Michigan coach Kevin Borseth knew he'd have to slow down Ohio State's talented guards to have any hopes of upseting the eighth-ranked Buckeyes.
The Wolverines did just that by containing Samantha Prahalis and Tayler Hill and handing Ohio State it's first loss of the season.
Courtney Boylan scored 19 points and Sam Arnold added 13 to help the Wolverines beat the Buckeyes 73-62 on Saturday.
The win was Michigan's third straight against its archrival, bouncing back from a five-point loss to Michigan State Wednesday night.
''I don't think it's just Ohio State - I think our team overall has a lot of confidence that when we step on the floor, we can beat anybody,'' Boylan said.
That started with shutting down Prahalis and Hill, who had been averaging 40 points between them.
But Michigan (13-3, 2-1 Big Ten) held both sharpshooters below their average and Prahalis and Hill shot a combined 2-for-15 from 3-point range.
''For me to play that bad is embarrassing,'' said Prahalis, who led Ohio State with 17 points while Hill scored 15.
For the Buckeyes (15-1, 2-1 Big Ten), who were looking to extend their longest win streak since 2007 to 16 games, Michigan's energy and a slow start from their two leading scorers was too much.
''It's inevitable it's going to happen,'' Ohio State coach Jim Foster said. ''You can't act like it's going to happen. Maybe what's taken place is that our post players have gotten very comfortable letting our guards dictate the tempo of the game not thinking they're responsible. But they're responsible.''
Michigan's defense also played a role, holding Ohio State to 30 percent shooting (8-for-27) in the first half. The Wolverines forced 15 turnovers and never trailed after taking a 28-26 lead on Kate Thompson's 3-pointer with 2:49 remaining in the first half.
Michigan finished the half on a 7-1 run and never looked back.
''Any lead in any game is a huge energy boost for us,'' Arnold said. ''It allows us to play more aggressive and confidently and that's what we're always looking to do.''
Michigan led by as many as 19 points, but had to hold off a late Buckeyes surge.
Prahalis and Hill sparked the comeback effort for Ohio State, which cut its deficit to 62-57 with 3:29 left.
But the Buckeyes could get no closer in a game Prahalis characterized as ''terrible.''
''They just played harder and we weren't really playing our game,'' Prahalis said. ''Nothing against Michigan, but I thought we were better than this.''
Despite the win, Borseth won't allow his players to get too wrapped up in what is undoubtedly the Wolverines' biggest win of the year. Just like he didn't mention the Michigan State loss after Wednesday, Borseth won't plan on bringing up Saturday night's win over the Buckeyes.
''We'll enjoy this one now - it's certainly going to be a lot more pleasant evening for us,'' Borseth said. ''But when Monday starts, we've got to get back to work.
''It's one game and anything can happen in one game.''
