Illinois Falls 78-69 To Ohio State Women As Jaloni Cambridge Scores a Career-High 41 Points
Illinois lost last night to Ohio State in Women’s basketball 78-69 in a back-and-forth game as Jaloni Cambridge scored a career-high 41 points. The No. 19 Lady Buckeyes improved to 14-2 and are 4-1 in the Big Ten Conference. Illinois fell to 13-3 overall. Illinois is 3-2 in the Big Ten Conference.
This was Illinois’ first home loss of the season. Jaloni Cambridge scored in double figures before halftime in her dominant scoring performance. This is the second game in a row where Ohio State got no bench points. Do you think the Lady Buckeyes’ lack of scoring depth will hurt them come tournament time?
Illinois Falls to Ohio State Women 78-69
This game against Illinois was all about the exploits of Jaloni Cambridge. She reached double figures in scoring before halftime on her way to a career-high 41 points. This game was a back-and-forth affair, particularly early, but the Lady Buckeyes were able to pull away because of the scoring heroics of Jaloni Cambridge.
Illinois led at the end of the first quarter. The teams were tied at halftime. Jaloni Cambridge got some help from teammate Chance Gray, who was the first in the game to reach double figures. However, Jaloni Cambridge’s 41 points were just too much for Illinois.
She scored 12 points in the third quarter. Jaloni Cambridge scored for Ohio State, and in the fourth quarter, she tied her career high with 33 points. Jaloni Cambridge became the first Ohio State women’s basketball player to score 40 points, and scored the most points since Kelsey Mitchell scored 43 against Rutgers in March of 2016.
Quarter by Quarter Scoring Summary
In the first quarter, Jaloni’s sister, Kennedy Cambridge, scored first, as she got an assist from Elsa Lemmilรค. There were seven lead changes in the first five minutes as Illinois held a 13-12 lead in this back-and-forth game. Illinois held an advantage midway through the quarter. Illinois went on an 8-0 run to take a 22-17 lead and led by a 22-19 at the end of the quarter. The slow start for the Lady Buckeyes, big things were in the offing.
In the second quarter, Gray scored the Lady Buckeyes’ first four points of the second quarter. Kylee Kitts tied the game early in the second quarter at 26 with a three-pointer. Ohio State led by a 32-31 margin midway through the quarter, but both defenses played well, and the game was tied at 36 at halftime.
In the third quarter, Illinois opened scoring in the second half before Jaloni Cambridge scored. She tied the game for the 10th and 11th times. Her second basket of the third quarter began a 6-0 Buckeyes run spanning three minutes. Jaloni Cambridge also scored the Buckeyes’ final eight points of the third quarter as Ohio State led 52-46 after the third quarter.
In the fourth quarter, the Ohio State women pulled away. The Illini actually scored first in the fourth quarter, but the Lady Buckeyes then went on a 9-0 run and led 61-48 halfway through the final stanza. That gave the Buckeyes their largest lead of the game. Illinois scored seven unanswered points, but Jaloni Cambridge put Ohio State back up by 10 points at 68-58. Illinois then scored five points, but Ohio State hit some free throws and won the game 78-69.
News and Notes
- Jaloni Cambridge scored at least 10 points in all 16 games this season and scored at least twenty points in seven games.
- This is Jaloni Cambridge’s second 30-point game of the season. She scored 33 points against Northern Kentucky on December 11. That tied her career high.
- Gray reached double figures early in the second quarter, the first in the game to reach 10 points. This was her 10th game of the season in double figures; she scored 18 points.
- Kennedy Cambridge had at least three steals for the fifteenth time this season, finishing the game with three steals to bring her season total to 66.
Parting Thoughts
There is an argument to be made that the Ohio State women are too dependent on the scoring of Jaloni Cambridge, but a star is necessary for a basketball team to do well in postseason play. The Ohio State women’s team next plays on Sunday at 4 p.m. as they take on No. 8 Maryland. This is a road game, expect the Lady Buckeyes to struggle. Though Cambridge could score 50.
