Nov. 19, 2010
"Like It" Day Coupon - Official Lady Lion Facebook Page
South Carolina Game Notes (11/21/10)
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. - The Penn State Lady Lions (3-0) have been an offensive juggernaut for the first three games of the season en route to a 3-0 record. The Lions will look to go 4-0 when they host SEC foe South Carolina at the Bryce Jordan Center on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. Fans will receive a Nikki Greene Growth Chart at the gates while supplies last. The game will be televised on the Big Ten Network.
PROMOTIONS/GIVEAWAY: Sunday is 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. For those fans attending Sunday's NCAA Men's Soccer Second Round game against Old Dominion, bring your ticket stub to the ticket office and receive a $5 ticket to see the Lions vs. Gamecocks. Sunday is also Dollar Dog Day. Fans will receive a Nikki Greene Growth Chart at the gates while supplies last.
TELEVISION: The game will air live on the Big Ten Network with Dan Kelly (play-by-play) and Patricia Babock-McGraw (analyst) describing play.
RADIO: The game is on the Penn State Sports Network and on ESPN 1450 locally with Jerry Fisher calling the action. The audio feed and live stats are available at www.GoPSUsports.com.
SCOUTING SOUTH CAROLINA: The Gamecocks are 2-1 on the season and coming off of a win over in-state rival Clemson. Ieasia Walker leads South Carolina with a 15.7 scoring average, while La'Keisha Sutton accounts for 11.7 tallies per game. Ashley Bruner is averaging a double-double for the Gamecocks with 11.3 points and 10.7 boards per outing.
ALL-TIME VS. THE GAMECOCKS: The Lady Lions are 4-4 all-time against South Carolina, but Penn State has won four of the last five meetings. PSU is 3-2 all-time in home games against the Gamecocks. Last season, South Carolina took advantage of poor Penn State shooting to earn a 63-56 win in Columbia. The last time these teams met in the BJC, the Lady Lions earned a 56-42 win on Nov. 16 2008.
LAST TIME VS. SC: The Lady Lions just 28.6% from the field and turned the ball over 21 times, 17 of which came in the first half, on the way to a 63-56 loss at South Carolina Nov. 22. After a slow first half, Tyra Grant led three Lady Lions in double figures with 18 points, including 15 tallies in the second frame. She also pulled in six rebounds and blocked two shots before fouling out with 24 seconds left. Zhaque Gray reached double figures for the third consecutive game with 11 points to go along with six rebounds.
LAST TIME OUT: The Penn State Lady Lions erased a 14-point first half deficit with a Maggie Lucas reverse layup with eight seconds remaining in regulation and controlled overtime for a 96-89 win at Oakland Thursday. The Lady Lions, who move to 3-0 for the fifth consecutive season, landed seven players in double figures, led by junior Zhaque Gray and freshman Ariel Edwards with 16 points each. Gray added three rebounds and two assists, while Edwards also chipped in three rebounds and two blocks.
TRIPLE THREAT: The Lady Lions have been on target from long range this season. Through three games this year, Penn State has made 34 three-pointers. At this time last season, the Lions had connected on just 11 shots from beyond the arc. It took PSU 10 games to make 34 shots from three-point range. Individually, junior Zhaque Gray is on fire from deep, canning 17 shots. Gray made 23 three-pointers in her entire sophomore season.
303 POINTS IN THREE GAMES: The Lady Lions have scored 303 points in their first three games of the season. It is the most points by any Penn State team in the first three contests of the season and is the fourth-highest three-game total in school history. The most points scored in a three-game span is 312 by the 1985 squad.
FRESHMEN STEP UP: Freshmen Maggie Lucas and Ariel Edwards played a huge role in Penn State's come from behind win at Oakland on Nov. 18. Lucas was credited with the steal when she tied up an Oakland player on the inbounds play with 14 seconds remaining in regulation. Lucas also had the ball in her hands with time winding down and converted on a reverse layup with 8.4 seconds on the clock to tie the game at 87-87 to force overtime. Lucas, who scored eight of Penn State's final 11 points in regulation, finished with 13 points and three assists. Edwards was a second-half spark for the Lions, scoring all 16 of her career high points total in the final 25 minutes.
ZELLE'S CAREER HIGH: Gizelle Studevent had a career-high 10 points to surpass her previous mark of seven points against Iowa in last year's Big Ten Tournament. The sophomore scored all 10 of her points in the first half on 3-of-5 shooting from the field.
DOUBLE TROUBLE FOR JULES: Senior Julia Trogele posted her fifth career double-double with 10 points and a career-best 15 rebounds in an overtime win over Oakland on Nov. 18. Her previous career high was 13 versus Coppin State in Malibu on Nov. 29, 2008. With 10 tallies in the game, Trogele surpasses the 500-point mark for her career.
SEVEN IN DOUBLE FIGURES: Penn State landed seven players in double figures in the 96-89 overtime win at Oakland Nov. 18. Junior Zhaque Gray and freshman Ariel Edwards led the way with 16 points, while Alex Bentley added 15 and Maggie Lucas chipped in 13. Julia Trogele, Mia Nickson and Gizelle Studevent rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10 points each. The last time Penn State had six or more players in double figures was Feb. 3, 2002 when the Lions had six double-digit scorers in a win over Ohio State (95-62).
The Lady Lions will travel to Riviera Maya, Mexico for the Caribbean Challenge. Penn State will face Utah on Thursday at 2:30 p.m. (Eastern), Wisconsin-Green Bay on Friday at 2:30 p.m. (Eastern) and Hartford on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. (Eastern). All four teams in the tournament reached the postseason last year. Upon returning from Mexico, the Lady Lions will travel to Boston College of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge on Thurs., Dec. 2 before returning home to meet Texas Tech in the inaugural Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge on Sunday, Dec. 5 at 2 p.m. 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.