March 24, 2014
By Mike Esse, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - It was a senior led effort Sunday at the Bryce Jordan Center that propelled the Penn State women's basketball team to a second round berth in the NCAA Tournament. Maggie Lucas led the way in the scoring column with 22 points, but it might have been Talia East that was most pivotal in the Lady Lions 62-56 win over Wichita State.
East's 13 points didn't stand alone though, in terms of her contributions. The senior added 13 rebounds and two blocked shots to her stat line Sunday and that was a big reason why the Lady Lions were able to close the game down the stretch, after trailing by as many as 11 on the afternoon.
In the final 90 seconds of the game, East came up with two and-one buckets that kept Penn State in front of the Shockers in the waning moments. Penn State head coach Coquese Washington said she told her team to go to East late in the second half because of the way the senior was handling the inside defense of Wichita State.
"We did [target East], especially during the second half," Washington said. "We really wanted to get the ball inside. She split the double team a couple of times and made some big plays and big baskets. I think that gave the entire team confidence."
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