Ohio State women routed by UConn, Sarah Strong: Takeaways

No. 17 Ohio State women's basketball (3-1) lost to No. 4 UConn for the second-straight year, falling 87-55 at the Schottenstein Center on Nov. 12.Junior guard Jaloni Cambridge led Ohio State with 21 points, though she still had her worst shooting night since she was a freshman, going 6 for 23 from the field (26.1%) and 8 for 11 (72.7%) from the free-throw line. The last time Cambridge missed over three-quarters of her shots was against Rutgers in 2024.Ohio State collectively shot 19 for 55 (34.5%) from the field and 12 for 19 (63.2%) from the free-throw line.Ohio State lost 100-68 on the road last year against the Huskies.Here are the game's key moments and takeaways:Ohio State falls apart in 3rd quarterUConn forward Sarah Strong made as many 3-point baskets (5) in the third quarter as Ohio State entire team made shots.The Buckeyes were down by three points going into the second half. UConn came out of the break with a basket before Cambridge made a shot from behind the arc, but after that, OSU made just one more shot from the floor for over 7 minutes. Cambridge was Ohio State's leading scorer for the quarter, logging just 4 points.Ohio State also committed five third-quarter turnovers, which UConn turned into 9 points.UConn's Sarah Strong proves to be the best player on the courtStrong, the reigning Naismith Player of the Year, spent the entire second quarter on the bench with two fouls, where she sat with five points and three assists.UConn clearly missed Strong's 6-foot-2 presence. The Huskies were limited to 11 points off three assists. and they recorded five turnovers. The Buckeyes tallied 4 points off turnovers and 5 second-chance points in the second quarter, in which they outscored the Huskies 13-11 and outrebounded them 14-11.Strong played all but 2 minutes the rest of the game, finishing with 25 points, nine rebounds and five assists. Her 3-point basket with 21 seconds remaining was the Huskies final dagger of the third quarter, extending the lead at that point to 65-46.Ohio State claws back from early 13-point deficit to stay in gameThe Huskies quickly sliced through the Buckeyes' defense and pulled ahead 12-2. UConn shot 50% from the field (4-for-8) across the opening 6:47, while Ohio State attempted just four shots and recorded five turnovers.But seven UConn turnovers, in addition to four fouls, throughout the rest of the first quarter gave Ohio State an opening.The Buckeyes' 11-4 run, led by guards Jaloni and Kennedy Cambridge, in the final 2:32 of the first quarter put Ohio State behind by just 5 points, 27-22.bmackay@dispatch.com@brimackay15This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State women routed by UConn, Sarah Strong: Takeaways