Ohio State women's upset over Iowa: What it represents and what is next
Three weeks. That has been Kevin McGuff's reference point when evaluating the progress of his Ohio State women's basketball team.
Following the Buckeyes' close victories over Michigan State and Maryland in the week leading up to Sunday's Iowa matchup, McGuff stated that he didn't think they would have won those games if they were played three weeks earlier. He kept that same sentiment after Ohio State defeated the formerly No. 2 ranked Hawkeyes 100-92 in overtime.
Read More: How Cotie McMahon was the difference in Ohio State's win over Caitlin Clark and No. 2 Iowa
"I told them we wouldn't have won this game three weeks ago. We just weren't playing well enough," McGuff said. "But we've gotten better with our defense. We've gotten better with our rebounding."
Three weeks prior to the Ohio State-Iowa matchup, the Buckeyes were one day removed from their road game against Michigan, where they were handed their third loss of the season. It was a closely contested game that Ohio State let slip away by giving up turnovers and letting the Wolverines win the rebounding battle.
Getting outrebounded 34-27 in Ann Arbor, the Buckeyes' allowed four different players contribute to Michigan's fourth-quarter performance that sealed the victory. Three weeks later against Iowa, the Big Ten's top rebounding team, they grabbed 41 boards compared to the Hawkeyes' 37.
Depending how the rest of the year plays out, if the Iowa upset is the season's defining moment for Ohio State, the Michigan loss was the turning point.
Since that game, Ohio State has gone 5-0, averaging 86.8 points, 37.2 rebounds and 18.4 assists. In the most recent three games of the Buckeyes' current run, they've had to fight back from deficits, the largest being 12 points against Iowa.
"We have that grittiness in us, and I think that's been there throughout the years and this team has it, too," said guard Jacy Sheldon. "I think we've been doubted in that area. We were going to refuse to lose. So, we just stuck with it and stayed together."
Opening the season up with a loss to Southern California, it was obvious from the start that this was not the same Buckeyes team that started the year 19-0 in 2022-23 despite returning a majority of the roster.
That Ohio State team from the year prior was one that quickly reached its peak before injuries caused the season to take a hit before the Buckeyes were able to make a late comeback in the NCAA Tournament. This year has been a slow climb for the Buckeyes, and they still have room to grow even after the Iowa victory, according to McGuff.
"We've taken a couple tough losses and had to bounce back from them, and now we've got to handle success," McGuff said. "When we play at Iowa in the last game of the regular season, we need to be a better team than we are today, because they're going to be better."
What worked vs. Iowa
Clark has never scored fewer than 20 points in a game this season. Against Ohio State, she put up 45 of the Hawkeyes' 92 points, a season high for the nation's top scorer.
The Buckeyes knew it would be unlikely they could completely shut down Clark from scoring, but they did limit her in other areas of impact. Ohio State held Clark to three rebounds and seven assists while also containing the players around her. Molly Davis and Hannah Stuelke were the next two leading scorers for the Hawkeyes in the game, with 14 and 10 points, respectively.
"They move really well off the ball," Sheldon said. "... They don't stop moving. We knew we were going to have to obviously be heavy in the gaps against Caitlin but also have to see both, and I'm proud of everyone we did a really good job of that and then rebounded down the stretch."
Going into the game, the plan was to have Celeste Taylor and Taylor Thierry be the Buckeyes primarily matched up against Clark. Early foul trouble for both players led to Ohio State to change.
Rikki Harris and Madison Greene entered the game and provided solid minutes on defense while Thierry and Taylor were sidelined. Making the most of their time on the court, Harris and fellow reserve Emma Shumate contributed to the Buckeyes' 11 made 3-pointers in the game.
"Everybody on that bench is ready any given moment," Ohio State's Cotie McMahon said. "So, props to them for always staying ready and they obviously helped us coming in, but this is what we do, we know how to play together."
Earlier in the season, McGuff said the Buckeyes were going to need a strong bench if they were going to succeed in the Big Ten. The bench play combined with half-court defense, 3-point shooting and McMahon's career performance all came together during the Iowa game.
In the postgame celebration, McGuff told his team to enjoy the win for the day, but then it was time to "move on to the next game." In the final stretch of the regular season, Ohio State still has a meeting with top-25 ranked Indiana, as well as some tough rematches on the schedule, including a season finale against Iowa on the road.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: What Ohio State's victory over Iowa means for this season
