Nov. 14, 2010
Box Score | Quotes | Photo Gallery 
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. - The Penn State Lady Lions (1-0) continued their offensive dominance in the 2010-11 season with a stellar 95-21 victory over Rider (0-1) Sunday at the Bryce Jordan Center. The 21 tallies allowed are the seventh fewest in school history and the fewest tallies given up in since giving up 16 in a 57-16 win over Dickinson on March 6, 1971. Penn State shot 52.9% (36-68) from the field and 68.8% (11-16) from three-point range. Additionally, the Lady Lions had 18 steals off of 37 Bronc turnovers.
Guard Zhaque Gray (Chicago, Ill.) continued her solid start to her junior year with 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting, including a 6-for-9 effort from three-point range. In two games this season, Gray has 13 three-pointers made. Freshman guard Maggie Lucas (Narberth, Pa.) came off of the bench for her first career 20-point game with 22 tallies on 9-of-13 shooting. She also added three rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals.
Sophomore guard Alex Bentley (Indianapolis, Ind.) scored all 13 of her points in the second half to go along with six rebounds, seven assists and three steals. Senior Julia Trogele (Devon, Pa.) was the final Lady Lion to reach double figures with 12 points, four rebounds and two steals.
It was slow going early for both teams as they combined for a 3-for-17 start from the field, but it was the Lady Lions that started with a 10-1 lead before the Broncs made their first shot from the field. With the Lady Lions holding a 17-10 lead, Penn State went on a 36-7 run to end the first half. During the run, Penn State connected on nine consecutive three-point shots, including five treys by Gray.
Gray single-handedly outscored the Broncs with 18 points on 6-of-7 shooting from three-point range. Lucas accounted for 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting for the Lady Lions, who shot 52.9% (18-34) from the field and an stellar 81.8% (9-11) from three.
The Lions picked up in the second half where they left off by scoring the first 11 points of the frame to take a 64-14 lead thanks to six points by Bentley, a three-pointer by Renee Womack (Lansdale, Pa.) and a jumper by Gray. Following a three-pointer by Rider's Ali Heller, Penn State scored 18 consecutive points led by seven points by Bentley to push the lead to 82-17 with 8:44 left in the game.
After a bucket by Rider, Lucas scored six consecutive points to push the Penn State lead to 88-19 with less than five minutes to play. On the next Penn State possession, redshirt sophomore Mia Nickson (Ashburn, Va.) extended the lead 71 points with a layup off of a feed from sophomore Gizelle Studevent (La Jolla, Calif.). The Broncs scored their final points of the game at the 3:25 mark on a layup by Dior Brown, but it was the Lady Lions who closed out the scoring the game with a three-point play by Trogele and a layup by sophomore Marisa Wolfe (Ford City, Pa.).
GAME NOTES: The 21 points allowed by the Lady Lions are the third fewest in program history during the shot clock era and the seventh lowest total in school history ... The last time the Lady Lions allowed 21 points or fewer came in a 57-16 win at Dickinson on March 16, 1971 ... The 74-point differential stands as the second highest margin of victory in program history. The largest differential still stands at 87 point in a 118-31 victory over Morgan St. (12/29/93) ... The 74-point win is the largest margin of victory in Jordan Center history, besting the previous mark of 65 set on Jan. 2, 2000 vs. Northwestern (114-49) ... The 21 points are the fewest the Lady Lions have ever allowed at the Bryce Jordan Center ... The Lady Lions have scored 207 points in their first two games this season, the most in a two-game span since 1991 when Penn State netted 208 points in back-to-back wins over Niagara (116 pts.) and Ohio State (92 pts.) ... The two-game total of 207 points ranks third all-time for most points in a two-game span ... The Lady Lions forced Rider into 37 turnovers in the victory, the most since Jan. 29, 1999 when Penn State also forced 37 turnovers against Wisconsin ... Penn State made 11 three-point baskets against Rider, two shy of the all-time school record for three-pointers made in a game (13 vs. St. Francis, Pa., 12/2/99 & at Dayton, 11/12/10) ... Maggie Lucas notched the first 20-point game of her career with 22 tallies ... Marisa Wolfe tied her career-best with six rebounds in the win. Her previous high of 6 boards came against Michigan (2/18/10) ... Gizelle Studevent tied her career high of three rebounds, which previous came against Michigan (2/18/10) and Monmouth (12/9/09).
The Lady Lions travel to Oakland on Thursday for a 7 p.m. start before returning home to face South Carolina on Sunday, Nov. 21 at 3:30 p.m. The Gamecocks game will be Penn State Faculty/Staff Day and Facebook "Like It" Day. Any Penn State faculty or staff member will receive $5 tickets for their families, while fans who "like" the official Lady Lion Basketball Facebook page can print off a ticket voucher for one FREE ticket and present it at the ticket office. 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.