Ohio State Buckeyes
Overall Rank: #14
Conference Rank: #5 Big Ten
Ohio State was one of the best teams in the brutal Big Ten last year. That is until the end of the season when Madison Greene got hurt and the Buckeyes had nothing to play for with a self-imposed postseason ban. Heading into 2021-2022 though, Coach Kevin McGuff has a couple big holes to fill. Dorka Juhasz transferred to Connecticut and Aaliyah Patty left for Texas A&M. OSU still has three proven scorers returning, but some new faces will have to step up and be ready to provide consistent, quality minutes.
2020-21 Record: 13-7, 9-7
2020-21 Postseason: None
Coach: Kevin McGuff
Coach Record: 169-84 at Ohio State, 400-176 overall
Key Departed Players (starters in bold)
Dorka Juhasz, Forward, 14.6 ppg
Aaliyah Patty, Forward, 11.5 ppg
Key Returning Players (starters in bold)
Jacy Sheldon, Junior, Guard, 16.7 ppg
Madison Greene, Junior, Guard, 13.4 ppg
Braxtin Miller, Senior, Guard, 11.5 ppg
Kateri Poole, Sophomore, Guard, 6.6 ppg
Tanaya Beacham, Senior, Forward, 4.1 ppg
Rebeka Mikulasikova, Junior, Forward, 4.0 ppg
Rikki Harris, Sophomore, Guard, 3.4 ppg
Gabby Hutcherson, Sophomore, Forward, 3.1 ppg
Key New Players
Kaitlyn Costner, Freshman, Guard
Taylor Mikesell, Senior, Guard, Transfer from Oregon
Taylor Thierry, Freshman, Guard/Forward
Projection:
The backcourt trio of Jacy Sheldon, Madison Greene and Braxtin Miller are a great group to build around. Sheldon led the Buckeyes with 16.7 points per game and led the squad in three-point shooting. Greene added 13.4 points per game, while Miller ended the season with 11.5. All three are capable ball handlers and Greene and Miller are very good at taking care of the ball. Not often does a team score as many points as the Buckeyes and do such a great job of avoiding turnovers. Add in sophomores Kateri Poole and Rikki Harris and Oregon transfer Taylor Mikesell and the Buckeyes have an amazing backcourt. The problem is in the frontcourt. Rebeka Mikulasikova had a solid freshman campaign in 2019-2020 prior to an ankle injury, but her playing time was very inconsistent last season. Tanaya Beacham is an experienced senior who played at Toledo before transferring into Ohio State last season. Her experience could be extremely important this season. Gabby Hutcherson is a versatile 6-2 forward who can hit three-pointers and block some shots. She did not see much playing time as a freshman, but she was a big-time recruit and has the talent to anchor the frontcourt while Coach McGuff runs four guards around her.
Projected Postseason Tournament: NCAA
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 80.2 (10th in nation, 3rd in conference)
Scoring Defense: 70.0 (259, 8)
Field-Goal Percentage: 43.7 (51, 7)
Field-Goal Defense: 40.2 (170, 5)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 6.8 (94, 7)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 32.4 (116, 8)
Free-Throw Percentage: 70.7 (152, 8)
Rebound Margin: -0.3 (176, 9)
Assists Per Game: 14.1 (97, 11)
Turnovers Per Game: 12.6 (22, 4)
