COLUMBUS, Ohio | Alabama State (1-6) fell to Big Ten opponent and ranked Ohio State, 97-51, in a road matchup on Wednesday night in the Schottenstein Center.

The Hornets finished the game shooting 31.5 (17-of-54) from the field, 18.2 (2-11) percent from deep and a season-high 83.3 percent (15-of-18) from the free throw line. Freshman Brazyll Watkins (Battle Creek, Mich.) recorded 11 points, her first double figure scoring game, to lead the Hornets offensively, while DaKiyah Sanders finished with eight points and five assists on the night.

Four Alabama State players scored in the first quarter as they outscored Ohio State off the bench to start the game 9-0 but found themselves down 27-13 after a strong shooting quarter from the Buckeyes.

Ohio State continued to stretch their lead for the remainder of the half, as Alabama State found themselves trailing by 20 at the 3:55 mark and heading into the locker room with the score at 56-30. Eight of the ten Hornets who played in the half scored, as the team shot 42.3 (11-of-26) percent from the field and outscored the Buckeyes off the bench 17-11.

Alabama State struggled shooting in the second half, shooting 23.5 and 18 percent in the third and fourth quarters, while converting a perfect 9-of-9 shots from the free throw line, including eight in the final frame.

Taylor Mikesell led four Buckeye double digit scorers with 27 points along with 11 rebounds, while Jay Sheldon scored 14 and five rebounds.

UP NEXT
Alabama State will return home to host Mobile on Saturday, Dec. 18 in Montgomery for their final home game of the calendar year. Tip-off is scheduled in the Dunn-Oliver Acadome for 1 pm.

Follow The Hornets
For complete coverage of Alabama State University women's basketball, follow the Hornets on social media at @BamaStateWBB (Twitter), @BamaStateSports (Instagram) and /BamaStateSports (Facebook) and visit the official home of Alabama State athletics at www.bamastatesports.com.