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| Senior Amanda Brown recorded her eighth double-double of the season with game-highs of 27 points and 14 rebounds in Penn State's 69-58 upset win over #23/21 Michigan State Thursday. |
UNVERSITY PARK, PA.; January 25, 2007 - Senior post player Amanda Brown (Kennett Square, Pa.) notched her eighth double-double of the season and led the Lady Lions (10-11, 3-5) to a 69-58 upset win over #23/21 Michigan State (15-5, 6-2) Thursday at the Bryce Jordan Center. This is Penn State??s first win over ranked team since a double-overtime victory over #24/24 Texas Tech on Dec. 4, 2005.
Brown netted a game-high 27 points on 8-for-8 shooting from the field and an 11-for-13 effort from the free throw line. She also pulled down a game-best 14 rebounds to go along with a career-high tying five assists, two blocks and two steals. Junior guard Kam Gissendanner (Clairton, Pa.), who scored her 700th career point, continued her solid play against Big Ten foes with 16 points, six rebounds and five assists, while sophomore guard Brianne O??Rourke (Pittsburgh, Pa.) added 15 points, including a trio of key three-pointers, and three assists.
Playing without the services of sophomore guard Mashea Williams (Erie, Pa.) and with freshman guard Tyra Grant (Youngstown, Ohio), there was significant pressure on the guard play which forced Gissendanner and O??Rourke to play all 40 minutes and required freshman guard Meggan Quinn (Red Lion, Pa.), who had only played in seven games this season, to play a career-high 16 minutes.
Coming out of the locker room in the second half, Penn State quickly extended its lead 10 points thanks to back-to-back O??Rourke three-pointers. The Lady Lions kept the lead between eight and 10 points for a majority of the early-going in the second period before a 7-0 run, capped by a Brown lay-up with 9:47 remaining, gave Penn State its largest lead of the game at 17 points (60-43). However, the Spartans were not done battling as they notched an 11-0 run of their own to close within six points at 60-54 with 4:57 left on the clock. A Brown lay-up and a pair of free throws by O??Rourke extended the lead back to nine and sealed the upset win for the Lady Lions.
The game got off to a slow start with Michigan State scoring the first points of the game on a Myisha Banister lay-up at the 17:35 mark. A pair of Brown free throws and a Grant lay-up gave the Lady Lions a 4-2 lead. But from there on out, the game saw two ties and nine lead changes in the opening frame with neither team taking more than a four point lead in the early going. A quick 5-0 spurt by the Spartans would make it a 12-9 MSU lead with 12:45 remaining in the half, but the Lady Lions would respond and retake the lead at 13-12 on a fastbreak lay-up by Courtney Molinaro (Bethlehem, Pa.) less than a minute later. The Spartans would move ahead again with a 5-0 run and kept the lead throughout a five-minute stretch. The Lady Lions proceeded to post an 8-0 run and take a 34-27 lead with 53 second remaining before the break. Michigan State would cut the lead four points as the Lady Lions went to the locker room with a 36-32 lead. Brown had an outstanding first half with 19 points on 4-of-4 shooting from the field and an 11-for-12 effort from the free throw line. Gissendanner added nine points and three rebounds in the opening frame.
Aisha Jefferson had 15 points to lead Michigan State on the night, while Victoria Lucas-Perry added 13 points and six rebounds.
The Lady Lions host Iowa on Sunday, Jan. 28 at special 1 p.m. tip time, where fans in attendance will receive a Brianne O??Rourke Mini-Bobblehead doll while supplies last. Penn State will then face a rematch with the Spartans in East Lansing before returning home for THINK PINK Day against Wisconsin on Sunday, Feb. 4 at 2 p.m.
Single-game tickets for the Lady Lions may be purchased by visiting the ticket section of GoPSUsports.com or by calling the ticket office at 814-865-5555. Women's single game tickets are $12 for adults and $5 for students and youth (under 18). Mini ticket plans are also available.