Ohio State Women's Basketball Season Preview 2024-25: Biggest games, key players to watch and more

Ohio State begins its 2024-25 women's basketball season, looking to erase the stigma of its late-season collapse that led to the Buckeyes dropping out of the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

With the shadow of the ill-fated tournament campaign out of the picture, Ohio State seeks to defend the Big 10 regular season title amidst the challenges from perennial conference powers like Iowa, Indiana, Nebraska and Michigan State, as well as new members in USC and UCLA.

The Buckeyes won't have last season's top scorer Jacy Sheldon and key contributor Celeste Taylor for this year's campaign, prompting coach Kevin McGuff to look for players who would fill the void. The months-long offseason persistence paid off for McGuff, securing the commitments of Oregon transfer Chance Gray and the No. 2-ranked high school prospect Jaloni Cambridge.

Here's an in-depth look into Ohio State's upcoming college basketball campaign from its biggest games to the key players to watch out for this season.

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Ohio State's biggest games of 2024-25 season

Ohio State will have a challenging Big 10 conference schedule this season, beginning with their Dec. 8 home game against Illinois. Aside from this, the Buckeyes play host to Northwestern (Jan. 5), Oregon (Jan. 12), Washington (Feb. 2), Minnesota (Feb. 13), Iowa (Feb. 17), Purdue (Feb. 23) and Michigan State (Feb. 26).

Ohio State will visit Rutgers on Dec. 29, Michigan (Jan. 8), Wisconsin (Jan. 16), Penn State (Jan. 19), Nebraska (Jan. 26), UCLA (Feb. 5), USC (Feb. 8) and Indiana (Feb. 20). The Buckeyes' lone home and away series will pit them against Maryland on Jan. 23 and March 2.

Ohio State has yet to finalize its full non-conference schedule. Only the Buckeyes' scheduled game against ACC foe Stanford was listed on its team website. They'll face each other on Dec. 20 for the Invisalign Bay Area Women's Classic.

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Top Ohio State players to watch out for in 2024-25 season

#1. Cotie McMahon

Cotie McMahon was Ohio State's second-leading scorer last season, averaging 14.4 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.1 steals per game.

With Jacy Sheldon gone, all eyes are on the 6-foot incoming junior, who is expected to take the leadership role in this young but talented roster.

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#2. Chance Gray

Oregon transfer Chance Gray is coming off an excellent 2023-24 campaign where she tallied 13.9 ppg, 2.9 rpg and 3.0 apg.

Although her field goal percentage is more to be desired at 34.7%, Gray's accuracy from the free throw line at 81.1% and her outside shooting (1.9 3-point shots made per game) will be important for Ohio State's campaign this coming season.

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#3. Jaloni Cambridge

Ranked as the second-best high school prospect in the Class of 2024 per ESPN.com, Jaloni Cambridge will have a chip on her shoulder as she tries to help Ohio State bounce back from a disastrous 2023-24 campaign.

The 5-foot-7 Montverde Academy product was named Florida Girls Basketball Gatorade Player of the Year and Florida MaxPreps Player of the Year after leading the Eagles to their third straight national title. Cambridge tallied 21.8 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 9.4 apg and 3.6 spg in her final year.

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Predictions for Ohio State's 2024-25 season

Ohio State will be one of the top teams in the Big 10 Conference despite the addition of Pac-12 powers USC and UCLA this season. Buckeyes won't miss Jacy Sheldon due to their offseason pickups Jaloni Cambridge and Chance Gray, and the returning Cotie McMahon.

With the abundance of talent he has on the table, Ohio State coach Kevin McGuff needs to make the right decisions to keep the Buckeyes' attack rolling until the final stages of the NCAA Tournament. They're expected to win more than 30 games and are a strong favorite to secure a Final Four slot in the 2025 NCAA Tournament if McGuff presses the right buttons this time.

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Will Ohio State make the Final Four of the 2025 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.