Nov. 10, 2017
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- In its first contest of the 2017-18 season, the Penn State women's basketball team took an 86-72 victory over Siena at the Bryce Jordan Center on Friday, Nov. 10.
Penn State is now 2-0 against Siena and improves to 15-0 against the Metro Atlantic Athletic Association with its decisive victory over the Saints.
The Lady Lions improved to 41-13 all-time in season openers, while moving its record to 46-8 all-time in home opening games - including a 19-3 mark at the Bryce Jordan Center.
Sophomore Amari Carter (Washington, D.C.) led Penn State with a team-best 19 points while three other Lady Lions had double-digit efforts on the night. Sophomore Jaida Travascio-Green (Lisle, Ill.) notched 14 points with three 3-pointers and Siyeh Frazier (Detroit, Mich.) also contributed 14 points to the Blue and White scoring effort. The final double-digit scorer for Penn State was Jaylen Williams (Easton, Mass.) with a career-high 10 points.
Freshmen Alisia Smith (Lansing, Mich.), Sam Breen (Gibsonia, Pa.), and Kamaria McDaniel (Inkster, Mich.) record their first career points donning the Blue and White as Smith led the rookies with nine points, Breen added seven and McDaniel netted five.
Frazier had a career-high six assists and paced Penn State's defense with a career-best eight steals. The eight steals are the most by a Lady Lion since Alex Bentley had eight vs. NJIT on Dec. 23, 2012. On the boards, De'Janae Boykin (Springdale, Md.) led the team with nine rebounds while Travascio-Green pulled down a career-high eight.
Senior Kollyns Scarbrough led the Saints with 21 points, 12 rebounds, and four steals and Deja Rawls added 10 points to the team's efforts. The bench contributed 33 points to the Saint's score line.
Turning Point
With 8:34 left in second quarter
A layup by Alisia Smith started a 25-3 run that spanned the rest of the second quarter and put the game out of reach. Six different Lady Lions scored during the spurt, including five points each from Amari Carter, Siyeh Frazier and Kamaria McDaniel.
Difference Makers
Penn State
- G Amari Carter -- Led all Penn State scorers with 19 points which included two 3-pointers and brought down six rebounds and added five helpers.
- G Jaida Travascio-Green -- Scored 14 points and had eight rebounds.
- G Siyeh Frazier -- Had a career-high of six assists and netted 14 points.
- F De'Janae Boykin -- Had a team-best nine rebounds and added eight points.
- Penn State Freshmen -- The trio of Sam Breen, Kamaria McDaniel and Alisia Smith had solid debuts in the blue and white. Smith led all rookies with nine points, while Breen added seven and McDaniel tallied five.
Siena
- G Kollyns Scarbrough -- Paced all scorers with 21 points on the day, while also pulling down 12 rebounds.
- G Deja Rawls -- Had a double-digit scoring effort with 10 points.
- Bench Points -- The Saints bench contributed 33 of 72 points.
First Quarter
Frazier got the ball off the tip and netted a layup to start off the game quick for Penn State before Travascio-Green knocked down a 3-pointer on its next possession. The Lady Lions kept a lead throughout the first quarter with Travascio-Green scoring six points in the opening 10 minutes.
Penn State 22, Siena 16
Second Quarter
McDaniel and Breen checked in for the first time and netted their first points to expend the Lady Lion lead in the second 10 minutes of play. Penn State went on a 25-3 run over an eight-minute span as the Blue and White kept Siena scoreless for the final 4:22 of play to take a 49-22 lead into the locker room.
Penn State 49, Siena 22
Third Quarter
Penn State started the third quarter with three-straight baskets, continuing to expand on its lead over the Saints. The two teams exchange points for the remainder of the quarter before Anna Lundquist hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to bring Siena within 28 points as Penn State took a 75-47 lead into the final quarter.
Penn State 75, Siena 47
Fourth Quarter
The Saints tried to work their way back going 5-for-7 in the final five minutes of play, but Penn State maintained a 16-point lead. Siena continued to try and close the gap but the Lady Lions kept their lead notching an 86-72 win in its first contest of 2017-18.
Penn State 86, Siena 72
Up Next
Penn State returns to action Sunday, Nov. 12 when it welcomes Drexel to town at 1 p.m. Fans who cannot make it out to the game can catch all the action live on the airwaves of the Penn State Radio Network.
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