Ohio State women’s basketball is hosting NCAA Tournament games for the second straight year.
The Buckeyes earned the opportunity to host first- and second-round games by landing a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament, putting Ohio State firmly among the top 16 teams in the bracket.
The reaction from the Buckeyes upon learning they will be a No. 2 seed in the NCAA womens basketball tournament: pic.twitter.com/Mm3BGZG0Zc
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Ohio State will host No. 15 seed Maine in the first round on Friday at noon at Value City Arena. The game will be televised on ESPN.
“I'm really happy to be playing at home,” Ohio State women’s basketball coach Kevin McGuff said Sunday night. “I mean, that would always be the case, especially this year, where we've drawn so well. So hopefully, our fans will come out and support that first game like they have all season. I think that could be really important for us.”
If the Buckeyes advance, they will host another game between either No. 7 Duke or No. 10 Richmond in the second round on Sunday or Monday – setting up a possible matchup between Celeste Taylor, who transferred from Duke to Ohio State last offseason, and her former team.
“It’s obviously pretty cool to (potentially) go against a school I graduated from, I played at for two years, but obviously, we still have to get past the first round, and so do they,” Taylor said. “So I'm just really focused on beating Maine and just competing in that game.”
Should Ohio State advance to the Sweet 16, it will travel to Portland, Oregon, where the Buckeyes could face No. 3 seed UConn in the Sweet 16 – who the Buckeyes beat in last year’s NCAA Tournament – for the second year in a row. Other potential Sweet 16 opponents include No. 6 Syracuse, No. 11 Auburn/Arizona and No. 14 Jackson State.
USC is the No. 1 seed in the Portland 3 region, setting up a potential rematch of Ohio State’s season opener, which the Buckeyes lost 83-74. Virginia Tech, who beat Ohio State in the Elite Eight last year, is the No. 4 seed in the region, which also includes Baylor as the No. 5 seed, Kansas as the No. 8 seed and Michigan as the No. 9 seed.
THE WOMEN'S BRACKET IS LIVE!
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Fill yours out right now: https://t.co/zJ9SkCWgGs pic.twitter.com/rVe3lKtbHq
The Buckeyes earned a No. 2 seed thanks to their 25-5 record this season, including a 16-2 record in conference play, with which the Buckeyes won the regular-season Big Ten championship. Ohio State was in position to be a No. 1 seed until it lost its last two games – its regular-season finale against Iowa and a Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal against Maryland – but the Buckeyes’ overall body of work was enough to keep them in the top two seedlines.
It’s the first time since 2010 that Ohio State has been a top-two seed in the NCAA Tournament. The Buckeyes were upset in the second round by No. 7 seed Mississippi State as a No. 2 seed that year.
After making the Elite Eight as a No. 3 seed last year, Ohio State is chasing its first Final Four appearance since 1993. If the Buckeyes can make it that far, they’ll have the opportunity to play as many four games in their home state, as this year’s Women’s Final Four is being played at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland.
