Jan. 3, 2014
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UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. - The #17/15 Penn State Lady Lions (9-3, 0-0 Big Ten) open the Big Ten portion of their schedule on Sunday with a tough road trip to #23/22 Iowa (12-3, 0-1) at 3 p.m. (ET). 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.
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: Senior guard Maggie Lucas scored a team-best 18 points as the Lady Lions recorded a 70-56 victory over Hartford (3-10) on Dec. 29. Lucas poured in eight points in the first half and followed with 10 in the second to finish with 18 tallies on the day and move into 13th place on the Big Ten's career scoring list (2,091), passing Illinois' Ashley Berggren (2,089). Fellow senior Ariel Edwards had a solid outing, scoring 15 points on an efficient 6-of-11 shooting from the field. She also grabbed seven boards and dished out an assist in the win. The Lady Lions had a very balanced offensive attack with 10 players finding their way into the scoring column, with six totaling five or more points.
SCOUTING IOWA: The Hawkeyes are ranked 23rd by the USA Today Sports Coaches' Poll and 22nd in the Associated Press Poll with a 12-3 record. However, Iowa is coming off of an 86-84 loss at Indiana to open conference play. Iowa is led by do-everything point guard Samantha Logic, who leads the team in scoring (14.9), rebounds (6.7), assists (6.6) and steals (1.8). Additionally, Melissa Dixon has helped to spur a Hawkeye offense that scores 82.7 points per game with a 14.8 scoring output of her own. Bethany Doolittle adds 13.9 points per game and a team-best 3.3 blocks per game, while Ally Disterhoft also averages double figures at an 11.9 per contest clip.
ALL-TIME VERSUS THE HAWKEYES: The Lady Lions are 25-17 all-time against Iowa. PSU is just just 8-11 in games played in Iowa City, but has won the last three games at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Penn State has won the last four contests against the Hawkeyes and six of the last seven. The Lady Lions swept the season series a year ago with of 68-52 win at home and an 81-69 victory at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
LAST TIME VERSUS IOWA: The Lady Lions landed four players in double figures en route to an 81-69 win at Iowa on Feb. 14, 2013. Maggie Lucas connected on a trio of three-pointers as she led the way with 21 points for her 11th 20-point performance of the season. She also tallied four rebounds and a steal. Ariel Edwards provided a spark off of the bench, going 5-for-7 from the field and free throw line en route to 15 points in 18 minutes. Alex Bentley was also solid with 14 points with four assists and four steals, while Mia Nickson was the final Lady Lion in double figures with 11 points to go with eight rebounds.
BIG TEN OPENERS: The Lady Lions are 12-9 all-time in Big Ten openers since joining the league in 1993. Penn State also holds a 12-9 record in conference road openers. The last time Penn State opened conference play in Iowa City, the Lady Lions posted a 68-59 win over the then-#14/13 Hawkeyes in the 2010-11 season. Penn State is 231-115 all-time in Big Ten Conference play.
PURDUE GAME TIME AND TV SHIFTS: The Lady Lions' Big Ten home opener against Purdue, which was originally slated for a 2 p.m. tip, has been moved to a 3 p.m. start. Additionally, the game will now air on ESPN.
LUCAS RISES ON BIG TEN SCORING LIST: With 18 tallies versus Hartford on Dec. 29, Maggie Lucas moved into 13th place on the Big Ten's career scoring list with 2,091 points. Lucas passed Illinois' Ashley Berggren (2,089; 1995-98) for the 13th slot in conference history. Lucas needs six points to tie Minnesota's Carol Ann Shudlick (2,097; 1991-94) for 12th place.
NINE NON-CON WINS: With a 70-56 win over Hartford on Dec. 29, the Lady Lion closed out their non-conference schedule with a 9-3 record. This is the fourth consecutive season that the Lady Lions have touted at least nine non-conference wins. Penn State had 11 non-conference wins in 2010-11 and 10 victories in both 2011-12 and 2012-13.
ALSTON TO TRANSFER: Freshman center Infiniti Alston has elected to transfer following the fall semester. Alston saw action in four games for the Lady Lions this season.
SHUTOUT FROM LONG RANGE: The Lady Lions did not connect on a three-pointer in their win over Hartford on Dec. 29, marking the first time that Penn State was held without a triple since November 30, 2011 at South Carolina, a string of 73 games. Additionally, Maggie Lucas was held without a three-pointer for the second-straight game for the first time in her career. Lucas had her school record of 45-straight games with a three-pointer snapped against Alcorn State on Dec. 22.
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 15th place in program history with three rejections versus Texas A&M on Dec. 15 to bring her career total to 72. With her performance against A&M, East passed Janessa Wolff (67; 2008-10) for the 17th spot and Kelly Mazzante (68; 2001-04) for 16th place. With four blocks against Alcorn State on Dec. 22, Waldner moved into a tie for 16th place on the Penn State chart, passing Janessa Wolff (67; 2008-10) for 17th place and Kelly Mazzante (68; 2001-04) for 16th spot. Waldner has blocked a shot in each of the last 11 games.
The Lady Lions continue their road swing to open conference play at Illinois Thursday at 9 p.m., a game that will air on the Big Ten Network. Penn State's Big Ten home opener will take place on Sunday, Jan. 12 against Purdue at 3 p.m. on ESPN. The game will feature Military Appreciation Day and a Dara Taylor mini-bobblehead giveaway.
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.