March Madness: 7 things to know about Ohio State’s 2nd round NCAA Tournament matchup

Here are seven things to know about the NCAA Tournament second round game set to tip off at 4 p.m. tonight at Value City Arena in Columbus:

1. The Buckeyes beat James Madison in the first round.

Ohio State rallied from a disastrous first quarter to beat the Dukes 80-66 on Saturday.

“We looked rusty from being off for a couple weeks, so hopefully this allows us to settle this and we’ll get off to a better start on Monday,” Ohio State head coach Kevin McGuff said after the game.

The Buckeyes trailed by as many as 16 early, but Cotie McMahon spear-headed a comeback that saw Ohio State outscore the visitors 46-29 in the second half.

McMahon, a freshman from Centerville, led Ohio State with 18 points while Jacy Sheldon tallied 17, Taylor Thierry had 15 and Taylor Mikesell tossed in 14.

“If you look at where (McMahon) was, and you guys wouldn’t have seen her play last year (when) she came at Christmas, but from where she was the first day to where she is today, she made a tremendous amount of progress,” McGuff said. “It’s because she practices really hard and she competes at a high level. She’s really coachable.

“You can see she’s got God-given talents. I think a lot of people have that, but most people don’t have the motor she has or the competitive character that she has, and that’s why I think we are really just starting to scratch the surface of the player who she is going to be.”

Sheldon, a 2022 All-Big Ten first-teamer, also had nine assists in only her second start since suffering a leg injury in November.

2. North Carolina topped St. John’s 61-59 in the first round.

Deja Kelly’s three-point play with two seconds left broke a 58-all tie, but the Tar Heels had to survive Danielle Peterson missing two of three free throws before they could celebrate.

Kelly led UNC with 18 points while Kennedy Todd-Williams had 14 and Alyssa Ustby added 13.

Kelly and Ustby are both All-ACC first-teamers while Todd-Williams made the second team.

3. The winner will play No. 2 seed UConn or No. 7 Baylor in Seattle on Saturday.

Those teams play in Storrs at 9 tonight.

The Huskies (30-5) are aiming for a 29th consecutive Sweet 16 while the Bears (20-12) are hoping for their 16th overall.

The Final Four is in Dallas on March 31.

4. Ohio State previously played North Carolina in the second round of the tournament eight years ago.

The upstart Buckeyes were in the tournament for the first time under McGuff after a two-year absence and nearly upset the No. 4 seed Tar Heels in Chapel Hill but came up short 86-84 in 2018.

That season the Buckeyes also beat James Madison in the first round.

Ohio State is 4-5 overall against North Carolina including a 2018 win the Buckeyes vacated because of NCAA violations.

5. The Buckeyes are 3-2 in the second round under McGuff.

Ohio State advanced out of Columbus in 2016 with a second round win over No. 6 seed West Virginia, upset No. 4 Kentucky at UK in 2017 and knocked off No. 3 LSU at LSU last season.

6. Last time Ohio State hosted a second-round game did not go so well.

The Buckeyes have played at least one NCAA Tournament game in Columbus 13 times as the tournament format has changed multiple times over the years.

They are 12-1 when opening the tournament in Columbus with 12 straight wins but just 3-2 when playing their second game in their home city.

The latter mark includes a stinging 95-78 loss to No. 11 seed Central Michigan five years ago at St. John Arena. That was all-time leading scorer Kelsey Mitchell’s last game as a Buckeye.

Ohio State also lost a second round home game at SJA to Boston College in 2004, though the Golden Eagles were the No. 3 seed and Ohio State was No. 6.

7. Two Big Ten teams are already in the Sweet 16.

Iowa and Maryland advanced with wins yesterday while Indiana, a No. 1 seed, plays host to Miami (Fla.) tonight at 9.

Michigan lost in the second round to LSU yesterday while Illinois and Purdue both lost in the First Four earlier.