We’ve been following Ohio State Women’s Basketball’s bubble status for a while now, mostly because it’s been so volatile.
The Buckeyes started the season with a mix of bad losses and good wins, including an upset of then-No. 2 Louisville. They continued in this manner all year–winning enough to stay in the bracket, but losing some head-scratchers.
When we last checked on Ohio State’s bubble status, we assumed that the Buckeyes needed to go 4-2 in its final six games to feel safe, and 3-3 at the very least.
Well, two games later, and Ohio State is definitely on the right side of the bubble. Not only did the Buckeyes drop 99 points in a win over Minnesota on Thursday, but they went to Bloomington and upset No. 20 Indiana on the road on Sunday.
The Buckeyes, led by Madison Greene’s 22 points, came back from a double-digit fourth-quarter deficit to pull off the upset. Ohio State exploded for 31 points in the final 7:45 of the fourth quarter, including 14 by Greene. The Buckeyes took the lead with a 25-8 run and never relinquished it. Jacy Sheldon, Dorka Juhasz, and Janai Crooms also scored double digits for the Buckeyes.
The Buckeyes have now won five straight and are up to No. 22 in the RPI (women’s basketball doesn’t use the NET rankings). Ohio State also has two Top 20 RPI wins, with good SOS numbers. It’s a little early to call Ohio State safe for the bracket–the Buckeyes should still avoid losses to Nebraska and maybe Purdue, but the path to the bracket just got much easier. A win over Rutgers or Northwestern would all but cement it.
