The Buckeyes had little trouble earning their eighth consecutive victory, Sunday afternoon. Ohio State downed conference foe Rutgers 90-78 to remain undefeated in the Big Ten.
| Teams | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio State | 20 | 23 | 30 | 15 | 90 |
| Rutgers | 10 | 24 | 20 | 24 | 78 |
Kelsey Mitchell again led the way for the Buckeyes. The nation's second leading scorer put up a game-high 31 points, shooting 10-17 from the field. Mitchell also dished out six assists and pulled down five rebounds.
The other member of the high-powered Ohio State scoring duo, Ameryst Alston, had a nice outing as well. The senior scored 21 points and tallied a game-high five steals aiding the uptempo Buckeyes to 24 points off Rutgers turnovers.
In the paint, Alexa Hart led the way with 17 points and eight boards, joined by Shayla Cooper and Mikayla Waterman who combined for 11 points and 11 rebounds.
What started out as a question mark is now turning into a strength for the Buckeyes. At the beginning of the season, Cooper was the only consistent force in the paint. Today, Hart and Waterman are legitimate threats down low scoring points, playing stellar defense and pulling down vital boards. For the second straight game the Buckeyes won the battle on the boards, out-rebounding the Scarlet Knights 40-36.
Next up, the No. 5 Buckeyes have a ranked showdown against No. 16 Northwestern. Ohio State is 3-3 on the season against ranked opponents with the only three losses coming against the nation's top-three teams.
