Duke Rallies From 16-Point Deficit To Beat Ohio State 75-63 Thanks To Richardson

(CTN News) – Duke defeated Ohio State 75-63 on Sunday after falling behind 16 points in the first half. Duke became the first team to make the Sweet 16 since 1982.

Duke led 59-57 with 5:21 left after Richardson hit a 3-pointer from the wing. This sparked a 13-2 run by the Blue Devils that ended the game. The Blue Devils (22-11) will play next weekend against the winner of Syracuse vs UConn in Portland, Oregon.

Richardson, who averaged 11.9 points per game during the season, said, “We’re super proud of how the team did today.” Despite being 16 points down, we weren’t intimidated by it. The two of us stayed together and climbed back together.”

In the tournament, Duke was the only lower-seeded team to win. It was 31-1 for the best seed in the first round. The Buckeyes (26-6) were led by Cotie McMahon’s 27 points. They were mostly in the paint. In the game, Ohio State attempted just nine 3-pointers and only made one with 12.2 seconds left.

After transferring from Duke before the season, Celeste Taylor scored just six points before fouling out.

Ohio State coach Kevin McGuff said the team played better. It was a good win. We had a bad day.” During Ohio State’s early lead, the Buckeyes’ pressing defense caused problems for Duke. But the Blue Devils rallied. At halftime, the Buckeyes’ lead had shrunk to 36-32.

Kara Lawson, Duke coach, said the players never flinched. The huddles were tense. It felt like we were being run out of the gym at the beginning of the game, but they kept believing. Our way back was possession by possession.”

No. 15 seed Maine was routed 80-57 by Ohio State in Friday’s first round. Richmond was no match for Duke’s second-half rally.

HOW DID IT TURN OUT?

It was just a matter of the Buckeyes falling apart, McGuff said.

In the first quarter, we were making good shots and rebounding with energy and discipline. Our offense really got out of sync as the game wore on, and Duke played really good defense, so they had a say in it. We fell apart.”

ADJUSTMENTS TO BE MADE

It was a shock when her team came out against Ohio State’s aggressive press, Lawson said.

“It was a bit jarring at first,” she said. Having gotten our bearings, our rhythm, and found some scoring success, I thought we played with great poise and confidence and got to the spots we needed. Hopefully, the early barrage from (Ohio State) wouldn’t push us too far down where we wouldn’t be able to recover.”

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