Oct. 28, 2017
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -The first on-court experience for the 2017-18 Penn State women's basketball team comes in the form of Cedarville University, as the Lady Lions and Lady Jackets will square off in an exhibition contest on Sunday, Oct. 29 inside the Bryce Jordan Center. Tipoff is slated for 2 p.m.
Follow Along
- Fans can follow along with Penn State's exhibition contest vs. Cedarvile on Twitter and Instagram (@PennStateWBB), or via live stats with the links to the right.
Preseason Page
Page earns Preseason All-B1G for second-straight season
After a standout 2016-17 campaign, junior Teniya Page was named to the preseason All-Big Ten squad by both the conference coaches and media panels to start 2017-18.
A preseason all-conference pick by the conference coaches in 2016-17, Page ranked No. .4 in the conference in scoring at 19.9 points per game as a sophomore.
She enters the season already eclipsing the 1,000-point mark and is among the conference active leaders in points (1,091) and assists (240).
Built for Now and Later
2017-18 roster features a strong foundation with zero seniors
It's not often that a program can enter a season looking at a roster it will have fully in tact for two seasons, but head coach Coquese Washington has that luxury in 2017-18.
This season's roster includes no seniors and features four juniors, two redshirt-sophomores, a pair of true sophomores and three true freshmen.
Leading scorer Teniya Page returns for her junior campaign and looks to climb the career scoring charts after becoming the fourth sophomore in school history to eclipse the 1,000-point mark last year. Her 1,091 tallies enter the season ranked tied for No. 32 on the career charts, but sit just 572 points shy of the No. 10 spot in the record books.
Long-range threat Jaida Travascio-Green hit 46 3-pointers during the 2016-17 season, while Amari Carter ranked No. 13 nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio last season, handing out 134 assists to lead the team.
De'Janae Boykin will return to the hardwood after playing only six games last season - sitting out the 2015-16 campaign due to NCAA transfer rules - and Penn State adds rookies Sam Breen, Kamaria McDaniel and Alisia Smith to the fold.
WNIT Success
Penn State returned to national postseason in 2016-17
A return to the national postseason highlighted Penn State's 2016-17 campaign, as the Lady Lions advanced to the third round of the Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT).
After a two-year absence, Penn State hosted the postseason inside the Bryce Jordan Center, opening WNIT play with a 74-65 victory over Ohio. After toppling Fordham, 70-51, in the second round, the Lady Lions fell to Virginia Tech, 64-55, in the round of 16.
Teniya Page registered a WNIT-record 24 points vs. Fordham, while joining Jaida Travascio-Green on top of the 3-pointers made charts in a WNIT contest at three. Both players also hit 3-of-4 shots from distance to set the standard for 3-point shooting percentage in WNIT games.
Carter, Travascio-Green Shine in Debut Seasons
Duo write names among top rookies
The rookie record books have seen a number of new additions over the past 10 seasons under head coach Coquese Washington and 2016-17 was nothing different.
True freshman Jaida Travascio-Green connected on 46 shots from 3-point range to move into No. 4 on the Penn State rookie charts. Her effort moved her past such names as Alex Bentley, Teniya Page and Jess Strom. The .329 shooting percentage from distance finished just outside the top-10, as she averaged 1.5 makes from distance per game.
Redshirt freshman Amari Carter etched her name onto a pair of rookie lists and finished among the top-5 in assists and games started. After missing 2015-16 due to injury, Carter started all 32 games during her redshirt season, a total that is tied for No. 4 with Louise Leimkuhler (1979-80).
Carter's season was also highlighted by a high assist output and low turnover numbers. Her 134 helpers on the season rank No. 5 on the all-time freshman list. She also committed just 49 turnovers, good for a 2.73 assist-to-turnover ration, which finished No. 13 nationally and No. 2 in the Big Ten.
3-point Prowess
Lady Lions finish No. 3 in program history in makes from distance
The 2016-17 roster finished No. 3 all-time at Penn State with 193 made 3-pointers, trailing only the school record 228 made triples by the 2002-03 and 2010-11 squads.
On an individual level, Teniya Page, Lindsey Spann and Jaida Travascio-Green become just the second trio in school history to each make 40-plus 3-pointers in a single season. Page connected on a team-best 64 triples, Spann made 41 shots from distance and Travascio-Green added 46 makes.
The 2016-17 group joined Jennifer Brenden (41), Kelly Mazzante (98) and Jess Strom (41) from 2002-03 as the only teams in Penn State history with three players to connect on 40-plus shots from distance.
Carter Assist-Turnover
Washington, D.C. product among nations most efficient ball handlers
It's not an easy task to step into college basketball as a point guard, especially when you are sidelined for nearly two full seasons due to injury. However, Amari Carter made the transition look like a walk across campus in the summer.
The first-year player handled the fast-paced Penn State offense like a veteran, leading the team in assists and ranking among the national leaders in assist-to-turnover ratio at 2.73.
She led the team in assists on 18 occasions - including 14 games with 5-plus assists - and committed two-or-fewer turnovers in 27-of-32 games played. She had six game with zero turnovers and averaged 30 minutes per game in 32 starts.
Rookies Add to Talented Roster
Trio of newcomers bring multitude of talents to 2017-18 roster
Accumulation of talented people is paramount to any organization, and that is a motto that head coach Coquese Washington builds her teams around.
The additions of Sam Breen (Pittsburgh), Kamaria McDaniel (Inkster, Mich.) and Alisia Smith (Lansing, Mich.) to the 2017-18 roster fit that model and each of them should have an impact for the Lady Lions on and off the court.
All three newcomers bring first-team all-state accolades to campus, along with Breen and McDaniel ending their careers vying for their respective state's Ms. Basketball honors.
Along with the on-court success, each brings ambition with them to campus on the academic side, with intended majors in business (Breen), agricultural sciences (McDaniel) and biobehavioral health (Smith).
1,000-point Club
Page joins elite company in scoring during her sophomore campaign
With a first-quarter layup vs. Minnesota in the Big Ten Tournament, Teniya Page joined Maggie Lucas, Kelly Mazzante and Susan Robinson as the only sophomore's in Penn State history to reach the 1,000-point plateau.
The Chicago, Illinois native pushed her name all the way to No. 32 on the career scoring charts, sitting tied with Lindsey Spann at 1,091 points. Page also joined Mazzante as the only players in Penn State history to post a 30-point game in both their freshman and sophomore campaigns.
Boykin's Back
Boykin looks to fill large role as 2016-17 was shortened by injury
De'Janae Boykin will return to the hardwood for the 2017-18 season after appearing in just six games through her first two collegiate seasons.
After transferring to Penn State from Connecticut in the middle of her freshman season, Boykin sat out the second half of the 2015-16 campaign and the first half of the 2016-17 season.
She made her collegiate debut on Dec. 18, 2016 vs. American and promptly showed what made her a top-10 recruit coming out of high school. However, after just six games, she was sidelined for the remainder of the season due to an injury.
Boykin ended her first season with the Blue and White averaging 4.7 points and 4.8 rebounds, and will look to add to those numbers once the 2017-18 campaign begins.
Page: The One and Only
Page's All-American season highlighted by a Penn State first
The rich history and tradition of Lady Lion basketball is illustrated by the immense success that the student-athletes have on and off the court. With all of the great names that have donned the blue and white, it isn't often a player can accomplish something no one else has, but Teniya Page did just that in 2016-17.
On her way to her 1,000th point, Page was able to tally 200 made field goals, 60 made 3-pointers, 100 made free throws and add 100 assists. No other Lady Lion has amassed those numbers, as page totaled 209 field goals - 64 of the 3-point variety - 136 free throws and 109 assists.
The closest any other Lady Lion had come to the mark was Suzie McConnell, who had 255-56-116-298 (FG-3pt-FT-A) in 1987-88 season.
Washington Eyes No. 200
Washington has 181 wins entering her 11th season as a head coach
In 10 years at the helm of the Lady Lion program, head coach Coquese Washington has amassed 181 career victories, leaving her just 19 shy of reaching the 200-win mark for her career.
Over the decade on the Penn State sideline, Washington has enjoyed three Big Ten regular season championships, six postseason appearances - including four NCAA Tournament berths - and five 20-win campaigns.
She looks to become the 16th head coach to reach 200 wins at a single Big Ten institution, with five of those coaches still active (Lisa Bluder, Iowa; Brenda Frese, Maryland; Suzy Merchant, Michigan State; C. Vivian Stringer, Iowa & Rutgers; Sharon Versyp, Purdue).
Page Among B1G Leaders
Page among top B1G returners in scoring and assists
After a pair of solid showings in her first two seasons, Teniya Page enters her junior season ranked among the top returners in the Big Ten in scoring and assists.
The Chicago, Illinois native is the only non-senior on the active scoring ledger, sitting No. 8 with 1,091 points. She is No. 6 on the active assists charts with 240 helpers.
Taking Care of the Rock
School-record turnover total highlights solid 2016-17 campaign
There are few things more beautiful on a basketball court than a ball-handler that takes care of the precious orange sphere. With that said, Penn State painted a masterpiece when it came to taking care of the rock in 2016-17, setting the school record for fewest turnovers per game.
In 32 games, Penn State turned the ball over just 417 times or an average of 13.0 turnovers per game, besting the 13.1 turnovers per game by the 2003-04 squad. It also marked just the fourth time that Penn State logged under 14.0 turnovers per game.
Six times in 2016-17 the Lady Lions committed eight-or-fewer missteps in a game, including a school-record-tying six on three occasions.
The season total was bolstered by a string of three-straight games with 10-or-fewer turnovers from Jan. 16-23, the first such streak in school history.
A point guard herself, head coach Coquese Washington's teams now own five of the top-10 lowest turnovers-per-game averages in Penn State history.
Page USA Basketball
Page among 40 student-athletes selected for U23 training camp
The opportunity to wear the red, white and blue was on the table again for junior Teniya Page this summer, as she was one of 40 student-athletes selected to attend the USA Basketball U23 Training Camp.
Though her team won the four-day, round-robin tournament in Colorado Springs, Page suffered an injury late in the training camp and was unavailable to be named to the roster for the Four Nation's Tournament.