March 5, 2006

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INDIANAPOPLIS (AP) - Ohio State's Debbie Merrill scored seven of her 15 points during a late flurry Sunday, helping the Big Ten regular-season champions fend off No. 16 Michigan State with a 68-64 victory in the Big Ten tournament semifinals.

The No. 5 Buckeyes (27-2) won their 18th straight game and reached Monday night's title game where they face No. 14 Purdue or Indiana. Ohio State has never won the conference tournament.

Michigan State (22-9), the defending tournament champs and national runner-ups, were led by Liz Shimek with 23 points and six rebounds. Lindsay Bowen added 11 points but it wasn't enough to derail top-seeded Ohio State.

Brandie Hoskins and Marscilla Packer each had 15 points for the Buckeyes.

Ohio State, which swept the season series, struggled to take control until late. It trailed most of the first half, finally using a late 7-0 run to build a 27-25 halftime lead.

And whenever it appeared the Buckeyes were poised to pull away, Michigan State rallied - twice tying the score in the final 10 minutes.

Merrill changed things quickly. On three straight possessions, Merrill connected on a putback, a driving layup and a three-point play to give Ohio State the lead for good at 52-49 with 4:54 left.

The Buckeyes extended the lead to 65-58 with 22.2 seconds left, but Michigan State hit back-to-back 3-pointers, closing to 65-64 with a second to go. Then the fourth-seeded Spartans drew a technical foul for calling timeout when they had none left. Ashley Allen hit both free throws to seal the win.