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98 ILLUSTRATED VOLUME 25, ISSUE 2 f OHIO STATE 17-18 OVERALL, 5-11 BIG TEN O hio State's rebuilding project continues under second-year coach Kevin McGuff. And he gets a serious boost this season, with the ad- dition of freshman point guard Kelsey Mitchell. The 5-8 Cincinnati native was a top-five recruit in the nation, ac- cording to about every reputable organization. "Kelsey is a really special player," McGuff said. "As dy- namic a point guard as I've ever been around, especially she's got great skill, obviously, but her IQ and passion for the game I think really make her special. So we're excited to have her in the program. As we've tried to transition to a different style of play, Kelsey will be a big part of that and kind of like the engine that's going to make things go for us." Ohio State could have a dynamic backcourt, with Mitch- ell along with returnees Ameryst Alston (19.0 points) and Cait Craft (8.5). McGuff has hit the recruiting trial hard. Led by Mitchell, the 2014 freshman class is the second-best in the country, according to most, and he secured two top-50 (in the 2013 class) transfers in Kianna Holland (Duke) and Shayla Cooper (Georgetown). They'll be able to compete starting in the spring semester. "As we evolve as a program, we would like to have a much more up-tempo style of play," McGuff said. "And we've recruited to that style of play. We want to have one of the fastest most aggressive teams in the country when it's all said and done." The Buckeyes will start the season with only eight healthy players. Freshman Makayla Waterman tore her ACL on Oct. 6, the first day of practices. RUTGERS 22-14 OVERALL, 7-9 AAC C. Vivian Stringer, the 20th-year coach of the Scarlet Knights, returns to the Big Ten. The Hall of Fame coach oversaw the Iowa program from 1983-95, helping the Hawkeyes to nine NCAA Tourna- ments, including the 1993 Final Four. She brings a Rutgers team heavy on experience, as all five starters return, hoping to build on their WNIT cham- pionship last season and looking to get back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2012. Junior forward Kahleah Cooper and sophomore guard Tyler Scaife combined to average more than 30 points per game last season. "(Tyler is) a young lady who played with no fear and just played like she had been playing for 20 years and she returns much the same," Stringer said. "But I will say this: I think that the people who needed to be much more con- fident and much stronger have really demonstrated that. And I'm really excited." MICHIGAN 20-14 OVERALL, 8-8 BIG TEN T he Wolverines return four starters, all of whom averaged more than 11.4 points per game last season. That, combined with Michigan's late-season success — the Wolverines advanced to the third-round of the WNIT — has it feeling like it could take another step forward after back-to-back 20-win seasons. Coach Kim Barnes Arico, in her third season in Ann Arbor, will look toward seniors Shannon Smith (13.8 points), Cyesha Goree (12.1 points, 9.3 rebounds) and Brian Ray/Iowa Samantha Logic does a little bit of everything for the Hawkeyes, a team that scores a bunch but defends a little.