OSU out to capitalize on fresh start in postseason

The beginning of the postseason often represents a fresh start, and the No. 14 Ohio State women’s basketball team is embracing that mindset ahead of the Big Ten Tournament.

The Buckeyes started 19-0, the best start to a season in program history, despite losing point guard Madison Greene to a knee injury and guard Jacy Sheldon being largely unavailable after the first few weeks of the season. But a

loss to Iowa in late January was a stumbling block that eventually derailed Ohio State.

It marked the start of a three-game skid, and the Buckeyes dropped five games in a seven-game stretch.

“I think we had played so well, just found ways to win,” coach Kevin Mcguff said, “and then we lost a couple, and our confidence kind of got shaken a little.”

A win at Michigan on Feb. 20 was enough to secure the No. 4 seed and a double-bye in the Big Ten Tournament, and Mcguff felt his team’s energy shift in that win.

They subsequently beat Penn State and then wrapped the regular season with a narrow loss to the Terrapins — a marked difference from their 36-point drubbing at Maryland 19 days prior.

“This our chance to restart and get a fresh start, with the Big Ten Tournament and March Madness,” freshman forward Cotie Mcmahon said. “I feel like our first game is just a new clean slate. Really just kind of getting back to how we were when were 19-0. Going back to how we played as a team and played together and had fun, and take that into the tournament.”

Ohio State will play the winner of fifth-seeded Michigan and 13-seed Penn State on Friday afternoon at the Target Center in Minneapolis. The Buckeyes went 3-0 against those two teams in the regular season, beating Michigan twice and Penn State once. bjohnson@dispatch.com @Baileyajohnson_