Nov. 20, 2009
South Carolina Game Notes (11/22/09) |
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UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. - The Penn State Lady Lions (3-0) will take their perfect 3-0 record into South Carolina (1-1) Sunday when the meet the Gamecocks for a 3 p.m. tip. The game will be televised on Fox SportSouth with Tom Werme and Debbie Antonelli calling the action. Penn State is looking to go 4-0 for the first time since the 2006-07 season and for the 14th time in school history.
RADIO/TV: The contest will be televised on Fox SportSouth with Tom Werme and Debbie Antonelli describing play. The game can be heard on the Penn State Sports Network with Jerry Fisher calling the action. Locally the game can be heard on ESPN Radio 1450. The audio feed is available at www.GoPSUsports.com.
LAST TIME OUT: The Lady Lions turned in a dominating performance in a 77-62 win over Bucknell Thursday. Penn State is 3-0 for the fourth-straight season. Sophomore Zhaque Gray and freshman Nikki Greene paced the Lady Lions with 11 points apiece. Gray also chipped in three rebounds, five assists and two steals, while Greene had three rebounds, three steals and a career-best three blocks.
SCOUTING SOUTH CAROLINA: The Gamecocks are 1-1 after a pair of thrilling overtime games to start the season. South Carolina topped Charlotte in OT in their opener before falling to Clemson in double overtime Thursday. Highly-touted freshman Kelsey Bone is living up to the hype, averaging 27.0 points and 12.5 rebounds in her first two games. Valerie Nainma has also been solid for the Gamecocks, chipping in 20.5 points per game.
ALL-TIME VS. THE GAMECOCKS: The Lady Lions are 4-3 all-time against the Gamecocks, including a 1-1 mark in Columbia. However, Penn State has won the last four meetings, including a 56-42 decision over the Gamecocks at the BJC last season. Tyra Grant led the way for Penn State in that game with a contest-best 17 points.
LAST TIME VS. USC: Penn State notched a 56-42 victory over South Carolina on Nov. 16, 2008 in University Park. Tyra Grant led all scorers with 17 points via a 4-for-7 effort from the field and an 8-for-10 mark from the free throw line. Janessa Wolff contributed eight points and five rebounds off of the bench, while Mashea Williams chipped in six points, five boards and five assists.
BATTLE IN THE PAINT: Sunday's game will pit Kelsey Bone, the No. 2 ranked center in the 2009 recruiting class, against Nikki Greene, the No. 7 center, in the paint. Both players were Top 20 recruits by ESPN/HoopGurlz a year ago.
3-0 FOR FOURTH YEAR: With wins over Drexel, NJIT and Bucknell, the Lady Lions are now 3-0 for the fourth consecutive season. Penn State last started 4-0 in the 2006-07 campaign.
GREENE NOTCHES DOUBLE DIGITS: Freshman center Nikki Greene tallied her first collegiate double figure scoring performance with 11 points via a 4-for-8 shooting night in the victory over Bucknell on Nov. 19. She was also solid defensively, blocking three shots and posting three steals in 24 minutes.
ROCK AROUND THE BLOCK: The Lady Lions notched nine blocked shots in the win over Bucknell on Nov. 19, led by Nikki Greene's three rejections. The nine blocks are the most for a Penn State team since the Lady Lions rejected nine shots against Bucknell on Dec. 15, 2007.
WOLFF & TROGELE HIT MILESTONES: Juniors Janessa Wolff and Julia Trogele each hit scoring milestones in the win at Bucknell on Nov. 19. Wolff surpassed the 300-point mark for her career with six tallies, while Trogele reached the 200-point plateau with eight markers.
The Lady Lions complete their four-game road trip when they travel to Maine for the Dead River Classic over Thanksgiving weekend. Penn State will face Buffalo in the opening round of the tournament and will meet either the host Black Bears or Holy Cross on day two. The Lady Lions return to the Bryce Jordan Center on Wed., Dec. 2 to face Georgia Tech in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge at 6:30 p.m. Single-game tickets can be purchased by calling the Penn State ticket office at 814-865-5555.
The 2010 WBCA Pink Zone at Penn State will take place on Sunday, Jan. 24 at 1 p.m., as the Lady Lions take on Illinois in the Bryce Jordan Center. The game can be seen on www.bigtennetwork.com. The first three Pink Zone events have raised more than $80,000 for breast cancer awareness. This year's fundraising efforts will benefit the Mount Nittany Medical Center, Penn State Hershey Cancer Institute, Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition and the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund. For more information on the Pink Zone at Penn State, visit the official Pink Zone website at www.gopsusports.com/pinkzone.
The Lady Lions are on Twitter. Follow head coach Coquese Washington (@psucoachquese), sports information contact Kris Petersen (@ladylionsid) and the Lady Lions and assistant coaches (@pennstatewbb) to get the inside scoop. The Lady Lions are also on Facebook. Search Lady Lion Basketball and become a fan.