Heading into Sunday afternoon's Big Ten Tournament championship game, Ohio State had been a buzz saw, winning eight straight games. The Buckeyes made it nine in a row with ease.
Samantha Prahalis and Jantel Lavender had 23 points each and Tayler Hill added 17 as Ohio State took down second-seeded Penn State 84-70 and won the Big Ten Tournament title for a third straight season.
Mia Nickson led the way for the Lady Lions with 17 points. and four rebounds. Alex Bentley added 16 on 7-16 shooting Zhaque Gray tallied 13.
Penn State held an early lead, but the Buckeyes stormed back and took a five point lead into halftime. In the second half, it was all Ohio State. The Bucks outshot Penn State 51.5%-35.1% and outrebounded the Lady Lions 38-33. Lavender had 15 rebounds by herself.
Maggie Lucas, Penn State's freshman 3-point specialist, was held to eight points on the afternoon and had a poor 1-10 shooting day, including 0-6 from 3-point territory.
The Lady Lions now wait for their NCAA Tournament assignment. ESPN Bracketology expects the to open as a five seed against 12th-seeded James Madison back at the Bryce Jordan Center. Fourth-seeded Kentucky and 13th-seeded Princeton would matchup in the other first round game at University Park.