Ohio State women’s basketball ended the 2023-24 Big Ten season against the Michigan Wolverines. The Buckeyes won to clinch the undisputed Big Ten regular season championship. Now, two years later, No. 13 Ohio State is the underdog when No. 8 Michigan comes to Columbus.
While there is no silverware on the line, there is a lot to play for on Wednesday night. The two sides compete for a spot in the top four of the Big Ten standings and with that a double bye in next week’s Big Ten women’s basketball tournament in Indianapolis, Indiana.
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Not to mention a rivalry victory in a recent back-and-forth that has entertained fans, even if they were mostly supporters of the Scarlet and Gray.
Bouncing Back
The Maize and Blue head to Columbus in an odd position for them — after a defeat.
Michigan has the usual defeats to No. 1 UConn and No. 2 UCLA, like most teams the two sides faced this season, but before the rivalry, the Wolverines had a humbling trip to Iowa City, Iowa. On Sunday, the Hawkeyes defeated the Wolverines 62-44, the lowest point total for head coach Kim Barnes Arico’s Wolverines.
It is the side’s fifth loss this season, but the thing with Michigan is that the have not lost any games consecutively. Ohio State fans do not have to watch that matchup to see what happened to the Wolverines because the same thing happened to the Buckeyes.
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Ohio State and Michigan’s women’s basketball teams have a similar makeup. While each has a big in the paint with the Buckeyes’ center Elsa Lemmilä and Wolverine forward Ashley Sofilkanich, they are not teams that can compete against teams with traditional presence near the rim.
Michigan did only lose to 6-foot-7 center and UCLA by three points, but the Wolverines did not do it by competing inside. The Wolverines will do all they can to out hustle an opponent.
In that defeat to the Bruins, Michigan outscored UCLA, in Ann Arbor, 21-15 in the fourth quarter to make the final score look like much more of a battle. The Wolverines had a 17-13 lead after the first quarter but got outscored 41 to 28 in the second and third quarters.
Against Iowa, Michigan struggled to hold onto the ball in Carver Hawkeye Arena. The Wolverines had 24 turnovers in the defeat, which either bodes well for the Buckeyes or does not if Michigan learns its lesson and prepares for the matchup against head coach Kevin McGuff’s press.
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The offensive trio to watch is of course the sophomore starting guards Olivia Olson, Syla Swords and Mila Holloway. Barnes Arico’s freshman three last season came on strong and played without fear. Not much has changed this season. Olson is the more aggressive interior threat who scores 18.9 points and adds six rebounds per game this season.
Swords hurts teams from deep with 7.1 shots from beyond the arc per game, which will give Ohio State issues if Michigan breaks through the full court press. On Sunday, USC Trojan guard Jazzy Davidson had a career 6-for-9 day from beyond the arc against Ohio State.
Swords has similar ability but does not have the same height as Davidson.
Holloway brings the offense together with 4.6 assists per game and now creates more herself with 12.8 points per game in her second season, up three points per game.
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The guard that may impact the game the most though is Brooke Quarles-Daniels. While the senior may not wow teams on offense, it is her defense that will challenge point guard Jaloni Cambridge. Earlier this season, Michigan played Notre Dame and guard Hannah Hidalgo in Detroit, Michigan.
In 38 minutes, Hidalgo had a season low 12 points and a season high seven turnovers. Quarles-Daniels averages 2.4 steals per game, the second in the conference behind only Ohio State guard Kennedy Cambridge who is four steals away from becoming the Ohio State program leader for most steals in a season.
Olson and Swords bring size like USC’s Davidson and Kennedy Smith, which will challenge Kennedy Cambridge and fellow starting guards Ava Watson and Chance Gray. How Michigan focuses their attack may be against the guard who struggles the most.
The Rivalry
In Ann Arbor last season, the Buckeyes were down 16 points in the first half. Then Ohio State forward Cotie McMahon missed a three-point shot which prompted an “air ball” chant from the student section that lasted the entire game.
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McGuff was upset at his side to the point that he made no substitutions for the last 20 minutes of the game. He made his starting five stay out there and either continue what they started and lose or come back and fight.
Then Jaloni Cambridge scored 22 of her 29 points in the game and the Buckeyes came away with the victory, complete with a blown kiss from McMahon to the crowd at the final whistle.
That environment and result was a strong introduction for Jaloni Cambridge into the history of Ohio State versus Michigan. Now the sophomore gets her first chance to take on the Wolverines in her own gym.
“It will be very exciting just to have our fans at it and attacking them like we got attacked,” laughed Jaloni Cambridge following the Sunday victory over USC. “It’ll be a great environment, I’m just glad it’s at home this year.”
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With the current format of games in the 18-team Big Ten, this is the only time the two sides play each other, unless there is a matchup in the Big Ten Tournament. If that happens, it would be late in the tournament considering both sides are competing near the top of the field.
Even so, it is an opportunity for the young Buckeyes to take on a top-1o team, in friendly confines. A victory will put the Buckeyes into a spot to not play next week until Friday, in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals. If Ohio State loses, it will be a tough road to get into the top four for the Buckeyes.
While it is not a trophy, its result will give the roadmap to how either side can get some hardware before March Madness begins in three weeks.
Projected Lineups
Ohio State
G: Jaloni Cambridge
G: Chance Gray
G: Kennedy Cambridge
G: Ava Watson
C: Elsa Lemmilä
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Lineup Notes
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Kennedy Cambridge is three steals away from tying the Ohio State single season steals record with 115.
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Sunday was the third time this season that all five starting Buckeyes scored in double figures.
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Elsa Lemmilä’s 62 blocks on the season gives the sophomore 122 in her NCAA career, which is ninth most in program history.
Michigan
G: Mila Holloway
G: Syla Swords
G: Olivia Olson
G: Brooke Quarles-Daniels
F: Ashley Sofilkanich
Lineup Notes
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All three starting sophomores Olivia Olson, Syla Swords and Mila Holloway average more points scored in conference play than nonconference games this season.
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Guard Te’Yala Delfosse has 13 double-digit scoring games this season in 27 appearances, but only one of those came as a starter.
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Guard Brooke Quarles-Daniels is second in the Big Ten with 2.4 steals per game.
Prediction
This game could look a lot like the USC matchup. Both the Buckeyes and Wolverines will push the pace and it will be a game of who breaks first. Michigan will come out motivated following the tough loss in Iowa City but Ohio State will make it a close game.
The Maize and Blue will not be able to push the pace against the Scarlet and Gray, who thrive in quick games. It will go down to the wire with Jaloni Cambridge making key shots to put the game away. Lemmilä will also score at least 15 points as the Buckeyes try to take advantage of Michigan’s smaller inside game.
LGHL Score Prediction: 83-80 Ohio State
How to Watch
Date: Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2026
Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
Where: Schottenstein Center, Columbus, Ohio
Stream: Peacock
