Jacy Sheldon’s impressive WNBA debut in first preseason weekend for Buckeye trio

Jacy Sheldon’s impressive WNBA debut in first preseason weekend for Buckeye trio

Friday night, the WNBA tipped off in a night full of good and bad league storylines. The bad was a game between the Minnesota Lynx and Chicago Sky not making it onto the air. Instead, a fan streamed the game live on Twitter, grabbing the attention of 400,000 viewers. The good was the return of the top women’s professional basketball league in the country. Included in the weekend were three Ohio State women’s basketball graduates making it onto the court.

In the first game, it was the Dallas Wings welcoming the Indiana Fever to The Lone Star State. In front of a sold-out crowd in the 6,000-capacity College Park Center, two of the three Buckeyes earned their first professional minutes.

For Dallas, it was five-year guard Jacy Sheldon. Coming into the game as a point guard, and the first player off the bench for the Wings, Sheldon impressed. Upon entering, the Wings were down 11 points to star rookie guard Caitlin Clark and the Fever. Sheldon made an immediate impact, creating two assists and adding speed to both sides of the court.

The guard’s first shot, and first make, was a three-point shot. It was one of two attempted shots on the night by Sheldon, sinking both from beyond the arc. On Sheldon’s first, it gave the Wings its first lead of the game.

On the floor, Sheldon didn’t seem to have any rookie nerves, connecting with head coach Latricia Trammell and sharing instructions with teammates.

Indiana featured the other former Scarlet and Gray guard, Celeste Taylor. The former Duke transfer to Ohio State was further down the depth chart for the Fever, on a guard-rich team, but she received minutes nonetheless.

In 10:58 of game action, Taylor showed the work rate that made her a favorite in college, putting herself into the action to the tune of five assists, tied for second on the team and most by any guard for the Fever. Also, Taylor’s +3 plus/minus was the only positive plus/minus for any Indiana bench player.

Defensively, Taylor had a tall task of guarding Dallas shooting guard Arike Ogunbowale but was successful. The ACC and Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year had a hand in the star shooter’s face and held the guard to no points while the two were on the court together.

There was one guard that Taylor couldn’t get on the floor with at the same time and it was Sheldon. The two Buckeyes never made it into the game at the same time, but both played over 10 minutes, with Sheldon playing 13:02.

With less than five seconds remaining in the game, and Ogunbowale putting Dallas ahead late, the Fever gave the ball to Clark to try and win it for the visitors. Before the play, Coach Trammell put Sheldon back in the game, for defensive purposes. Closing in on Clark, Sheldon and a teammate forced the rookie into a corner three that the No. 1 overall pick hit off the side of the backboard, locking up the preseason victory for Dallas.

It was the lone preseason game for the Wings in 2024, meaning the next time Sheldon plays, it’ll be in the regular season. That’s if she makes the team. Dallas has to cut five players before the season. However, with the minutes and production of Sheldon on Friday, it bodes well for her chances of making the team.

Also, Dallas traded guard Crystal Dangerfield to the Atlanta Dream, freeing up more space for a guard like Sheldon. Adding another positive in the Ohioan’s favor.

For Taylor, the Fever have one more game, at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. That Friday, May 10 contest could include more minutes for the Buckeye guard if she’s on the team. Expect WNBA sides to make cuts this week.

Indiana’s guard group is strong, and Friday didn’t feature All-Star, and former Ohio State star, Kelsey Mitchell. The guard was out due to injury, and the Fever not taking any chances in the preseason. Even so, Taylor showed on Friday that she’s defensively ready to compete with the pros of the WNBA.

Saturday night, up in Edmonton, the third player who ended her career with the Buckeyes also received minutes. Guard Taylor Mikesell, on the training camp roster of the Los Angeles Sparks, sat on the bench for most of the Sparks’ 84-79 win over the Seattle Storm.

Mikesell played 2:53, all in the fourth quarter. At that time, Mikesell attempted one shot, not from beyond the arc, and missed. She also had one steal.

Like the Fever, Los Angeles has one preseason game remaining. This time, it’s against the Phoenix Mercury.

Both games are free to watch on the WNBA app, with the Fever and Dream starting at 7 p.m. ET and the Sparks and Mercury at 10 p.m. ET.