Lemmila and Jaloni Cambridge score 17 apiece, Ohio State women beat Minnesota at Big Ten Tournament

Ohio State center Elsa Lemmila (12) grabs a rebound over Minnesota guard Mara Braun (10) in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Conference tournament, Friday, March 6, 2026 in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Elsa Lemmila had 17 points and 11 rebounds, Jaloni Cambridge also scored 17, and No. 11 Ohio State beat No. 19 Minnesota 60-55 on Friday in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament.

Fourth-seeded Ohio State (26-6) plays No. 1 seed and second-ranked UCLA — which beat the Buckeyes 82-75 on Dec. 28 — in the semifinals Saturday.

Cambridge added six assists, five rebounds and three steals. Chance Gray hit three 3-pointers and finished with 13 points.

Mara Braun hit a 3-pointer that cut Minnesota’s deficit to 58-55 with 1:32 left in the game. Neither team scored again until Cambridge made a jumper with 16 seconds left.

Grace Grocholski led No. 5 seed Minnesota (22-9) with 18 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Sophie Hart had 12 points and a career-high 19 rebounds and Amaya Battle added 10 points. Hart has 1,000 career points, 966 for the Gophers. Tori McKinney had two points on 1-for-4 shooting in just 16 foul-plagued minutes.

Kennedy Cambridge had six of Ohio State’s 12 steals and added five points, four assists and three rebounds.

Ohio State, which lost 71-64 at Minnesota on Feb. 18, has won 10 of 11 against the Gophers and leads the series 66-17, 11-2 at neutral sites.

Up next

Ohio State: Plays in the semifinals Saturday.

Minnesota: Awaits an at-large NCAA Tournament bid. ___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball