Only two teams have won both games of their West Coast trip this season in the Big Ten, so far this season; first it was the Michigan State Spartans, and now the Ohio State women have done it as well. The Buckeyes accomplished the feat without a dominant scoring night from point guard Jaloni Cambridge, redshirt freshman Kylee Kitts returned, and center Elsa Lemmilä’s confidence grew in the 80-64 nearly complete performance for the Scarlet and Gray.
Here is more on the Sunday afternoon Ohio State victory.
Kennedy Cambridge’s full performance
The Oregon Ducks had a clear focus on defense against the Buckeyes, and it was trying all they could to neutralize sophomore point guard Jaloni Cambridge. All season, and especially since the start of 2026, Jaloni Cambridge sliced through defenses when she found holes in zones and made opponents try to keep up in one-on-one coverage.
Oregon was prepared. When Jaloni Cambridge had the ball, it seemed like all eyes on defense had one looking at the sophomore.
Thanks to only one foul for Jaloni Cambridge, the Buckeyes’ offensive leader played all but one minute in the first half and only took four shots, and made only two. There was little space given by the Ducks, and even those shots looked forced for Jaloni Cambridge.
Instead, it was Kennedy Cambridge who had a standout performance on offense — especially from beyond the arc. Kennedy Cambridge went 5-for-7 from three-point range, a career high for the guard. It was part of a 60% shooting performance with 20 points, a game where Oregon did not respect the redshirt junior’s offensive ability.
“I mean, I can’t even really remember the last game, but, you know, I just go out there and have fun, and they were just getting me the ball,” Kennedy Cambridge said. “Then they [Oregon] were real disrespectful. I done hit two. Step up!”
Kennedy Cambridge was disrespectful in another way, on defense, when the guard would not let the Ducks take any possession down the court easily. Ohio State, in general, disrupted the flow of Oregon and forced 23 turnovers and 14 steals. Over half of those steals came from Kennedy Cambridge, who had eight on the day.
It is the fifth game of the season where the guard had at least five steals, and it is a new Big Ten record for Kennedy Cambridge. The eight steals brought the guard’s average to 4.2 steals per game this season, the best in the Big Ten and second behind only Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo nationally.
“Kennedy [Cambridge] was outstanding. I mean, she was really all over the floor, and she got her hand on the basketballs everywhere in the back court, the front court, and so her defense was incredible, with eight steals, and then to knock down five threes was also just terrific,” head coach Kevin McGuff told reporters. “So, just really happy for her. She’s been working really hard, and she had a great game today.”
Elsa Lemmilä’s soaring confidence
Now, a quieter performance for Jaloni Cambridge meant 19 points, which most players in the NCAA would not hate to score in a game. Instead of the sophomore’s runs to the basket, making teams spin, it was interior presence and strength from fellow sophomore center Elsa Lemmilä.
The Finnish big led all players on the court with 23 points, and scored them with high efficiency. Lemmilä went 10-for-12, which was also the most efficient scoring numbers for anyone in the game. Basically, when Lemmilä had the ball and went to the basket, Oregon had no answer.
It has been years since Ohio State had a string of performances like Lemmilä, inside the paint, over the last few games. Since the loss to Iowa on Jan. 25, 2026, Lemmilä averaged 17.5 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 3.8 blocks across four games. Across this West Coast trip for the Buckeyes, Lemmilä had 36 points, 18 rebound,s and 7 blocks combined in the two Ohio State victories.
“I felt great,” Lemmilä told reporters. “I just really want to go home So kind of thought that just get the win over with and get to go home.”
That is one way to put the performances from the 6-foot-6 center. Motivations aside, the center did not just excel offensively. Like Kennedy Cambridge, Lemmilä played to her defensive strengths and made life difficult for the Ducks, especially inside.
Take forward Ehis Etute, for example. Oregon’s interior threat averaged 21 points and 9.7 rebounds in the three games leading into the Sunday matchup. Etute had a good day on the offensive boards with five, which showed the hustle play that she brings to the Ducks, despite standing six inches taller than Lemmilä. However, those rebounds did not turn into much offense for Etute. Lemmilä held the Oregon big to eight points on 2-for-7 shooting. That 28.6% efficiency is the lowest this season for Etute in Big Ten play.
“Elsa [Lemmilä] was really good today. Her presence was crucial against a really good Oregon team, and I think just part of us getting better as a team has been her evolution,” McGuff told reporters. “We saw where she was to start the year and where she is now. She’s light-years ahead of that, and just a real credit to her work ethic. And so just really happy for her and happy the impact she’s having on the team right now.”
Kylee Kitts’ return
For the last couple of weeks, most of the lessons about Ohio State games featured an update on the status of redshirt freshman forward Kylee Kitts. The Buckeye forward returned on Sunday, albeit with fewer minutes and less of an impact on the game.
Kitts played eight minutes, where she had a rebound and an assist. Overall, it looked like a game for Kitts where she did not see competitive basketball for almost three weeks, because that is what happened. Kitts also came into a game that did not lack any speed between the two sides. Kitts appeared uncomfortable and not close to game speed.
“I think she [Kitts] had some jitters today, but it was good to have her out there,” McGuff said. “Now, hopefully she can continue to just practice a little bit more than she has, and then get her into games and get more comfortable. And this is a big week for her, you know, now we don’t play till next Sunday, so hopefully she can have a great week and even be more ready next weekend.”
When Kitts’ comfort level rises, and the forward gets back to the form she had before the injury, McGuff has a tough decision to make between Kitts and guard Ava Watson for minutes. The two bring different strengths to games, and Kitts is likely the returning starter once she is closer to 100%, but Watson provided a spark for the Buckeyes in the last six games, especially on defense.
Watson averaged 2.7 steals per game over the six starts and provided strong one-on-one defense against some of the strongest guards in the conference.
