Purdue women's basketball falls to No. 19 ranked Ohio State

LAFAYETTE ― Disfunction and its finest and a tune all too familiar with Purdue women's basketball settled in against Ohio State at Mackey Arena Wednesday, Dec. 31.

The Boilermakers wilted to the pressure defense of Ohio State and any hope of an upset were quickly erased. The No. 19-ranked Buckeyes slid its feet quicker and harder, hit shots and maintained the 25-10 lead built in the opening eight minutes of the first quarter.

Sophomore Jaloni Campbell scored 14 points, grabbed six rebounds and dished seven assists while the Buckeyes forced 26 turnovers and overpowered Purdue 83-56 on Wednesday afternoon.

Junior Kennedy Cambridge added 16 points and four assists, Chance Gray scored 14 points (6-12 FG) and sophomore Ava Watson added 13 points for Ohio State (12-2, 2-1 Big Ten Conference).

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New Year's Eve marked the 20th consecutive loss by Purdue (8-6, 0-3 Big Ten Conference) to a ranked opponent, 13 of those by double figures.

A rough day at Mackey Arena was made more sour after Purdue forward Saige Stahl collided with Ohio State players midway through the fourth quarter and had to be helped off the court by trainers.

The efforts of graduate senior Madison Layden-Zay weren't enough to ignite any momentum found from its competitive, but latest shortcoming to Illinois from last Sunday.

Layden-Zay finished with 17 points, eight rebounds and three steals and came within one 3-pointer of tying coach Katie Gearlds for the third most in program history.

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Purdue will slog into 2026 tied for last in the Big Ten Conference.

Sophomore Nya Smith added 11 points, and junior Tara Daye scored 10 points for the Boilermakers.

Purdue now hits the road for two games. They will face Nebraska on Sunday, Jan. 4 at 3 p.m. followed by a matchup with Wisconsin on Thursday, Jan. 8 at 7:30 p.m. before returning home to face Washington at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 11.

Ethan Hanson is the sports reporter for the Journal & Courier in Lafayette. He can be reached at [email protected], on Twitter at EthanAHanson and Instagram at  ethan_a_hanson.

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Purdue women's basketball falls to No. 19 ranked Ohio State