Ohio State Falls in Big Ten Championship Game to Iowa

Box Score | Season Stats | Photo Gallery

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – The No. 14/14 and fourth-seeded Ohio State Buckeyes (25-7, 12-6 B1G) fell to No. 7/7 and second-seeded Iowa (26-6, 15-3 B1G) by a 105-72 margin in the Big Ten Finals on Sunday.

Iowa used a run midway through the quarter to build a 26-9 lead after 10 minutes. The Hawkeyes stretched the lead to 61-24 at halftime. Ohio State had the 30-22 advantage in the third quarter but trailed 83-54 after 30 minutes. The Hawkeyes had the advantage in the fourth to earn the win.

Cotie McMahon (23), Taylor Thierry (13) and Taylor Mikesell (24) all reached double figures as they have in each Big Ten Tournament game. McMahon led the team with seven rebounds.

How it Happened

Iowa opened with a triple but a pair of jumpers from Taylor Mikesell gave Ohio State its first lead of the game. The teams traded three-pointers and the Hawkeyes held the 10-7 advantage midway through the quarter. Iowa put together a 14-0 run to take a 20-7 lead and force an Ohio State timeout. The Hawkeyes held the 26-9 lead after 10 minutes.

The Hawkeyes opened the second quarter with an 8-2 run to extend their lead to 34-11 with 8:37 to play before halftime, forcing another Buckeye timeout. Iowa led 44-15 at the media timeout midway through the quarter and 61-24 at halftime.

Ohio State started the third quarter with an 8-2 run, including three-point plays from McMahon and Thierry. The teams traded baskets going into the media timeout with Iowa ahead 70-37. OSU scored the next six points out of the media timeout but Iowa responded with six of its own to force a Buckeye timeout trailing 76-43. The Hawkeyes beat the buzzer to take an 83-54 lead into the fourth quarter.

Each team had six points in the first three minutes of the fourth quarter as Iowa led 89-60. Scoring was capped at 105-72 on a three-pointer from Kaia Henderson.

Highlights

Q1: Taylor Mikesell shot clock

Q2: Cotie McMahon and-one

Q3: Jacy Sheldon good pass to Taylor Thierry and-one

Q3: Taylor Mikesell long triple

Game Notes

• Today set a Big Ten Tournament record in single-session attendance with 9,505 people present. The previous record was 9,417 at the 2004 Big Ten Championship game in Indianapolis.
• The Buckeyes are 4-6 in Big Ten Championship games after one win was later vacated by the NCAA. This was OSU’s first appearance in the championship game since 2020.
• Cotie McMahon, Taylor Thierry and Taylor Mikesell all scored in double figures in each Big Ten Tournament game.
• McMahon was the first Buckeye to reach double figures, doing so for the 22^nd time this season and finishing with 23 points. That’s her 13^th game with 20+ points this season.
• Thierry scored in double figures for the 25^th time this season and totaled 13 points.
• Mikesell reached double figures for the 30^th time this season. She scored 24 points to record her ninth 20-point game of the season.

What They Said

• Post-game video and transcripts can be found HERE.

Up Next

The NCAA selection show for the 2023 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament will take place on Sunday, March 12 at 8 p.m. ET.

Ohio State women’s basketball season tickets for the 2023-24 season are now on sale and can be purchased HERE. Fans with ticketing questions should call the Ohio State Ticket Office at 1-800-GO-BUCKS or email athletic.tix@osu.edu.

#GoBucks