Basketball: Women's
Lady Lions survive scare from Minnesota
It was set up to be a trap game.
Minnesota (13-7, 2-4) came in losing two straight Big Ten contests against Purdue and Nebraska. Penn State came in cruising on cloud nine on a nine game winning streak and just defeated No. 23 Michigan.
It’s a roller coaster season and both teams experienced a ride tonight, as the game featured 13 lead changes and 12 ties. In the end, the Lady Lions (15-2, 6-0) hung on to win 64-59.
Stat It
It was a roller coaster game for senior Nikki Greene, too. On the boards, she dominated with a game high of 13 rebounds. Shooting on the other hand, it was a struggle. She went 3-for-11 from the floor. Yet she still managed to score her 1,000th career point tonight.
Girl on Fire
Watch out Alicia Keys, junior guard Maggie Lucas is that girl on fire. While tonight was far from a perfect performance from the Narbeth, P.a. native, as she did have four turnovers. She still went 9-for-18 from the field tallying a game high 26 points, to help propel her Lions over Minnesota.
Three Blind Mice
The three officials that called tonight’s game did a subpar job that got the attention of the fans, coaches and players. At one point, head coach Coquese Washington appeared destined to obtaining a technical foul after a controversial call on Greene. Yet, somehow Washington kept her cool enough to prevent it.
On Wednesday, Washington talked about how Greene was being treated unfairly by the officials due to her size and presence inside the paint. Well, the officials supported Washington’s argument tonight.
Despite picking up three fouls with eight minutes to go, Greene rallied to help lead the Lions to victory.
Sound Off
“She doesn’t take a lot of shots, but the ones she takes, she makes,” Washington said of senior Gizelle Studevent after the game. Studevent went 2-for-3 from the field in seven minutes of action. She nailed a big one with five minutes left in the first half to keep Penn State tied with the Gophers.
Your Take
Before the game I predicted the Lions would steam roll the Gophers en route to a 90-56 win. I was far from it.
Did you see a trap game coming? What are your post game reactions? Tweet us with them @TDC_WBasketball
Look for a full game recap in tomorrow's Daily Collegian.