Thierry scores 16 as balanced Ohio State beats Montana State 71-51 in women’s NCAA Tournament

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Taylor Thierry had 16 points, and No. 4 seed Ohio State used a balanced attack to beat Montana State 71-51 on Friday in the first round of the women’s NCAA Tournament.

Ohio State shot 50.9% from the field, and each of its starters scored in double figures. Cotie McMahon and Chance Gray each had 15 points, and Jaloni Cambridge finished with 12. Ajae Petty had 11 points and seven rebounds.

Next up for the Buckeyes (26-6) is the winner of Tennessee versus South Florida.

Esmeralda Morales scored 20 points and Natalie Picton had 12 for No. 13 seed Montana State (30-4), the champions of the Big Sky.

Gray made three straight 3s to open the second half and increase Ohio State’s lead to 41-27 early in the third quarter.

Takeaways

Montana State: The Bobcats set a school record for wins this year for Tricia Binford, who wrapped her 20th season as the team’s coach.

Ohio State: The Buckeyes are hosting NCAA opening weekend action for the third time in four years. They won their tournament opener for the eighth consecutive time dating to a first-round loss in 2012.

Key moment

Bothered by several close calls that went against his team, Ohio State coach Kevin McGuff received a technical foul with 5:23 left in the first half. Picton hit the two technical free throws and then converted a layup for a 27-23 lead.

But Ohio State responded with nine straight points to end the half. McMahon had five of those points as OSU grabbed a 32-27 lead at the break. It was part of a larger 32-3 run that spanned 12 minutes of the second and third quarters.

Key stats

Ohio State enjoyed a 44-14 advantage in scoring in the paint and a 21-2 margin in fast-break scoring. Montana State committed 26 turnovers.