Jan. 24, 2008
MADISON, WIS. - The Lady Lions (13-7, 4-4) struggled from the field and gave up 21 offensive rebounds to Wisconsin (9-9, 2-6) as the Badgers handed Penn State a 79-52 loss at the Kohl Center in Madison Thursday night. It is just Penn State's second loss to the Badgers in its last 13 meetings, both of which came in Madison. The Badgers also set a school record with just five turnovers in the game.
Brianne O'Rourke (Pittsburgh, Pa.) had a team-high 14 points to go along with four rebounds. With one assist in the game, O'Rourke moved into a tie for 10th place with Corinne Gulas on Penn State's all-time assists chart with 379 career helpers. Mashea Williams (Erie, Pa.) added 13 points and two steals, while Kam Gissendanner (Clairton, Pa.) had eight points and five rebounds.
The Lady Lions were sluggish in the early going as they committed turnovers on their first two possessions, leading to four points for the Badgers. Wisconsin extended the lead to 9-2 with just under 17 minutes left in the opening frame. O'Rourke scored four consecutive points to pull the Lady Lions within three points at 9-6, but the Badgers went on an 16-2 run to pull ahead by 19 points (25-6) with eight minutes to play in the half.
Wisconsin held serve for the rest of the half and went into the break with a 36-19 lead. O'Rourke was the lone bright spot for the Lady Lions in the opening period as she had a game-high 12 points to go along with three rebounds. Tyra Grant (Youngstown, Ohio) accounted for five points and four boards and Gissendanner was the only other Lady Lion to score with two tallies.
Penn State got seven points from Williams in the first six minutes of the second half, but it was not enough as the Badgers continued to keep their distance in the second half, thanks in part to two three-pointers from Rae Lin D'Alie. A pair of baskets by Lin Zastrow extended the Wisconsin lead to 21 points (57-36) with 10 minutes on the clock.
Back-to-back baskets by Williams and O'Rourke got the Lady Lions back within 17 points at 57-40 with just under nine minutes to play, but Penn State would pull no closer in the final period. Following a basket by Williams, Wisconsin went on a 20-8 run over the final 6:45 to close out the 79-52 victory.
Penn State continues its two-game road swing at #15/15 Ohio State on Monday, Jan. 28 at 7 p.m., a game that can be seen on the Big Ten Network. The Lady Lions return home to face Wisconsin on Kids Day at the Bryce Jordan Center on Sunday, Feb. 3 at 2 p.m. Kids interested in apply to get a behind the scenes look at Lady Lion game day, should send their name, phone number and email address to Rachel Rito (rar240@psu.edu).
Fans can purchase single-game tickets by visiting the Bryce Jordan Center box office, calling 814-865-5555 or 800-863-3336 or by clicking on the ticket link on www.GoPSUsports.com. The second annual THINK PINK Day is slated for Sunday, Feb. 10 versus Iowa at noon. For more information on THINK PINK Day, visit Penn State's official THINK PINK website at www.gopsusports.com/thinkpink.