Nov. 14, 2015
By Mike Gilbert, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. ââ'¬" In the second quarter of a tight opener for the Lady Lions, guard Keke Sevillian decided she wanted to make an impact off the bench.
The junior from Goodrich, Michigan stepped in front of a pass by a Holy Cross player and took it coast-to-coast for a right-handed layup. Then on the next possession, she did it again, this time intercepting a pass and finding Teniya Page on a bounce pass in the paint leading to a foul.
Sevillian wasn't done. She drew a charge on the following Holy Cross possession and forced a backcourt violation shortly after, contributing significantly to Penn State's 86-82 victory. She has earned her reputation as a defensive specialist on this year's team, and there has only been one regular season game played.
"She was key. She was huge," said head coach Coquese Washington. "She's a tremendous defensive player for us and brings tremendous energy, and a spark off the bench so she was huge and was out there in overtime and helped us lock down a bit more defensively."
Sevillian added seven points along with a rebound to go with the two steals, but her presence was felt far beyond the box score. Once guard Brianna Banks fouled out in overtime, Sevillian was there to come in and shut down the Crusaders, holding them to just 10 points in the overtime period.
Before Banks fouled out in overtime, she had herself a game, as well. Scoring 20 points and opening up driving lanes to the hoop all night long will certainly help her confidence moving forward.
"It was just something to get the team pumped up and ready to go," said Banks.
Peyton Whitted led the way with 22 points and 11 rebounds in the victory. Combining the offensive scorers like Whitted and Banks with the defensive specialists like Sevillian will help to form the complete team that Coach Washington wants to see throughout the season.
Penn State returns home on Sunday to meet Fordham at 2 p.m. in the BJC.