Jan. 2, 2016
| GAME 13 | |
| Sunday, January 3 - 3 p.m. ET | |
| Williams Arena | Minneapolis, Minn.. | |
Game Day Information:
| GAME DAY LINKS |
TV: Big Ten Network (Live) -->BTN2go VideoLive Audio (Free) |Women's Basketball BlogFollow Us: @PennStateWBB | Facebook | InstagramGame Notes: Penn State | Minnesota Statistics: Penn State | Minnesota
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. --After kicking off Big Ten play with a victory over No. 14/15 Northwestern, the Penn State women's basketball team will face its first conference road test of the season at Minnesota on Sunday, Jan. 3. The Lady Lions (6-6, 1-0 B1G) travel to Williams Arena to face the Golden Gophers (8-4, 0-1 B1G) on at 3 p.m.
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Series Notes
// Penn State and Minnesota will meet for the 42nd time in program history.
// The Lady Lions are 27-14 all-time against the Golden Gophers, but Minnesota holds a slight 10-9 edge in games played in Minneapolis.
// Every meeting between the two schools has come as members of the Big Ten Conference.
// The first meeting between the two schools came on January 12, 1992 in Minneapolis, with Penn State claiming a 75-64 victory.
// Minnesota has been the first B1G road contest for Penn State on four occasions, with the two teams splitting those meetings.
At A Glance
// Penn State opened its 24th season in the Big Ten Conference with a 79-72 victory over Northwestern on New Year's Eve. The Lady Lions are now 248-133 all-time in B1G play, including a 14-10 mark in openers.
// Freshman Teniya Page notched her second career 20-point game with a career-best 27-point effort vs. Northwestern.
// Penn State has four players averaging in double figures over the last five games, including 18.0 points from Brianna Banks and 14.4 points from Lindsey Spann.
// Senior Brianna Banks eclipsed the 20-point mark for the fourth time in 2015-16 with a 25-point showing vs. Northwestern.
// Penn State will host Michigan State on Thursday, January 7 at the Bryce Jordan Center. The Lady Lions and Spartans will tip off at 7 p.m. The game will be shown live on BTN2go.com.
Scouting Minnesota
// Minnesota enters the contest with an 8-4 overall record and are 0-1 in the Big Ten after falling at Rutgers, 66-55, on Thursday, Dec. 31.
// The Gophers have made more three pointers than any other Big Ten squad. Their 105 makes are tops in the conference and sit No. 17 nationally.
// Senior Rachel Banham ranks No. 2 in the conference and No. 9 nationally with a 22.6 points per game scoring average.
// Banham currently owns five career records for the Gophers. She tops the scoring, games scoring in double figures, 3-pointers made, 3-pointers attempted and field goals attempted.
// Senior Shayne Mullaney has twice come close to a triple-double this season. Most recently, against NJIT, with 10 points, nine rebounds and eight assists. Against Towson, she had 25 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists.
// Mullaney ranks No. 4 in the Big Ten and No . 17 nationally in assists per game. She leads the Gophers with 6.3 helpers per contest.
// Minnesota limits freebies for its opponent, averaging a Big Ten low 12.9 fouls per game. That average ranks seventh nationally.
Last Time Out - vs. No. 14/15 Northwestern (Dec. 31, 2015)
// Penn State's 62 rebounds set a Bryce Jordan Center record (Men or Women), surpassing its 61-board effort vs. Indiana on Jan. 23, 2011.
// Three players had double digit rebound efforts, marking the first time since Nikki Greene (15), Mia Nickson (15) and Maggie Lucas (10) each had 10-or-more rebounds against Ohio State on Feb. 20, 2012.
// Penn State tied its season-best with 22 points in the first quarter and set a season-high with 27 fourth quarter points.
// Teniya Page notched her 10th career double-figure scoring game and second career 20-point game with a career-best 27 points.
// Brianna Banks netted 25 points to mark her fourth 20-point effort of the season.
// Candice Agge pulled down a career-high 13 rebounds.
// Peyton Whitted notched her sixth 10-plus rebound effort of the season with 13 boards.
// Kaliyah Mitchell posted her second straight game with 10-plus rebounds, nabbing 11 boards.
B1G Highlights
// Penn State is in its 24th season in the Big Ten Conference.
// The Lady Lions own an all-time mark of 248-133.
// All-time, Penn State is 147-45 at home in Big Ten conference games, while owning a 101-88 mark in road games.
// Penn State's eight regular season championships since 1992-93 are the most won by any Big Ten team. Ohio State (7) and Purdue (6) are next on the list.
// The Lady Lions also own a pair of Big Ten Tournament titles, winning in 1995 & 1996.
// Their 25 NCAA Tournament appearances are the most in the Big Ten. Iowa, Purdue and Rutgers each have 24 NCAA Tournament appearances entering 2015-16.
Ringing in the New Year
// Penn State played its fifth game all-time on New Year's Eve and own a 2-3 record.
// The Lady Lions played the first home game on New Year's Eve in school history vs. Northwestern. Three of the meetings have been played on the road, with the other coming at a neutral site.
// Four of the five New Year's Eve games have come in Big Ten play, with the other meeting coming against current B1G member Rutgers.
B1G Bragging Rights
// Penn State owns an all-time mark of 329-189 against members of the Big Ten, including an overall winning record against 11 of the 13 teams in the conference.
// Since joining the conference in 1992-93, the Lady Lions are 274-152 vs. its conference brethren. That mark includes a 248-133 mark in conference play, a 25-19 mark in the Big Ten Tournament and one win vs. Indiana in the 1998 WNIT Semifinals.
// Since 1992-93, Penn State owns a winning mark vs. nine of the 13 Big Ten teams.
The Last Five Games
// Penn State is 3-2 in its last five games, including a 3-0 record at the Bryce Jordan Center.
// The Lady Lions are allowing 68.0 points per game, while scoring 73.8 points per contests.
// As a team, Penn State has made 79-of-105 free throws, which is 19 more makes and 26 more attempts than its opponents.
// Penn State 41.2 rebounds per game average is helped by a 62-rebound performance vs. Northwestern. That total set a Bryce Jordan Center record (MBB or WBB).
// Four players are averaging in double figures; Brianna Banks (13.6), Lindsey Spann (14.4), Teniya Page (14.0) & Kaliyah Mitchell (12.4).
// Senior Brianna Banks is averaging 18.0 points per game over the last five games, with two 20-plus point efforts.
// Junior Peyton Whitted leads the team with an 8.2 rebounds per game average.
// Junior Kaliyah Mitchell is shooting a team-best .575 (23-of-40) from the field.
Balanced in the Scoring Column
// Penn State has seen at least three players reach double figures in nine of 12 games this season.
// Four Lady Lions have eclipsed the 10-point mark in seven games - including one game with five players scoring 10-plus points.
// At USF, Penn State placed all five starters in double figures, marking the first time since Jan. 25, 2015 that five different Lady Lions scored 10 or more points in the same game.
// Freshman Teniya Page reached the 10-point plateau in each of her first eight career games.
// Five different Lady Lions have six-or-more double-digit scoring games, including freshman Teniya Page, sophomore Lindsey Spann, juniors Kaliyah Mitchell and Peyton Whitted and senior Brianna Banks.
// Perspective: In 2014-15, Penn State had four players reach double-figures in the same game on seven occasions, including two games with five players in double-digits.
Whitted Wiping the Glass
// Peyton Whitted enters today ranked No. 3 in the Big Ten and No. 50 nationally with 9.3 rebounds per game.
// She hauled in 10-plus boards in each of her first four games, making her the first player since Nikki Greene (2013) to post four straight games with at least 10 rebounds.
// Whitted entered 2015-16 with just one double-digit rebound game, but has six such games this season.
// The Suwanee, Ga. native has led the team in rebounding on eight occasions this season. She only did that twice total during her first two seasons on campus.
// Her 16-rebound effort at No. 4/5 Tennessee came against her father's alma mater. Whitted's dad, Kevin, played basketball at UT from 1993-95, leading the team in field goal percentage twice.
Banks Depositing 20's
// Senior Brianna Banks has already made the most of her only season on the court for the Blue and White, posting seven double-digit scoring games in 10 tries.
// She made her Penn State debut on Nov. 13 vs. Holy Cross and promptly tied her then-career-high with 20 points.
// In her second game, Banks eclipsed that effort with 22 points against Fordham.
// On Dec. 12 at St. Bonaventure, Banks netted a career-best 26 points on a personal-best 10 field goals.
// The Big Ten opener featured a 25-point, seven rebound, three steal effort.
// Banks has reached double figures in seven of the eight games she has completed, missing most of four games due to injury.
// Her four 20-point games are the most on the team this season. She entered the season with just one 20-point game on her resume.
// Banks played just two minutes at No. 5/4 Tennessee before leaving the game with an injury. She missed games vs. Central Connecticut State and at Cal State Northridge, and played just three minutes vs. BYU.
White Hot Start for Whitted
// Peyton Whitted enjoyed a quick start to her junior season, setting career-highs for points (22), rebounds (16), assists (7), field goals made (8) and free throws made (6) in her first three games.
// She posted three double-doubles over her first four games this season. Her 22-point, 11-rebound effort in the season opener marked her first career double-double.
// She hauled in 10-plus boards in each of her first four games, making her the first player since Nikki Greene (2013) to post four straight games with at least 10 rebounds.
// Whitted's first three career double-doubles have come against Holy Cross (22p, 11r), at Tennessee (17p, 16r) and vs. Central Connecticut State (15p, 15r).
// Her 17-point, 16-rebound effort at No. 4/5 Tennessee came against her father's alma mater. Whitted's dad, Kevin, played basketball at UT from 1993-95, leading the team in field goal percentage twice.
// Whitted was named to the Big Ten Weekly Honor Roll after averaging 16.0 points and 15.5 rebounds for the week of Nov. 16-22.
B1G Opening Win
// Penn State improved to 14-10 all-time in Big Ten openers with its 79-72 win over No. 14/15 Northwestern on December 31.
// The Lady Lions also moved their record to 9-3 in Big Ten openers played at home.
// The win over a ranked team give Penn State a 7-3 mark against such teams in the opening game of the conference season.
// The win also snapped a two-game losing streak in home conference openers.
Spann Heating Up
// After leading the team in scoring last season as a redshirt-freshman, Lindsey Spann reached double digits just twice in her first six games.
// After her two-point performance vs. BYU, Spann reached the 10-point mark in five straight games, including a pair of 20-point efforts.
// Her first 20-point effort of the season came vs. Virginia Tech on Dec. 3, pouring in 20 points.
// She added a 23-point outing against Sacred Heart on Dec. 20, adding five rebounds, five assists and three steals.
Agee Sending It Back
// Senior Candice Agee blocked four shots vs. Sacred Heart to move her career total to 107 rejections.
// She trails Tori Waldner (120, 2012-15) for the No. 8 spot on the career charts.
// Her three blocks at Cal State Northridge helped her become just the 10th Lady Lion to record 100 career rejections.
// Agee has 30 career games with two-plus blocks.
// The Victorville, Calif., native enjoyed a 13-game streak with at least on blocked shot in 2014-15. She rejected shots in each game from Jan. 6 - Feb. 26, 2015.
// Agee recorded a career-high five blocks in a win over Rider on Dec. 14, 2014.
// Agee is looking to become just the 10th player in Penn State history to register 1.0 blocks per game for a career. She is currently at 1.06 bpg.
On the Right Page
// True freshman Teniya Page has been impressive as the Lady Lion point guard to begin her career, reaching double figures in the scoring column in each of her first eight career games.
// The Chicago, Ill., native poured in a then-career-high 26 points to go along with personal best marks of eight rebounds and four steals against Cal State Northridge on Nov. 27.
// Her second 20-point effort came in the B1G opener vs. Northwestern with a career-best 27 tallies in a victory over the No. 14/15 Wildcats.
// Page opened her career with seven straight 10-plus point, four-plus assist efforts.
// Her eight straight games of 10-plus points to open her career is a feat not accomplished by Penn State's top two career scoring leaders, Kelly Mazzante and Maggie Lucas.
// She scored 15 points with seven assists vs. Holy Cross, handed out six helpers with 11 points vs. Fordham to open her career.
// Page currently ranks No. 9 in the Big Ten and No. 76 nationally with a 2.04 assist to turnover ratio.
Mitchell's Double Digit Streak
// After not reaching the scoring column in the season opener vs. Holy Cross, junior Kaliyah Mitchell secured double figures in scoring in each of the next five games.
// Mitchell led the team in scoring at USF with 18 points, just two points shy of her career-best effort.
// Mitchell posted her first double-double of the season on Tuesday, Dec. 8 against Youngstown State with 16 points and a game-high 12 boards.
// The junior added 15 points and 11 rebounds on Dec. 20 vs. Sacred Heart for her second double-double of the year.
// She has also cashed in at the free throw line, making 35-of-40 shots from the charity stripe. Her .875 free throw percentage ranks No. 4 in the Big Ten and No. 30 nationally.
// Mitchell made 19 free throws in a row from the third quarter vs. Central Connecticut State to the third quarter against Youngstown State, including a 6-of-6 effort vs. BYU on Nov. 28.
Injury Bug Strikes
// Senior guard Brianna Banks missed most of a four-game stretch due to a lower leg injury from Nov. 18 - Nov. 28. She came out of the Tennessee game with the injury, missed all of the next two contests and played sparingly in the BYU game.
// Junior guard Keke Sevillian missed the Lady Lions contest vs. Sacred Heart due to injury.
// Junior guard Sierra Moore and freshman guard Amari Carter will both miss the 2015-16 season due to injuries (knee).
// Moore averaged 12.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.8 assists, and added 15 blocked shots and 35 steals in 30 games last season.
// Carter also missed her senior year of high school due to a knee injury.
Working Overtime
// Penn State opened the season with an 86-82 overtime victory vs. Holy Cross and are now 21-18 all-time in overtime.
// The season opening overtime contest marked just the third time PSU opened a season with extra time.
// The Lady Lions are 2-1 all-time in season opening overtime games. The also won at Dayton, Nov. 12, 2010, but lost, 93-84, to Connecticut on Nov. 25, 1989 in a game played at Iowa.
// The overtime victory marked the first overtime victory for PSU since the Nov. 18, 2010 at Oakland (96-89). Penn State had lost three straight overtime contests.
Among NCAA Victory Leaders
// Penn State is one of only 16 teams in NCAA Division I to accumulate 890 or more victories in program history, with an overall record of 893-424 (.678).
// The Lady Lions are one of just three Big Ten teams to amass 890 or more victories. Ohio State (954), Maryland (895) and Penn State (893) are the three B1G schools to reach the mark.
// Of the top 20 schools on the all-time victories list, the Big Ten owns the most; four. Conference USA is second with three teams, while the SEC and Big XII each have two teams.
Washington Reaches 150
// Head coach Coquese Washington won her 150th career game on Sunday, Nov. 15 vs. Fordham, 75-59.
// Washington has started each of her nine seasons at the helm of the Lady Lions with a victory.
// In eight of the nine seasons, Penn State has began the year with at least two victories.
// Washington is unblemished in home openers, as well, winning all nine of her initial games in front of the home crowd.
2016 Pink Zone at Penn State
// The 10th Annual Pink Zone at Penn State will be held Sunday, January 17 in the Bryce Jordan Center when the Lady Lions take on Michigan. The game time will be 2 p.m. ET.
// Last year, the Lady Lions donated $999,999 after setting a record with $310,000 raised for breast cancer causes in 2013-14.
// All totaled, the Lady Lions have donated more than $1.375 million for breast cancer research and awareness in the first nine years.
// Money raised this year will be disbursed to six different beneficiaries: Mount Nittany Medical Center, The Penn State Hershey Cancer Institute, The Kay Yow Cancer Fund, PA Breast Cancer Coalition, JC Blair Memorial Hospital, and Geisinger-Lewistown Hospital.
// For more information on the Pink Zone at Penn State, visit the official Pink Zone website at www.pennsylvaniapinkzone.org.
Three McDonald's All-Americans
// The Lady Lions tout three McDonald's High School All-Americans on their roster this season in Candice Agee, Sierra Moore and Brianna Banks.
// Banks played in the 2011 contest, while Agee and Moore were participants in the 2012 game.
// Prior to Coquese Washington taking the reins, the Lady Lions only had one McDonald's High School All-American in program history.
Adding Two for 2016-17
// Head coach Coquese Washington and her coaching staff added a pair of top-25 guards during the early signing period in Siyeh Frazier and Jaida Travascio-Green.
// The 5-foot-11 Frazier averaged 18.5 points and nine rebounds per game as a junior at Renaissance High School in Detroit, Mich.
// She added nearly seven assists and six steals per game to earn AP All-State honors and Detroit Free Press Dream Team.
// An all-conference performer since her freshman year of high school, Travascio-Green garnered all-state honors after averaging 17 points, six rebounds, nearly four assists and two steals per game as a junior.
// A state qualifier and school-record holder in the high jump, Travascio-Green earned 2015 honorable mention all-state from the Chicago Tribune.
#WePlayOn
Penn State ended the WNBA season with four players on active rosters, including one All-Star and one WNBA Finals participant.
// Alex Bentley and Nikki Greene each suited up for the Connecticut Sun, Maggie Lucas played for the Indiana Fever and Tanisha Wright spent the season with the New York Liberty.
// Bentley ranked among the top-15 in the WNBA in steals (1.9) and scoring average (14.7), sitting third and 11th, respectively.
// Bentley was selected to the WNBA East All-Star roster and scored a team-best 23 points off the bench and handed out five assists.
// Lucas saw action in 30 games with a career-best 5.7 points per game average. She helped the Fever to an Eastern Conference championship and push the Minnesota Lynx to five games in the WNBA Finals.
// Wright ended her 11th season in the league with 7.4 points, 3.1 assists and 1.0 steals per game.
// Her assist total ranked ninth in the WNBA in 2015 and she moved into No. 14 in league history with 1,127 helpers in 364 career games.
// Greene played in 12 games as a late-season signing for the Sun, averaging 1.2 points and 2.0 rebounds.