Sifting through the new standard for Ohio State blowouts

In February of 1977, Ohio State women’s basketball defeated the Akron Zips in a 105-35 rout. It was another four years before the NCAA acknowledged the existence of women’s basketball and nearly 28 years until the Buckeyes matched that program high. The second time came against another in-state side, the Ohio Bobcats, in a 107-37 victory.

Over the years, Ohio State played its fair share of mid-major and Division II NCAA sides, but a 70-point win was excessive to expect, even for the most inept opposition.

On Sunday, the Buckeyes faced the Niagara Purple Eagles from the Mid-Atlantic Athletic Conference. Not only did Ohio State break that margin of victory record, but it also made the old mark laughable.

After Ohio State’s 130-32 win over Niagara, there was not raucous excitement at the 98-point accomplishment. By the final buzzer, many fans had already left the Schottenstein Center. A lot of the families still in the arena were likely only there to try and get pictures with Brutus Buckeye and his group of mascot friends who attended to celebrate the nut’s 60th birthday.

“Obviously, it was fairly lopsided quickly,” head coach Kevin McGuff told reporters. “But I thought that we handled it pretty well from the standpoint we continued to play hard, and a lot of times your effort kind of wanes.”

There was no waning on Sunday. Niagara implemented its own style of pressure defense, and the Buckeyes had no issues breaking through it. What that did was create abundant fastbreak opportunities for Ohio State. McGuff’s side scored 55 points on the break. If only Ohio State’s fastbreak points counted, the game would still end in a double-digit margin of victory.

At first glance, the final score could elicit cries of unsportsmanlike behavior, but McGuff only used the starting five for an average of 13.6 minutes. Point guard Jaloni Cambridge played the most from that group with 15 minutes on the court.

Guard Dasha Biriuk led scorers with 25 points on 8-of-11 shooting, and missed only one of six attempted shots from beyond the arc. It was a return of sorts for Biriuk after the freshman from Ukraine could not join the team in the Bahamas due to travel issues. Fellow freshman guard Bryn Martin was right behind Biriuk with 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting.

Sophomore guard Ava Watson was three steals shy of a triple-double in her 27 minutes of game action. Redshirt freshman Seini Henry, who averaged 6.5 minutes in four previous appearances, played 24 minutes in the blowout victory.

The only way the Buckeyes could have lowered Niagara’s deficit is if they stood around on defense, let the shot clock expire on offense, or start shooting into the Purple Eagles’ basket.

“Sometimes it’s hard because, as a coach, you always want them to play to our standards, regardless of the score, which is sometimes easier said than done,” said McGuff.

Ohio State not only set a new standard for blowout victories, but it also had its most assists (37) and made field goals (52) in a game.

Niagara was a critical part of the problem. Despite the mounting deficit and clear proof that its defensive plan was not working, the Purple Eagles kept to it. Defensively, Niagara continued doing the same thing and hoping for different results.

Throughout the second half, Niagara players looked dejected. To the Purple Eagles’ credit, they continued to play, even when the team was down by triple digits in the fourth quarter. The facial expressions on the players showed that there was no positive outcome for the athletes. Both teams had to go through the motions to make it to the final buzzer.

At a certain point in a game like Sunday’s, it’s easy to ask the point of scheduling it. For Niagara, there’s the financial opportunity of playing a power conference team with a pocketbook the size of Ohio State. According to the game contract, requested by Land-Grant Holy Land, the Purple Eagles received $30,000. That is the price to demoralize a basketball team.

For the Buckeyes, a young team with five returners who made it onto the court in the 24-25 season, the victory was more reps against people they do not see every day at practice.

“The goal for every game is to play the same, no matter who we play, no matter who we’re up against, is to go out there, get better, learn more about each other, find the flow within each other,” guard Kennedy Cambridge told reporters.

Flow and connection were strong for Ohio State, even if the oddly placed game did not challenge the team and expose weaknesses.

Sunday’s game followed a ranked game against the then No. 21-ranked West Virginia Mountaineers and was the final tuneup before the Buckeyes play their first conference game on Dec. 7 against the Northwestern Wildcats. Over the last few seasons, Northwestern regressed from its previous form near the top of the Big Ten and could be a one-sided game for the Buckeyes, but it still has implications in the conference.

Only 15 teams make the Big Ten Tournament, and Ohio State’s results vary this season against ranked sides, which the Big Ten has seven. Against the No. 1 UConn Huskies, the Buckeyes lost by 32 points. Against the Mountaineers, it was a late seven-point comeback.

The likelihood of a game this season eclipsing the 98-point win on Sunday is minimal, but it did show that no matter who Ohio State faces, it will not play down.

“It’s easy to be complacent, and I think that our team did a pretty good job of doing what we do,” said Kennedy Cambridge.