Chance Gray is optimistic she’s made a breakthrough.
Going into Ohio State’s 98-46 victory over Purdue on Sunday, Gray was in the midst of a 3-point shooting slump. The junior had failed to record more than one 3-point basket in any outing across her previous 8 games.
She busted out in a big way.
In fact, the Buckeyes‘ overall 3-point shooting was at its best of the season against Purdue. The entire lineup shot 14-for-27 (51.9%), with Gray hitting 5 of those baskets on 12 attempts. She totaled a team-high 21 points.
“It was good just to see a couple fall,” Gray said. “Keep plugging on from here. I wanted to get back out of it before we head into March. So, it was really important and it got my confidence back.”
In the third quarter against the Boilermakers, Gray had the hot hand, scoring 11 points, including consecutive 3-pointers.
When Gray transferred from Oregon to Ohio State this offseason, she brought a 33.4% 3-point shooting average with her.
Gray proved she was a threat from beyond the arc earlier in the season, leading the Buckeyes in 3-point shooting and broke a program record of 9 made 3-pointers in a single game against Charlotte on Nov. 12.
However, after Ohio State’s loss to Penn State on Jan. 19. Gray’s production took a dip she’s never seen before in her career.
“This was probably the most I had to work at it just to get back in that groove,” Gray said. “All I need is to see one go in, then I’m fine after that.”
Gray was finding opportunities to take shots beyond the arc, averaging over 4 attempts, but she made just 8.5% of those shots per game during her slump.
She certainly wasn’t alone. The Buckeyes as a team shot 26.6% from behind the 3-point line in those 8 games.
With the Big Ten tournament less than two weeks away, coach Kevin McGuff was happy to see Gray to have the performance she did against Purdue to get back on track offensively.
“She obviously needed a game like this,” McGuff said. “Hopefully this propels her to get back to kind of who she’s been for more of the year. She shot it more effectively today, and so, hopefully she’ll gain some confidence from this.”
During Gray’s 3-point struggles, she expanded her offensive abilities.
Gray started driving more to the basket and drew fouls, which allowed her to contribute to some Ohio State’s close matchups from the free throw line. In the Buckeyes’ 66-56 victory over Washington, Gray recorded 6 of her 11 points off free throws.
According to Gray, opening up her game allowed her to find a rhythm once again from the 3-point line.
“I think that over the last stretch I had, I think I was so focused on being a shooter,” Gray said. “I know I’m capable of doing so many other things, whether that being a playmaker, getting to my pull up, getting to the rim. … I just needed to be a little calm and not stressed. If I make a 3, I make a 3. If I don’t, I don’t, but I can do so many other things.”
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Chance Gray regains confidence in Ohio State basketball win vs Purdue
