Lavender excels in OSU opener

A prized freshman point guard gave the coaching staff and medical staff a scare when she fell.

COLUMBUS (AP) — There was one scary moment in No. 18 Ohio State’s season-opening 75-56 win over Butler on Friday night — and it came when no one was near a basket.

Prized freshman point guard Samantha Prahalis fell to the floor and cried out in pain near the Ohio State logo at midcourt with 6 minutes left.

The sight sent shock waves through the Buckeyes bench.

“We just told her that when she goes down in the future to scream, ’Cramp!”’ coach Jim Foster said with a laugh. “I think our medical people are a little concerned. I haven’t seen Dr. [Don] LeMay move that fast in quite a while.”

Prahalis, who was fine after some rest, had a stellar collegiate debut with 14 points, surpassed only by sophomore center Jantel Lavender’s 20 points and 19 rebounds as the Buckeyes overcame a sluggish start to pull away.

Lavender, the Big Ten’s freshman and player of the year last season, hit just one of her first six shots from the field while surrounded by defenders. She hit six of her last 10 shots and dominated in the middle.

“It was the first game, so I think everybody was just nervous and excited,” Lavender said. “We were all just playing too fast. Once we slowed down, it was good.”

Andrea Walker came off the bench to score 13 points and Star Allen had 10. They each had eight rebounds, too, as the Buckeyes controlled the boards, 55-31.

“You’re playing a team that’s 18th in the country, and after a while, their physical-ness, their athletic ability, wears down on you,” Butler coach Beth Couture said. “I think that’s what happened.”

Prahalis, a top point guard recruit from Commack, N.Y., also had four assists, including a nifty no-look feed for a basket by Lavender midway through the second half. Prahalis hit 2-of-3 3-pointers and was 6-of-9 from the field.

Melanie Thornton led Butler with 18 points, with Candace Jones adding 11.