18 hours Ago By Bill Bender
Kevin McGuff is in his 11th season as the coach for the Ohio State women's basketball team. McGuff noticed the uptick in interest in the sport in Central Ohio the last few seasons. That boomed last season with a memorable 100-92 victory against Caitlin Clark-led Iowa on Jan.
21, 2024 – but that was not the peak. The Buckeyes are one of the Big Ten schools building off the momentum of the increased interest in the sport in 2024-25. "When I first got here, I could walk around here and nobody knew who I was," McGuff told Sporting News.
"Now, I have people asking me about the team and our recruits and stuff like that. It's really cool to see our players get that type of recognition. It's reflective of some of the success we've had, but also the growth of women's basketball in general.
"I think the sport in general has had a tremendous amount of growth, but (Clark) certainly was at the center of that over the last four years," he said. "We specifically really benefitted. We had some really great, competitive games that brought a lot of fans to the arena and a lot of eyes to the TV sets.
" Life after Clark in the Big Ten might be more exciting in the new 18-team conference. A total of seven Big Ten teams are ranked in the latest AP Women's Basketball Top 25, including No. 1 UCLA (15-0) and No.
4 USC (14-1) – led by JuJu Watkins. No. 8 Maryland (14-0) also is ranked ahead of No.
9 Ohio State (14-0), which puts its unbeaten record on the line Wednesday at No. 25 Michigan (10-4) on Wednesday. No.
20 Michigan State (12-2) and No. 23 Iowa (12-3) also are ranked heading into the January conference schedule grinder. "I thought we had the best conference in the country last year, and we added four West Coast teams," McGuff said.
"Oregon has historically has been good, Washington is in the process of building something special and you have two top-five teams in LA, so it's going to be a juggernaut of a conference season this year." The Buckeyes beat UConn to reach the Elite Eight in 2023 and made the second round of the NCAA tournament last season with a veteran roster led by Sporting News second-team All-American Jacy Sheldon. McGuff this year's team had seven newcomers – including four transfers – so they are focused on playing together at this point in the season.
"We're at our best when we share the ball," he said. "This year, I think we have more talent on this year's team but with seven newcomers into the program, we're going to have to really stay focused on getting better each week to reach our potential." Five Ohio State players are averaging double-figures, led by forward Cotie McMahon, who averages 17.
8 points per game. McMahon missed four games with a lower leg injury, but she has settled back in and developed into that leadership role left by Sheldon. "The biggest adjustment for her this year is we're really expecting more out of her from a leadership standpoint," McGuff said.
"We relied so much on Jacy Sheldon the last couple years, and she was incredible. Cotie has a really big strong voice, and we want to have her use that to lead this team." Oregon transfer Chance Gray averages 16.
0 ppg., and she is shooting 40.9% from 3-point range.
Jaloni Cambridge (13.4 ppg.), Ajae Petty (11.
4 ppg.) and Taylor Thierry (10.4) round out a loaded starting five, and freshman Ava Watson (7.
6 ppg.) and senior Madison Greene (4.9 ppg.
) are part of a rotation with 10 players that average 14 minutes or more. This is a deep Ohio State team. "With so many new people in our program, we have not reached anywhere near where we could be, but we have to stay focused on getting better," McGuff said.
"Don't give a day away. Don't give a week away. .
.. If we do that, we could end up in a good place.
" McGuff said the team is preparing for the different Big Ten schedule with a sports science-based approach for improving sleep habits with the increased travel. Ohio State won at Stanford 84-59 on Dec. 20.
The Buckeyes have the typical road schedule – with the exception of a four-day trip to Los Angeles that features matchups against UCLA (Feb. 5) and USC (Feb. 8) on the road.
McGuff said he talks to Ohio State football coach Ryan Day on occasion, but the West Coast travel was not part of the conversation. In the end, you have to go out and play. "Each night you are playing a really well-prepared team," McGuff said.
"Prepare for each game and grind through the season." This team is one to watch in the Big Ten, which is trying to break a national championship drought that extends back to March 28, 1999, when Purdue beat Duke 62-45 in the national championship game. The Buckeyes have not reached the Women's Final Four since 1993.
The Buckeyes lost to Sheryl Swoopes-led Texas Tech 84-82 that season. Purdue (2001), Michigan State (2005) and Iowa (2023-24) were national runner-ups. Even with the unbeaten season to date and the increased notoriety, McGuff is keeping this team humble.
"We were having a little bit of an off moment in practice, and I said, 'Hey guys, you're going to walk around town and everybody is going to tell you how great you are because we're undefeated,'" McGuff said. "Well, we're not. We have a long way to go to be who we are capable of being.
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