Dec. 8, 2015
Box Score | Notes | PHOTO GALLERY
| 68 | 51 |
| Bryce Jordan Center | University Park, Pa. | Attn: 2,627 | |
| POST GAME LINKS |
| Box Score (HTML) | Box Score (PDF) |
| Quotes | Notes |
| Photo Gallery (PSU) |
| VIDEO: Coach Washington Postgame |
| FINAL STATISTICS |
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The Penn State women's basketball team iced the undefeated Penguins of Youngstown State to earn a 68-51 victory in a mid-week non-conference contest at the Bryce Jordan Center on Tuesday, Dec. 8.
Penn State (4-5) scored a season-best 19 points in the opening quarter in a contest that saw just one lead change. Junior Kaliyah Mitchell (Stone Mountain, Ga.) led the Lady Lions with her first double-double of the season and fifth of her career, scoring a team-high 16 points and pulling down a team-best 12 rebounds. Three other Lady Lions netted double-digit scoring efforts, including Lindsey Spann (Laurel, Md.), who notched 13 points while Brianna Banks (Newnan, Ga.) scored 12 and Candice Agee (Victorville, Calif.) added 10.
As a team, Penn State dished out 17 assists, which is the third highest of the season and marks the ninth-straight game in which the Lady Lions have had 10 or more helpers. The Blue and White controlled the boards, outrebounding the Penguins 42-33, including 13 offensive rebounds to help snap a four-game skid.
Sophomore Sarah Cash led YSU (6-1) scoring 19 points, which was just one shy of her career high, and recording her first career double-double with a team-high 11 boards. Nikki Arbanas was the only other Penguin to record a double-digit scoring effort with 10 points, going 4-for-10 from the floor.
Youngstown State caught Penn State flat footed to start the game, going on a 7-0 run before Mitchell and Spann dropped back-to-back treys to bring the Lady Lions within one. PSU took its first lead of the contest minutes later with back-to-back layups from Mitchell, allowing the Blue and White to carry the 11-9 advantage with 2:38 remaining in the first quarter. The Lady Lions closed out the first quarter scoring eight-straight points to take a 19-9 lead into the second 10 minutes of action.
After going nearly eight minutes without a basket, the Penguins scored six-straight points but Penn State answered back with five of its own, including a fast break layup from Spann to extend the Lady Lion lead to 24-15 with five minutes left to play. The two teams exchanged baskets in the remaining five minutes, allowing Penn State to take a 14-point advantage, 35-21, at the half.
The Penguins found some offense to open the third quarter, including six points from Arbanas to cut the Penn State lead to nine, 44-35, with 4:50 remaining in the quarter. The Lady Lions closed out the quarter on a 10-6 run, capped off with a lay up from Mitchell to take a 54-41 lead heading into the final 10 minutes of play.
Penn State came out of the short break on fire with two layups within 16 seconds of each other, extending its lead to 17 points and forcing YSU Head Coach Josh Barnes to call a timeout to slow the Lady Lions. The timeout did not prove to be in vain as the Blue and White suffered a five minute scoring drought before extending its lead to 66-51 with 1:20 remaining on an Ashanti Thomas (Lexington, Ky.) lay up. A Banks layup to close out the contest allowed Penn State to capture the decisive 68-51 victory.
The Lady Lions will head to St. Bonaventure, N.Y. for a weekend game against the Bonnies on Saturday, Dec. 12. Penn State and St. Bonaventure are set to square off on the hardwood at 1:30 p.m. in the non-conference contest. Fans who cannot make the game can catch it live on the airwaves on the Penn State Sports Network.
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