A trio of Ohio State women's basketball players received valuable hardware from the Big Ten this week after a record-breaking regular season for the Buckeyes.
Cotie McMahon was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year on Tuesday while Taylor Mikesell, Taylor Thierry and McMahon received All-Big Ten recognition for their efforts during Ohio State's 23-6 (12-6 Big Ten) regular season.
McMahon received the Big Ten Freshman of the Year award following a season in which she earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors six times – a mark which tied former Ohio State standout and current WNBA standout Kelsey Mitchell for the most in program history.
Congrats to the #B1GWBBall Freshman of the Year - @OhioStateWBB's Cotie McMahon! pic.twitter.com/bgFsKTOddP
— Big Ten Women's Basketball (@B1Gwbball) February 28, 2023
The Centerville, Ohio, native started all 29 games for Ohio State this season and trailed only Mikesell for the team lead in points per game with 14. She also added 4.8 rebounds and 2.5 assists in those contests and finished third on the team in blocks with 19 and steals with 45.
Mikesell was a first-team All-Big Ten honoree (coaches and media) after a stellar season in which she led the Buckeyes from start to finish. Ohio State's leading scorer with an average of 17.3 points, Mikesell was incredibly efficient in her team-leading 35.6 minutes per game. She shot 42.7% from the floor and connected on 40.6% of her 3-pointers while adding 3.1 rebounds, 2.6 rebounds and 1.4 steals per contest.
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) February 28, 2023
In addition to winning Big Ten Freshman of the Year, McMahon received second-team All-Big Ten recognition (coaches and media). Thierry (coaches and media) accompanied her on the team. Like McMahon and Mikesell, Thierry started in all 29 games for Ohio State in 2022-23. The Cleveland native averaged 13.7 points, a team-best 6.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists in those contests, and she also finished second on the team in blocks with 22 and led the Buckeyes in steals with 58.
Second Team: pic.twitter.com/tZDlEIzdi4
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) February 28, 2023
Ohio State will compete in the Big Ten Tournament this weekend in Minneapolis, where the team will participate as the No. 4 seed behind Indiana, Iowa and Maryland. The Buckeyes' first matchup will be on Friday against either Michigan, Minnesota or Penn State and will begin approximately 25 minutes after the conclusion of the 12:30 p.m. contest.
Before the finals, all Big Ten Tournament games will be broadcast on BTN and streamed on the FOX Sports app. The Big Ten Championship game will be broadcast on ESPN and the ESPN app.
