Former Ohio State guard Taylor Mikesell was selected by the Indiana Fever with the No. 13 overall pick of the 2023 WNBA Draft on Monday, set to continue her basketball career at the professional level.
Mikesell’s selection by the Fever comes after two seasons at Ohio State where she appeared in 68 games, averaging 17.9 points and 3.1 rebounds per game on 45.4 percent shooting from the field and 44.2 percent shooting from deep.
She became one of just 36 players in program history to surpass 1,000 points, finishing her Ohio State career with 1,215 (and 2,253 across five seasons of college basketball). She has the fourth-most three-point field goals in team history with 230 and her 44.2 percent three-point shooting is second all-time behind Cheryl Perozek (45.8 percent). She also tied a single-game program record earlier this season for the most makes from three without a miss, going 6 of 6 from deep in a win over Minnesota on Feb. 8.
Mikesell, a native of Massillon, Ohio, transferred to Ohio State after stints at both Maryland and Oregon, but her time with the Buckeyes helped propel her to an eventual selection in the WNBA Draft. While Mikesell could have opted for the draft following last season and the Buckeyes’ loss to Texas in the Sweet 16, she decided to come back to Ohio State for a fifth and final season of college basketball.
âMe and Jacy (Sheldon) kind of looked at each other and said âWe can do something really special,ââ Mikesell said. âI just remember her saying, ‘Dude, youâve got to come back.’ “
Though Mikesell was not able to play alongside Sheldon for most of the season, with Sheldon only appearing in 13 games due to a lower-leg injury, Mikesell still helped lead Ohio State all the way to an appearance in the Elite Eight.
“I think it’s meant a lot,” Mikesell said after the loss to Virginia Tech in the Elite Eight. “To being in the position we were last year, kind of driving the reason why I wanted to come back and just being able to put ourselves in that position to get to the Final Four, we had the opportunity. (That) has meant everything to me.”
Ohio State head coach Kevin McGuff said Mikesell has left a significant impact on the program despite her relatively short stint in Columbus.
“She’s been such a great kid in our program,” McGuff said. “She’s a wonderful young person. She’s leaving the way you should leave, knowing that you poured every ounce of heart and soul, effort, energy into a program and that’s just who she is and it says so much about her.”
Mikesell becomes the most recent Ohio State draftee since 2018, when the Indiana Fever selected Kelsey Mitchell with the No. 2 overall selection and Stephanie Mavunga in the second round, and Mikesell will now join Mitchell with the hopes of two Buckeyes being on the Fever’s roster when the WNBA’s season begins on May 19.
