Sheldon’s 1,000th and Mikesell’s Career High Lift Buckeyes Past No. 12/11 Terps

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COLUMBUS, Ohio – The No. RV/25 Ohio State women’s basketball team (14-3, 6-2 Big Ten) earned its first ranked win of the season against No. 12/11 Maryland (12-6, 4-3 Big Ten) on Thursday evening inside Value City Arena in the Schottenstein Center, beating the Terrapins by a 95-89 margin.

Jacy Sheldon recorded her 1,000^th career point on a free throw with 13 seconds remaining as she tallied the second double-double of her career with 24 points and a career-high 10 assists. Taylor Mikesell totaled a career-high 33 points on 11-of-13 shooting and was a perfect 5-of-5 from three-point range and 6-of-6 from the free throw line. Rebeka Mikulášiková also reached double figures with 10 points.

How it Happened

Maryland opened scoring with a layup but Mikesell immediately responded with a three-pointer against her former team. Ohio State put together a 7-0 run within a minute of game play to take a 10-6 lead. Mikulášiková and Mikesell both converted to extend the Buckeyes’ lead to 17-10 at the media timeout with three minutes to play in the opening quarter. OSU scored six-unanswered points to lead 23-12 and force a Maryland timeout with under a minute remaining. The Terrapins made a buzzer-beater to end the first quarter, but the Buckeyes led by a 25-15 margin.

Rikki Harris opened the second quarter with a layup, but a 6-3 Terrapins run cut the Buckeyes’ lead to single figures, 30-21, with 7:25 to play in the half. Taylor Thierry responded with a three-point play on a fast-break layup. Ohio State led 33-23 mid-way through the quarter. Both teams went into a scoring drought with no field goals for more than two-and-a-half minutes. Maryland cut the Ohio State lead to 33-30 with 3:17 remaining in the half to force a Buckeye timeout. A layup from Sheldon broke OSU’s drought as the Buckeyes closed the half on a 12-7 run to lead 45-37 at halftime.

The Terrapins opened scoring in the second half and trimmed the Ohio State lead to 49-47 with 6:23 to play in the quarter following a 6-0 run. A Harris layup gave the Buckeyes a 51-47 lead at the media timeout. Sheldon and Mikesell had back-to-back three-pointers to stretch the lead back to double digits, 59-49, with 3:24 remaining in the quarter. A layup from Tanaya Beacham forced a Maryland timeout. Ohio State led by a 65-57 margin after 30 minutes, ending the quarter on a 12-8 run following another Terps buzzer-beater.

The teams traded scoring to open the final quarter, but back-to-back Maryland baskets forced an OSU timeout with six minutes to play and a 71-64 lead. A quick 7-0 Buckeyes run over 40 seconds increased the lead to 82-70 with under four minutes to play. Back-to-back three-pointers by the Terrapins cut the Buckeye lead to 85-80 with under a minute remaining. The Buckeyes closed out a 95-89 win with free throws as Sheldon tallied her 1,000^th career point and Mikesell reached a career-high 33 points.

Highlights

Q1: Taylor Mikesell three-pointer

Q1: Jacy Sheldon pass to Rebeka Mikulášiková

Q1: Tanaya Beacham layup

Q2: Braxtin Miller three-pointer

Q2: Taylor Thierry three-point play

Q2: Jacy Sheldon layup

Q3: Rebeka Mikulášiková reverse

Q3: Taylor Mikesell three-pointer

Q3: Tanaya Beacham layup

Q4: Jacy Sheldon three-pointer

Q4: Taylor Mikesell steal and layup

Q4: Bench energy

Game Notes

• Taylor Mikesell scored a career-high 33 points in her second 30-point game of the season. She’s has made at least three triples in 16 games this season, beginning 3-of-3 today. She was a perfect 4-of-4 from the floor in the first quarter to become the first player to reach double figures. Mikesell has scored at least 10 points in every game this season and surpassed the 20-point plateau six times.
• Jacy Sheldon recorded a career-high 10 assists and continued her streak of scoring at least 10 points in every game this season. This is the second double-double of her career and the ninth 20-point game of the season for Sheldon. She recorded her 1,000^th career point on a free throw with 13 seconds to play.
• Rebeka Mikulášiková reached double figures for the 12^th game this season.
• The Buckeyes are 2-2 when both Mikesell and Sheldon score at least 20 points.
• Q1: Ohio State began the game 9-of-12 from the floor, 3-of-3 from long range and 4-of-4 from the free throw line. The Buckeyes made a series of eight-straight baskets.
• Q1: Sheldon dished out six assists in the first quarter, just one shy of her career high.
• Q2: The Ohio State defense held Maryland without a field goal for the final 2:27 of the half.
• Q4: The Buckeyes shot 58.8 percent in the fourth quarter.

What They Said

Head Coach Kevin McGuff

On the team’s performance tonight:      

“We played for 40 minutes. We made mistakes and that’s going to happen, but our competitive character is as good as it has been. That’s what I’m most proud of.

Junior guard Jacy Sheldon

On scoring her 1,000^th point:       

“That was a huge win for us so it was really cool. To be honest, I was worried about winning the game. I was worried about making the free throws and winning the game.”

Senior guard Taylor Mikesell

On facing her former team:       

“I’d be lying if I said it didn’t [mean a little bit more], but at the end of the day, it’s all about the game. We’re trying to show out. We had a great crowd tonight and a great week of prep. We came out here and everyone was locked in from the start so it trickled down.”

Up Next

Ohio State is on the road this weekend, traveling to Piscataway, N.J. to take on Rutgers on Sunday for a 1 p.m. tip-off. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN2 and AM 1460.

Fans can purchase single-game tickets and group tickets for the 2021-22 season in Value City Arena in the Schottenstein Center. All group tickets must be bought in advance by calling 1-800-GO-BUCKS and then selecting option two. Fans with ticketing questions should call the Ohio State Ticket Office at 1-800-GO-BUCKS or email athletic.tix@osu.edu.

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