Basketball: Women's

Predictions

Tim Gilbert- 72-59 Penn State

UTEP is no slouch, but they aren’t in the Lady Lions’ echelon. I think the Lady Lions will start off a little slowly, but lead by about six at halftime and go on to win. Watch out for Maggie Lucas; she’s as motivated as she’s ever been right now. Twenty points is not an unreasonable expectation. Also, Nikki Greene and Mia Nickson might end up having an Ohio State redux, as they match up really well with UTEP’s bigs. This one shouldn’t be a problem for the Lady Lions.

Aaron Dunlevy- 71-57 Penn State

I think we'll see a big performance from Ariel Edwards. She has 10+ points and makes an immediate impact. Also, look for Nikki Greene to have a strong first half performance en route to a double-double.

Dan Norton- 84-66 Penn State

Look for a high-scoring, fast-pace game where both teams try to take advantage of their opportunities in transition. I don't think there will be a lot of offensive play calling. However, I think the Lady Lions will win this one because they are just a more talented team. Alex Bentley thrives in transitions opportunities, so this could be a huge assist day for her finding Maggie Lucas on the outside for open 3's. However, I said this before, but history is not in the Lady Lions' favor. Their last away tournament game came against Liberty. They were a No. 4 seed and Liberty was a No. 13, and Penn State lost. However, now Penn State has a different coach and an entirely different team.