'I'm ready to go': Ohio State freshman Jaloni Cambridge excited for first NCAA Tournament
The Ohio State women's basketball team has reached the stretch of the season Jaloni Cambridge has been waiting for since joining the Buckeyes - the NCAA Tournament.
"It's very surreal to know that I'm here," Cambridge said. "I've been watching this ever since I was a kid, growing up. But I'm just excited and blessed to be here."
Ohio State is entering the tournament as the No. 4 seed in the Birmingham 3 region and is hosting the opening two rounds of the tournament for the third consecutive year despite having six new players on the active roster including Cambridge, who is a freshman.
Cambridge began her Ohio State career with a 31-point performance in the season opener against Cleveland State, proving she was ready to fill the starting point guard position former team-leading scorer Jacy Sheldon left.
"Coming in, I was just trying to be who I have been trying to be my whole life, putting in that preparation to be at this spot," Cambridge said. "Obviously, I was going to take whatever was given to me. I was able to be given that starting spot and be given the role that I'm in, but I wasn't expecting anything. I was just expecting to come here and play."
By the end of the regular season, Cambridge was averaging 16 points, 3.9 assists and 2.1 steals per game, which was enough to earn her the Big Ten Freshman of the Year honor.
All the work Cambridge put in during the regular season was in preparation for the NCAA Tournament, where every game is "do or die" starting with a first-round matchup against No. 13 seed Montana State at 5:30 p.m. Friday.
"We've been through a lot of trials and tribulations through this season," Cambridge said. "I'm just excited to be tested here."
Jaloni Cambridge looks to bounce back from difficult Big Ten Tournament
After finding success in the regular season and boosting Ohio State to the No. 3 ranking in the Big Ten, Cambridge had a rough outing in her first conference tournament.
Ohio State snuck past Iowa 60-59 in the quarterfinals, but it was still one of the worst outings of the season from Cambridge. She struggled offensively, recording just 6 points while going 3 for 15 from the field.
"No one's perfect," Cambridge said. "You obviously want to experience some things before you get to this, so you know what to expect when you're maybe down or things are not working for you."
In the semifinals against the eventual Big Ten Tournament champions UCLA, Cambridge found her footing and scored 8 points in the first half. It was the rest of the Buckeyes' lineup that failed to get rolling in the game as Ohio State fell behind 44-21 by halftime.
Cambridge's night was cut short in the third quarter, as she left the game with an ankle injury. The Buckeyes were knocked out of the tournament 75-46 and Cambridge never returned to the game.
With nearly two weeks to recover, Cambridge is ready to get back on the court to redeem herself, and her team.
"No injury can push me back," Cambridge said, "I've had plenty of those. This is not the first time I've done something to my ankle, but it's just something I can bounce back from. I'm ready to go."
Jaloni Cambridge reflects on entering NCAA Tournament with sister Kennedy Cambridge
When Jaloni Cambridge was watching the NCAA Tournament growing up, her older sister Kennedy Cambridge was right beside her with the same aspirations.
Now the sisters are achieving their dreams together with Kennedy Cambridge being a key bench player in the Buckeyes rotation.
"It's amazing," Jaloni Cambridge said. "This is a beauty, something I wish people could get to experience all the time. It's amazing to be a part of this with someone that I've been doing this with for a long time."
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Jaloni Cambridge talks March Madness, Ohio State loss vs UCLA
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