Nov. 12, 2010
DAYTON, OHIO - Junior Zhaque Gray (Chicago, Ill.) knocked down a pair of three-pointers inside of the final 1:20 of regulation to force overtime and the Penn State Lady Lions (1-0) scored 14 points in the second overtime to post a 112-107 double overtime win at Dayton (0-1) to open the season Friday night. It is the first time the Lady Lions have surpassed the 100-point mark since the 2002-03 season in a 101-74 win over Maryland and is most points scored by a Penn State squad since scoring 114 against Northwestern in a 114-49 win on Jan. 2, 2000.
The Lions had five players reach double figures, including three players with 20 or more tallies. Gray paced Penn State with a career-high 27 points on 10-of-17 shooting, including a 7-for-11 effort from behind the arc. She also dished out three assists and pulled in three boards. Sophomore Nikki Greene (Diboll, Texas) notched her second career double-double with career highs of 20 points and 16 rebounds, while sophomore Alex Bentley (Indianapolis, Ind.) narrowly missed her first career double-double with 26 points and nine assists.
Redshirt sophomore Mia Nickson (Ashburn, Va.) came off of the bench to score 15 points with nine rebounds and three steals and freshman Maggie Lucas (Narberth, Pa.) rounded out the double-digit scorers with 12 tallies. Junior Renee Womack (Lansdale, Pa.), who is returning from ACL surgery, scored all five of her points in the final 2:43 of the second overtime to seal the win for Penn State.
Bentley was on fire early as she scored 10 points to lead the Lady Lions to a 12-3 lead in the first four minutes. Following one free throw by Dayton, Lucas scored her first collegiate points to push the Penn State lead to 14-4 with 15:34 left in the opening frame. The Flyers fought back and cut the lead to two points after a 12-4 run to make it an 18-16 game with less than 10 minutes remaining.
After several exchanges in scores, the Lady Lions were able to stretch the lead back to seven points on Bentley's fadeaway jumper at the shot clock buzzer to make it a 35-28 game with 5:20 remaining. However, the Flyers finished the half on a 12-5 run to send the teams into the break tied at 40-40.
Bentley led all scorers with 17 points and two steals, while Nickson added seven points and three rebounds. Senior Julia Trogele (Devon, Pa.) and Greene each pulled in seven rebounds for the Lady Lions.
The second half continued the dead heat until four points by Greene and a pair of points by Gray gave Penn State a 50-46 lead four minutes into the second frame. However, the Flyers scored six of the game's next eight points to squad the game at 52-52 with 12:31 on the clock.
The game remained a seesaw affair until the Flyers took a five-point lead at 68-63 with 7:20 remaining. The Lady Lions came back to tie the game at 68-68 with 6:25 left on a rebound and layup by Nickson and a three-pointer by Gray. After an exchange of baskets, Patrice Lalor knocked down a three-pointer and Justine Raterman scored to give Dayton a 75-70 lead with 4:20 on the clock. Lucas drained a three-pointer to cut the lead, but Dayton got back-to-back three-pointers from Raterman and Kristin Daugherty to stretch the lead to 81-73 with 2:22 left.
Bentley stopped the Dayton run with a basket and cut the lead to six (81-75). After Kari Daugherty made one of two free throws, Greene converted on a 12-footer to slice the Flyer lead to 82-77 with 1:49 remaining. Kayla Moses split a pair of free throws to give the Flyers a six-point lead (83-77) with 1:29 left. Gray responded nine seconds later with a three-pointer to cut the lead in half (83-80). After a defensive stop, the Lions took possession and Gray tied the game with a three-pointer with 15 ticks on the clock to square the game at 83-83. Both teams had opportunities to win the game but neither could convert.
Kristin Daughterty continued to have the hot hand and gave the Flyers the early lead in the extra period, but Trogele hit her first three-pointer of the season to give the Lady Lions an 86-85 lead with four minutes left. However, Dayton scored the game's next four points to take an 89-86 advantage with three minutes remaining. The squads swapped scores for the next several possessions and the Lions took the ball with less than 20 seconds remaining, but Lucas' attempt was blocked as time wound down.
Penn State won the tip to start the second overtime and immediately converted with a basket by Bentley. After a defensive stand, Lucas drained a pair of free throws to give the Lions a 102-98 lead with 3:51 remaining. The squads swapped scores on their next possession before Kristin Daughterty drained another three-pointer to make it a one-point Penn State lead at 104-103 with less than three minutes to play. Womack scored the game's next five points to give the Lady Lions a 109-103 lead with 39.9 seconds remaining in the second overtime. The Lions would seal the win with three additional free throws down the stretch to come away with a 112-107 win.
GAME NOTES: The Lions reached the 100-point plateau for the first time since scoring 101 points against Maryland on Dec. 4, 2002 ... The 112 points scored are the most points since a 114-49 win over Northwestern on Jan. 2, 2000 ... Sophomore forward Marisa Wolfe made her first career start ... Maggie Lucas scored her first collegiate points at the 15:34 mark of the first half and knocked down her first career three-pointer with 7:34 left in the opening frame ... Mia Nickson scored her first points in a Penn State uniform with a layup at the 14:02 mark of the first half ... Sophomore Nikki Greene reached the 200-rebound plateau for her career (208) ... Greene posted her second career double-double with career highs of 20 points and 16 rebounds ... Junior Zhaque Gray had a career-high 27 points besting her previous career high of 19 points set against Buffalo on Nov. 27, 2009 ... Redshirt sophomore Mia Nickson had a career-high 15 points, surpassing her previous career mark of seven points set against Wake Forest on Jan. 15, 2009
The Lady Lions return home to face Rider in their home opener on Sun., Nov. 14 at 2 p.m. Fans will receive a schedule magnet while supplies last and season ticket holders can bring a friend for just $1. 2010-11 Lady Lion Basketball Single-game tickets are available by calling 814-863-1000 or 800-NITTANY. The PNC Flex Books are available again this year for $99. The Flex Book gives fans 12 vouchers, including one for the Coaches vs. Cancer game and one for the Pink Zone game, that can be redeemed for Nittany Lion and Lady Lion Basketball tickets in any combination.
The 2011 WBCA Pink Zone at Penn State will take place on Sunday, Feb. 27 at noon as the Lady Lions take on Northwestern in the Bryce Jordan Center. The game can be seen on the Big Ten Network. Last year, the Lady Lions donated more than $80,000 for breast cancer causes. This year's fundraising efforts will benefit the Mount Nittany Medical Center, Penn State Hershey Cancer Institute, Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition, the Kay Yow Cancer Fund and J.C. Blair Memorial Hospital. For more information on the Pink Zone at Penn State, visit the official Pink Zone website at www.gopsusports.com/pinkzone. The WBCA Pink Zone at Penn State is also on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pinkzoneatpennstate.
The Lady Lions are on Twitter. Follow sports information contact Kris Petersen (@ladylionsid) and the Lady Lions and coaches (@pennstatewbb) to get the inside scoop. The Lady Lions are also on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pennstateladylions.