Buckeyes Beat Indiana 73-55

Even with Ohio State a game behind Purdue for the Big Ten lead and seemingly on the verge of slipping against a Hoosier team that was winless in conference play, coach Jim Foster remained calm. His team showed why. Samantha Prahalis had 18 points and nine assists to help the Buckeyes beat Indiana 73-55 Thursday night.

"It's a long season," he said. "It's our 21st game. You're not going to play from in front all the time. You're going to get behind."

Tayler Hill, the Big Ten's leading scorer, produced all 18 of her points in the second half and Ashley Adams had 15 points and 12 rebounds for the Buckeyes (20-1, 7-1 Big Ten). Purdue (No. 17 ESPN/USA Today, No. 13 AP) defeated Northwestern on Thursday night to remain a game ahead of the Buckeyes.

Ohio State, the conference's highest-scoring team at nearly 79 points per game, trailed 26-25 at halftime. The Buckeyes shot 60 percent from the field in the second half and held Indiana to 28 percent shooting after the break. Ohio State scored 25 points off of Indiana's 16 turnovers.

"I just think we needed to bring more energy, pick up the defense a little bit more," Prahalis said in a relaxed, matter-of-fact tone. "That was basically it. Maybe we weren't all on the same page at first. We just picked it up."

No big deal.

Aulani Sinclair scored a career-high 27 points for Indiana (5-16, 0-8). Jasmine McGhee had nine points and 12 rebounds but shot 3-for-16 from the field. Sasha Chaplin added six points and 11 rebounds for the Hoosiers, who lost their eighth consecutive game.

Indiana jumped out to a quick 11-6 lead by making five of its first eight shots. The Hoosiers extended their advantage to 20-12 before Ohio State finally rallied.

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