Big Ten teams that Ohio State has a losing recording against but the Buckeyes have won nine consecutive meetings with the Lady Lions.
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