LINCOLN, Neb.—Jantel Lavender’s 3-point play with 21.6 seconds remaining put Ohio State ahead for good as the No. 18 Buckeyes rallied from a 12-point deficit to beat Nebraska 69-65 on Saturday.
Ohio State (7-2) led 66-63 after Lavender hit her right-handed hook in the lane, then made the free throw.
Nebraska (6-2) got an open 3-pointer, but Yvonne Turner’s shot went in and out. Cory Montgomery was fouled on the rebound and made the free throws with 46 seconds left.
But the Cornhuskers didn’t score again.
Ohio State made 2 of 3 free throws in the final 10 seconds—the last two from Lavender, who scored 14 of her 20 points in the second half.
The Buckeyes were down 12 early in the second half, then used a 13-0 spurt to take a 41-40 lead on Samantha Prahalis’ 4-foot bank shot with 13:08 remaining.
Nebraska pulled away again, taking a 6-point lead at 54-48 on Nicole Neals’ long 3-pointer with 5:44 remaining. But that was Nebraska’s final field goal of the game. The Huskers were 0 for 8 down the stretch, but hit 11 of 12 free throws to stay in the game.
Nebraska led by as many as 11 in the first half when the Huskers hit 50 percent of their field goals. Ohio State shot just 33 percent in the first half.
The shooting percentages flipped in the second 20 minutes as the Buckeyes hit half their shots while the Huskers hit only 24 percent.
Ohio State outscored Nebraska 43-29 in the second half.
Lavender led the Buckeyes with 20 points. Ashley Treblicock added 14 for Ohio State and Brittany Johnson had 11 points, 6 of them in the last 4 minutes. Lavender and Johnson combined to score the Buckeyes’ final 14 points.
Nebraska was led by Montgomery with 17 points. Yvonne Turner had 13 for the Huskers, and Catheryn Redmond—Nebraska’s best inside player—scored 10 points before fouling out with about 4 minutes remaining, opening the lane for Lavender and Johnson.
