After Ohio State completed a 24-point comeback – the largest in Big Ten Tournament history – to knock off top-seeded Indiana on Saturday, the Buckeyes suffered a 105-72 blowout loss to No. 2-seeded Iowa in the Big Ten Tournament championship on Sunday.
Ohio State trailed by as many as 38 points in the finals matchup as Caitlin Clark proved herself worthy of Naismith Women’s Player of the Year recognition. The veteran Hawkeye guard recorded a triple-double with 30 points, 10 rebounds and 17 assists in her team’s victory over the Buckeyes – a performance that mirrored her triple-double effort to defeat Ohio State, 83-72. in Columbus six weeks prior on Jan. 23.
Big Ten Freshman of the Year Cotie McMahon led the Buckeyes with 23 points and seven rebounds in the contest. Taylor Mikesell (24) and Taylor Thierry (13) were the only other Ohio State players to finish in double figures, while Rikki Harris, Jacy Sheldon and Rebeka Mikulasikova could not contribute much offensively.
With the loss, Ohio State will now wait until March 12 to receive their seed for the NCAA Tournament. The Buckeyes were projected as the final No. 3 seed by the women’s basketball selection committee on Feb. 23. However, their performance at the Big Ten Tournament will surely create conversation about where the team will end up next Sunday.