Ohio State Buckeyes get another shot at juggernaut UConn

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - APRIL 05: Head coach Geno Auriemma of the Connecticut Huskies holds up the net after cutting it down following their 82-51 victory over the Syracuse Orange to win the 2016 NCAA Women’s Final Four Basketball Championship at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on April 5, 2016 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - APRIL 05: Head coach Geno Auriemma of the Connecticut Huskies holds up the net after cutting it down following their 82-51 victory over the Syracuse Orange to win the 2016 NCAA Women’s Final Four Basketball Championship at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on April 5, 2016 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
Sports
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Dec 19, 2016
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Ohio State women’s basketball will face its biggest challenge of the season Monday night when the 13th-ranked Buckeyes travel northeast to take on No. 1 Connecticut.

Here is what you need to know about the matchup (7 p.m., CBS Sports Network) before it happens:

1. The Buckeyes and Huskies have moved in opposite directions in the Associated Press poll since the season start.

Ohio State was seventh in the preseason poll but has slipped after losses to then-No. 4 South Carolina, No. 5 Baylor and No. 18 Miami (Fla.). They beat No. 11 Syracuse.

RELATED: Coach Kevin McGuff could be building something big in Columbus

Despite losing three superstars to graduation, Connecticut has risen to the top spot with wins over five ranked teams, including then-No. 2 Notre Dame last week.

2. Ohio State is led by national player of the year candidate Kelsey Mitchell, who is averaging 22.7 points per game with 44 assists and 19 steals in 12 games.

The Princeton product is shooting 38.2 percent from three-point range while adjusting to a mostly new lineup around her that includes transfers Stephanie Mavunga, Linnae Harper and Sierra Calhoun plus freshmen Tori McCoy and Kiara Lewis.

Harper just became eligible, scoring 17 points in her first game in scarlet and gray, while Mavunga has sat out five games because of knee soreness but averaged 13.6 points and 11 rebounds in seven contests.

3. Among the familiar faces in the Ohio State rotation is Makayla Waterman.

The sophomore from Fairmont is scoring 5.0 points and grabbing 4.8 rebounds in 17.3 minutes per game, adding a versatile and gritty front court player to coach Kevin McGuff’s team.

4. The four-time defending national champion Huskies entered the season with (relatively) lower expectations after the graduation of Brianna Stewart, but they are undefeated nonetheless.

Stepping into Stewart’s role is Katie Lou Samuelson, who is averaging 19.8 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.

Fellow sophomore Napheesa Collier is averaging 19.4 points and 7.0 rebounds per game.

5. Ohio State has lost all three previous matchups with UConn, including a 100-56 drubbing last season in Columbus.

That is the only college game in which Mitchell, the fastest player to reach 2,000 points in NCAA history, has failed to score at least 10 points.

The Buckeyes have won two of 18 previous matchups against top-ranked teams, both in 1988 when they beat Texas 88-58 and Iowa 58-54.

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Marcus Hartman has been a digital sports columnist and reporter at Cox's Ohio newspapers the Dayton Daily News, Springfield News-Sun and Journal-News since 2016.