When Rashida Mark hears Lady Lions head coach Rene Portland call her name, she knows that to earn her keep, only a couple of things are required.
"The two things we asked Rashida to do is to check out, to rebound for us and to run the floor," Portland said. "And if we can get her to do those things, the rest will fall in."
Mark, a 6-foot-2 sophomore forward, has logged limited but steady minutes for Penn State as a quick, athletic bench option. Normally restricted to helping on the defensive end, Mark found herself in a bit of an unfamiliar position on Sunday at the Bryce Jordan Center.
In a 15-point first half hole, the Lady Lions began to decipher a tricky Iowa zone. Mark's speed helped her take to the offensive, scoring a career-high 11 points on 5-for-7 shooting, while still contributing on the boards and helping to neutralize Iowa star Megan Skouby in the paint.
"I just had [more opportunities] to score today. My teammates saw me and I had easier baskets," Mark said. "That's one thing that our coaches stress: Just try to outrun the other posts. And that helped, because we got a lot of easy layups on them."
With the game tight in the second half, Mark converted a crucial three-point play, making a flimsy Penn State advantage permanent.
The Hawkeyes' defense clearly focused on center Amanda Brown limiting the senior to only four shots from the field. Mark -- with some help from Charity Renfro -- was able to pick up the slack, something the Lady Lions have been working on extensively since their forwards performed miserably in a road loss to Minnesota.
"[Brown] is an excellent player, but I think we did a decent job on her tonight," Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder said. "To me, it was Mark coming off the bench that really hurt us inside.
In an important battle in the paint, Skouby and fellow forward Krista Vanderventer could not counter the relentless Penn State attack from every angle. Vanderventer had 13 rebounds, but efforts from Penn State posts limited Skouby to only four.
"[Vanderventer] is unbelievable. She really has a nose for the ball and [we] had our hands full rebounding," Portland said. "We're in the Jordan Center: 'Wake up. Don't let it get away.' It happens from running and rebounding. We just kept on the rebounding piece and caught them."
Portland addressed some of Mark's critics who say that she doesn't have the strength or frame to be an effective post player.
"We will be able to maker her a little bit stronger, but we're not gonna make her a different body," Portland said. "Use your bony elbows and use your bony hips to help us.
"She has a great imagination on offense. I think you saw some offensive imagination."
Notes: Lady Lions center Amanda Brown earned her second consecutive Big Ten Player of the Week Award, averaging 20.5 points and 13.0 rebounds in Penn State's 2-0 week, including a victory against No. 23 Michigan State. Over the course of three games, Brown has made 13 straight field goals, and is 17-of-20 from the charity stripe.
