Springfield grad fills it up in season-opening loss at Ohio State

Perdue, a 5-foot-7 fifth-year senior who was the Horizon League Newcomer of the Year last season, made nine of 20 shots from the floor, including four of 11 from 3-point range. She also went 7-for-8 from the free-throw line in 36 minutes.

New Springfield girls basketball coach Brooks Russell shared a picture on social media from the game and wrote, “The Springfield Lady Wildcats had a great night at Ohio State” supporting Perdue.

The game also kicked off the junior season of Centerville grad Cotie McMahon, a third-year starter who scored 17 points and grabbed four rebounds for the Buckeyes.

She also made four of five 3-pointers.

“It was very clear what I needed to work on as far as my game during the offseason,” McMahon said. “I worked on just getting shots up, making sure that I build a routine for myself, as far as getting in the gym before practice, getting shots up. Just staying consistent with getting shots up has helped me build a routine, not only in my day-to-day, but also just in my shot in general so that it’s comfortable for me to get the shot off.”

Freshman Jaloni Cambridge, a 5-7 guard from Nashville who was the No. 2 national recruit in the class of 2024, scored 31 points in her collegiate debut for the Buckeyes.

“She obviously displayed how talented she is, but probably more importantly, the poise that she plays with and the maturity she has,” Ohio State head coach Kevin McGuff said. “To see her have the game that she has from the points perspective, but as importantly make everybody around her better play and play both ends of the floor — really impressive debut for her. The thing I love about it is she just wants to be here. She wants to play. She likes her teammates, and she wants to win.”

Perdue averaged 17.3 points, 1.6 assists and 1.1 steals last season, her first at CSU after transferring from Glenville State. She started her career at Toledo and is back at CSU this season taking advantage of the extra season of eligibility granted to players who played through the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020-21.

The 6-foot McMahon is one of 20 players on the preseason watch list for the Cheryl Miller Award, which goes to the nation’s best small forward.

She was a finalist for that honor last season and earned honorable mention All-America recognition after leading the team with 6.3 rebounds per game and finishing second in scoring (14.4 points per game).