Jan. 14, 2014
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UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. - The #17/16 Penn State Lady Lions (11-4, 2-1 Big Ten) are back in the BJC to face Ohio State (12-7, 2-1) on Thursday at 7 p.m., for the Lady Lions' Annual Book Drive game and Dollar Dog Night. Additionally, fans will receive an Ariel Edwards mini-magnetic bobblehead while supplies last. The game will air on Big Ten Network with Eric Collins and LaChina Robinson on the call.
PROMOTIONS: Thursday is the Lady Lions' Annual Book Drive. Fans that donate a new or gently used book for the Schlow Library will receive a ticket for just $5. It's also Dollar Dog Night in the BJC!
GIVEAWAY: Fans will receive an Ariel Edwards mini-magnetic bobblehead while supplies last. Fans will get a voucher at the gate to redeem the bobblehead at the redemption locations located in the BJC. This giveaway is the four in a series of six giveaways this season; the next giveaway will be a Maggie Lucas mini-magnetic bobblehead on Sunday, Jan. 26.
LIMITED BAG POLICY: Penn State has implemented a limited bag policy at all home athletic events this season. One clear plastic one-gallon plastic bag per person will be permitted for medical needs, child care needs and general items as needed. Items that can fit in a pocket should remain in patrons' pockets (i.e. keys, cell phone, wallet, glasses, camera, sunscreen, lip balm, make-up). General items of this nature, including those that don't fit in patrons' pocket, can also be placed in a clear plastic one-gallon plastic bag. All clear bags will be inspected through the bag and article check stations as in prior years.
TV: The game will air on Big Ten Network with Eric Collins and LaChina Robinson on the call. The game is also available on BTN2GO.
RADIO: The game is on the Penn State Sports Network and WRSC 1390 locally with Jerry Fisher and Julia Trogele calling the action. The audio feed is available at www.GoPSUsports.com.
LAST TIME OUT: The Lady Lions tied the school record with 14 blocks on the day, but it was not enough as the Lions dropped an 84-74 decision to #20/21 Purdue. The loss was also Penn State's first to a Big Ten team at home since Jan. 7, 2012 (Michigan State). Maggie Lucas scored her 17 points thanks in part to two treys. The senior guard added seven rebounds, an assist and a steal to complete her afternoon. Fellow senior Dara Taylor totaled 13 points and led the squad with six assists, while Ariel Edwards tallied 12 points to go along with six rebounds, four assists, two blocks and a steal. Senior Talia East turned in one of the most impressive stat lines of the game for Penn State, totaling 10 rebounds, nine points and a career-high seven blocks.
SCOUTING OHIO STATE: The Buckeyes are 12-7 overall and 2-1 in Big Ten play and are coming off of a 70-51 win over #22 Indiana Saturday. OSU has been hot lately, winning five of their last six games. Ameryst Alston leads the way for OSU with 16.9 points, 2.5 steals and 1.4 steals per game. She is also shooting at a 46.2% clip. Darryce Moore adds 9.6 points and a team-best 6.5 rebounds per game, while Martina Ellerbe averages 9.2 points and 5.7 rebounds.
ALL-TIME VERSUS THE BUCKEYES: The Lady Lions are 34-21 all-time against Ohio State. PSU is 18-6 in games played in Happy Valley, including wins in the last two in the BJC. Penn State has won the last three meetings with the Buckeyes. The Lady Lions won both games between the teams last season, a 71-56 victory at Value City Arena and a 76-66 win the Big Ten Tournament.
LAST TIME VERSUS OSU: The Lady Lions shot 62.5% in the second half en route to a 76-66 win over ninth-seeded Ohio State in the 2013 Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals on March 8. Alex Bentley went 8-for-13 from the field en route to 20 points with four assists and a steal to lead the Lady Lions. Maggie Lucas knocked down a trio of three-pointers en route to 18 markers with two assists and two steals, while Nikki Greene also reached double figures with 17 points, five rebounds and a pair of blocks. Mia Nickson just missed out on a double-double with eight points and a game-high 11 rebounds.
WE MEET AGAIN: The Lady Lions will square off against its most frequent rival in the Big Ten when they welcome the Buckeyes to the BJC for the 56th meeting between the two. The squads have squared off 34 times in Big Ten regular-season play with Penn State holding a 20-14 advantage and 10 times in the Big Ten Tournament with each team winning five times. The teams also met 11 times before Penn State joined the conference with the Lions going 7-4 in those games.
FORMER COLLEAGUES MATCH-UP: Coquese Washington and Ohio State's Kevin McGuff will meet for the second time as head coaches. McGuff got the win in the first contest between the two with a 72-68 win on Nov. 15, 2007 while he was the head coach at Xavier. The two were assistants together at Notre Dame for three seasons, including the 2001 National Championship campaign.
BJC BLOCK PARTY: One game after being shutout in the blocks column, the Lady Lions did something that it hadn't done in more than 30 years and tied the school record with 14 rejections against Purdue on Jan. 12. The effort ties the Penn State record set previously against Boston University (1/22/82) and Delaware (2/15/80). The 14 blocks are also the third-most in Big Ten history (17 - Wisconsin vs. Iowa, 12/23/83 and 16 - Michigan State vs. New Mexico State, 12/3/99) and second-most in a Big Ten game in conference history. Senior Talia East tied her career high with seven blocked shots against the Boilers, equaling the mark set at South Carolina (11/23/11). The seven blocks are the third-highest single-game total in school history, which has occurred 10 times.
EDWARDS & TAYLOR INCREASE PRODUCTION: With the graduation of a strong senior class a year ago, Dara Taylor and Ariel Edwards have stepped in to fill the gaps as both have significantly increased their offensive production from a year ago. Taylor is averaging 12.3 points, 4.5 assists and 2.7 steals per game this season, which is up from 7.0 points, 3.4 assists and 2.4 steals a year ago. She has also increased her field goal percentage from .382 to .412 and free throw percentage from .623 to .792 as a senior. Edwards has also turned in a impressive jump in production, improving her scoring average by six points (7.9 to 13.9) and rebounding average by nearly two boards a game (3.2 to 5.0).
DUO BLOCKING THE LANE: Senior center Talia East and junior center Tori Waldner have made it tough for opponents to find success in the lane as the pair have moved into the Top 20 in school history in blocks. East moved into 14th place in program history with four rejections versus Purdue on Jan. 12 to bring her career total to 80. With her performance against the Boilers, East passed Tyra Grant (75; 2007-10) for 14th place. East needs one rejection to move into a tie for 13th place with Kahadeejah Herbert (81; 1982-85) and six blocks to move into a tie for 11th spot with Reicina Russell (87; 2003-04) and Vicki Link (87; 1984-87). With one block against Hartford on Dec. 29, Waldner moved into sole possession of 16th place on the PSU chart, passing Kelly Mazzante (68; 2001-04). With 73 career rejections, Waldner needs two rejections to tie Grant for 14th spot.
BOUNCEBACK-ABILITY: Penn State has shown that it is resilient after a loss. The Lady Lions have won their last 18 games following a loss, dating back to the 2010-11 season. The Lady Lions last lost consecutive games on Feb. 17 and Feb. 24, 2011, which is the only time this season class has lost consecutive games in their career. PSU is 3-0 in games after a loss this season.
The Lady Lions travel to Michigan State to face the Spartans on Sunday at 5 p.m. on ESPN2 before returning to the BJC to host Indiana on Wednesday, Jan. 22 at 7 p.m. It's Dollar Dog Night and Centre County Women's Resource Center Day. Fans that bring items from the CCWRC needed item list and receive a $5 ticket
Lady Lion Basketball single-game and season tickets are available by calling 1-800-NITTANY. Single-game tickets are $15 and $12 for adults and seniors and $9 and $7 for youth (12 and younger). Season tickets are $99 for adults and $50 for youth (12 and under), this includes a Nittany Lion Kids Club Membership for 2013-14. New this year, the Lady Lions have introduced a Family Season Ticket package. For $200, fans will get two adult tickets and two youth tickets for the 2013-14 campaign. The PNC Flex Books are available again this year for $99. The Flex Book gives fans 12 vouchers, 10 that can be redeemed in any combination for Nittany Lion and Lady Lion Basketball tickets throughout the year and two extra vouchers for the Nittany Lions' Coaches Vs. Cancer game and the Lady Lions' Pink Zone game.
The 2014 Pink Zone at Penn State will take place on Sunday, Feb. 16 as the Lady Lions take on Wisconsin in the Bryce Jordan Center at 1 p.m. Last year, the Lady Lions donated a record $260,000 to 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, J.C. Blair Memorial Hospital and Lewistown Hospital. For more information on the Pink Zone at Penn State, visit the official Pink Zone website at www.pennsylvaniapinkzone.org.
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.