Jones scores 15 as No. 1 Stanford beats Buckeyes

STANFORD, Calif. (AP) — Haley Jones had 15 points, seven rebounds and seven assists in helping No. 1 Stanford beat Ohio State 71-52 on Sunday.

Kiana Williams, Lexi Hull and Fran Belibi each added 13 points for the Cardinal (9-0), which ended a modest two-game losing streak to the Buckeyes. Belibi recorded a game-high eight rebounds.

Janai Crooms scored 15 points to lead Ohio State (6-4), which snapped a three-game winning streak. Dorka Juhasz added 10 points.

Jones reached double figures in scoring for the sixth time in seven games.

Crooms hit a driving layup as the third-quarter buzzer sounded to bring Ohio State to 56-42 entering the final quarter.

Jones hit a layup to give the Cardinal a 45-25 lead early in the third but Ohio State kept chipping away and pulled to 50-38 after two Stanford turnovers led to baskets by Rebeka Mikulasikova and Jacy Sheldon.

Stanford led by as many as 17 points in the first half before settling for a 37-23 halftime lead.

BIG PICTURE

Ohio State: The Buckeyes may have started the season slower than expected but they’re revving it up as conference play looms. With a schedule ranked second in terms of strength, Ohio State faced its third top-five team in six games and beat then-No. 2 Louisville at home. The Buckeyes were within two of UConn at halftime. Stanford was the first ranked team they played on the road.

Stanford: As the freshmen continue to develop and mesh with the veterans, the Cardinal seems to gain confidence with every game. Haley Jones has started three games and is averaging in double figures. She also leads the team in turnovers, but the assist-to-turnover ratio is improving. Three freshmen have started at least once and the fourth, Hannah Jump, is 20 of 41 from 3-point range.

UP NEXT

Ohio State travels to play Sacramento State on Tuesday.

Stanford hosts Tennessee on Wednesday night.