Ohio State Buckeyes at Maryland Terrapins

Maryland escapes Ohio State to win Big Ten tournament title

"Don't miss," she said.

She made her free throws. A desperation heave by Ohio State hit the rim, and just like that, the celebration started.

Brown scored 19 points, and Maryland beat the Buckeyes 77-74 Sunday night to capture the Big Ten tournament title and cap a perfect run through the conference.

The Terrapins (30-2) will enter the NCAA Tournament with 24 straight wins and their eyes locked on the biggest prize of all after reaching the Final Four last season.

"We're happy, we're going to ride it out for a day or two, then lock back in," Shatori Walker-Kimbrough said. "We're not done yet. Two goals down, we still got one more to go."

But they sure got all they could handle in this one, hanging on after Ohio State (23-10) cut a 15-point lead to one.

Maryland was leading by four when Cait Craft raced back on defense to strip Walker-Kimbrough as she went for a layup following a turnover by Ohio State's Kelsey Mitchell. Craft then nailed a 3 with a minute left to make it 75-74, but the Terrapins hung on.

Mitchell, who had 31 points, got called for traveling with 7 seconds left, and Brown hit two free throws to make it a three-point game.

"I didn't want to let my team down so I locked in and knocked those two free throws down," Brown said.

Mitchell caught the inbounds and raced up the right side, but her heave from just inside the half-court line hit the back of the rim, preserving the win for Maryland and setting off a lengthy celebration.

Brown, the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, had six assists. Walker-Kimbrough added 13 points and six rebounds. Laurin Mincy scored 12, and Malina Howard chipped in with 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Despite Mitchell's big scoring game, Ohio State came up short going for its fifth Big Ten tournament title. Alexa Hart finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds, but the Buckeyes' six-game win streak came to an end.

"My team grew tremendously from the standpoint of us handling adversity, all the things we went through," Mitchell said. "Coming here to do something like this with a great team is all you can ask for."

A 17-3 run by Maryland turned a one-point lead late in the first half into a 50-35 advantage in the second on Walker-Kimbrough's 3.

Ohio State responded with a 17-4 run to pull to 56-54 on Mitchell's 3 midway through the half.

"They don't get rattled," Maryland coach Brenda Frese said about her team. "They don't get too high or too low. It's a game of runs, they understand it. They connect. They lock into their defense and rebounding and whatever we need to have to be successful."

---

ROLLING

Maryland won a school-record 24 straight from the end of the 2005-06 and beginning of the 2006-07 seasons, capturing the NCAA championship along the way.

TIP-INS

Maryland: The Terrapins now have three conference tournament titles in 13 seasons under coach Brenda Frese. They also won the ACC in 2009 and 2012.

Ohio State: This was the Buckeyes' eighth appearance in the Big Ten tournament finals.

UP NEXT

Maryland: NCAA Tournament.

Ohio State: To be determined.

How can I watch Buckeyes vs. Terrapins?

• TV Channel: Buckeyes vs Terrapins 2021 College Basketball, week 17, is broadcasted on ESPN.
• Online streaming: Sign up for Fubo.

Venue: Now Arena

Location: Hoffman Estates, IL
Attendance: 4,131 | Capacity: