Packer helps Buckeyes start hot as OSU drops Washington 71-54

The 19th-ranked Bucks had not played in two weeks.

SEATTLE (AP) — Two weeks off didn’t slow down No. 19 Ohio State.

Marscilla Packer scored 14 of her 18 points in a nearly flawless first half by the Buckeyes, and Ohio State routed overmatched Washington 71-54 on Sunday.

While Packer was knocking down open shots from the outside, Jantel Lavender and Star Allen were dominating the interior, as the Buckeyes (7-2) had no problem with the Huskies despite not playing since Dec. 2.

Packer made 7 of 16 shots and four 3-pointers. Lavender finished with 14 points and Allen had 10 points and 10 rebounds. Ashlee Trebilcock also scored 10 points for Ohio State, including three 3-pointers. The Buckeyes were 8-for-15 on 3s.

Ohio State looked impressive in just its third road game of the season and its final test away from Columbus before the start of Big 10 Conference play on Dec. 30 at No. 21 Michigan State.

Freshman Katelan Redmon led Washington with 11 points and Jess McCormick added 10 off the bench. But the Huskies (4-7) shot a mere 26.5 percent in the first half and could never recover from two scoring droughts of nearly 11 minutes combined. The Huskies lost their third straight, all by more than 17 points. Six of their seven losses have been by at least 15.

If there was any rust for the Buckeyes, having not played since a win over Ole Miss, it lasted all of about 6 minutes. The Huskies stayed with Ohio State before the Buckeyes simply took over.

Sami Whitcomb’s basket with 13:33 left gave Washington a 13-12 lead, but Ohio State scored 12 of the next 15 points and outscored the Huskies 33-8 to close the half.

Packer scored eight points during the run, including consecutive 3s to give the Buckeyes their first double-digit lead at 27-16. Trebilcock capped the half with a pair of 3-pointers, as the Buckeyes shot 51 percent, outrebounded Washington 28-14 and had 11 second-chance points. Ohio State outrebounded Washington 43-26 for the game.