SWEET 16 BOUND: No. 3 Ohio State Downs No. 6 North Carolina on Sheldon Game-Winner

The Ohio State Buckeyes are headed to the Sweet 16 after a Second Round victory against the North Carolina Tar Heels.

Author:
Casey Smith
Mar 20, 2023 6:42 PM EDT

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After blowing a 12-point fourth-quarter lead, the No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes turned to a veteran to send them to the Emerald City.

Ohio State (27-7, 12-6 Big Ten) is heading to the Sweet 16 in Seattle, as guard Jacy Sheldon's made jumper with 1.9 seconds left helped it defeat the No. 6 North Carolina Tar Heels (22-11, 11-7 ACC) 71-69 Monday at Value City Arena.

Sheldon's attempted pass with 2:09 to go in the fourth quarter was picked up by North Carolina guard Alyssa Ustby and taken to the rim by guard Paulina Paris for a bucket as the Tar Heels led for the first time in the game, 67-66.

Sheldon came back on the other end with a layup, as the Buckeyes regained the lead with 1:07 left. Sheldon went 1-for-2 at the free throw line with 38 seconds left as Ohio State held a 69-67 advantage.

An offensive foul on North Carolina's potential game-tying possession was countered with a turnover on an errant pass just out of guard Rikki Harris' reach.

North Carolina guard Deja Kelly buried a mid-range jump shot with 9.8 seconds to go to cap off her game-high 22 points.

After talking it over following head coach Kevin McGuff's timeout, Sheldon got the call and delivered, making a layup with 1.9 seconds to go to give Ohio State the victory.

Sheldon finished with 16 points on 6-for-14 from the field.

Like the first and second quarters, Ohio State opened the fourth on a scoring run.

In just 1:22, the Buckeyes lengthened a five-point to 11 on a trio of layups.

Guard Taylor Mikesell drained a corner 3 with 6:59 remaining to stretch the lead to 12, but North Carolina wouldn't go quietly.

The Tar Heels scored nine unanswered across a 2:27 span, aided by a 3-pointer from guard Kennedy Todd-Williams that bounced around the rim three times before falling, as it was a 62-59 game with 5:03 to go.

Ustby and Todd-Williams combined for 15 of North Carolina's 23 fourth-quarter points.

Ohio State opened the first quarter on an 11-2 run in the opening 4:33, powered by a trio of 3-pointers — two from Mikesell and one from Sheldon.

But out of the under-five timeout, North Carolina started running the floor on the Buckeyes.

Tar Heels guard Kayla McPherson had a fast-break layup, then Kelly followed suit.

On three-straight North Carolina scoring possessions, she went coast to coast, finishing a jump shot, a layup and getting fouled before knocking down a pair of free throws, as the Tar Heels 8-0 run in 1:50 cut their deficit to one.

North Carolina made five of its final six shots to close the first quarter after starting 1-for-8 from the field, as it trailed 16-14 after the opening period.

For the final 3:15 of the first half, neither team scored more than two points in a row as Ohio State carried a 33-28 lead into halftime.

But guard Taylor Thierry stepped up for the Buckeyes in the third quarter.

On back-to-back defensive possessions, Thierry recorded a steal and score, as well as a tie-up that flipped possession back to Ohio State. After Thierry's offensive rebound on the second possession, forward Cotie McMahon's second-chance jumper fell and the Buckeyes held their largest lead of the game at 41-31.

North Carolina scored 14 of the next 19 points, trimming its deficit to one with 54 seconds to go in the third quarter.

Mikesell's and-1 bucket with 2.9 seconds remaining in the third quarter lengthened Ohio State's lead to 51-46 ahead of the fourth.