Nov. 18, 2017
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PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- It is never easy to go on the road in college basketball and the Penn State women's basketball team found that out first-hand on Saturday (Nov. 18) afternoon at Providence. The Lady Lions fought through a tough shooting afternoon and a pesky opponent to earn a 60-51 victory over the host Friars inside Alumni Hall.
Penn State (4-0) and Providence (1-2) each worked through extended scoring droughts, including three each of 3-plus minutes. The Lady Lions ended up shooting 42 percent from the floor -- bolstered by a 48 percent clip in the second half -- while Providence hit just 35 percent of their shots.
Penn State improved to 4-0 on the year, its best start since beginning the 2012-13 season 5-0.
Sophomore Amari Carter (Washington D.C.) reached the 300-career point mark with a layup in the second quarter, ending the game with a career-high 23 points for the 12th double-figure scoring game and second 20-point effort of her career. The 23-point effort bested her 22-point showing at Maryland last season. She added three rebounds, two steals and one assist.
Siyeh Frazier (Detroit) reached double-figures for the fourth-straight game with 10 points, while the trio of Kamaria McDaniel (Inkster, Mich.), Jaida Travascio-Green (Lisle, Ill.) and Jaylen Williams (Easton, Mass.) each chipped in six points.
Williams added a game- and career-high three assists, while De'Janae Boykin (Springdale, Md.) led the team with seven rebounds.
Jovana Nogic led the Friars with 16 points and Maddie Jolin added 11 points.
Turning Point
With 7:44 to go in the fourth quarter
After Providence knotted the game on a Jovana Nogic 3-pointer, 43-43, Sam Breen (Gibsonia, Pa.) converted a layup to break the tie and McDaniel hit back-to-back 3-pointers to expand the lead to eight points.
Difference Makers
Penn State
- G Amari Carter -- Poured in a career-best 23 points on 10-of-20 shooting. Added three rebounds, two steals and one assist.
- G Siyeh Frazier -- Scored 10 points for her fourth-straight double-figure scoring game. Added two rebounds, one blocked shot and one steal.
- Trio with Six -- The trio of Kamaria McDaniel, Jaida Travascio-Green and Jaylen Williams each scored six points in the game.
- Defensive Pressure -- Penn State forced 16 turnovers and allowed just three true offensive rebounds in the game, holding Providence scoreless for three-plus minutes on three occasions in the game.
Providence
- G Jovana Nogic -- Scored 16 points to go along with five rebounds and two assists.
- G Maddie Jolin -- Added 11 points and three assists.
- F Allegra Botteghi -- Scored eight points and added a game-high eight rebounds.
First Quarter
For the second-straight game Frazier opened the scoring with a steal and layup, as the Lady Lions led by five in the early going, 8-3, following an Carter steal and layup with 5:07 to play. After a Friar 3-pointer with 4:41 to play made it 8-6 in favor of Penn State, the each team suffered droughts of longer than three minutes without a point. That was snapped by a Nogic 3-pointer, giving Providence its first lead, 9-8, with 59 seconds remaining. Carter snapped Penn State's 4:30 scoring drought with a jumper, pushing Penn State back into the lead, 10-9, but Ny'Dajah Jackson converted a layup with six seconds to play in the quarter to give the home team an 11-10 lead after 10 minutes.
at Providence 11, Penn State 10
Second Quarter
After hitting two of its first three shots of the second quarter, Penn State went cold from the floor for a three-minute stretch -- including a pair of layups that spun out -- before Carter's jumper ended the scoring drought. However, Providence wasn't able to expand on the lead. The two teams headed to the media timeout separated by one point, 18-17, in favor of the Friars. Penn State retook the lead on a Carter layup and the sophomore followed that with a jumper to push the Lady Lion lead to three points, 21-18, with 2:43. Penn State took the lead into the locker room thanks for stifling defense, holding Providence off the scoreboard for the final 4:57 of the opening half.
Penn State 21, at Providence 18
Third Quarter
The two teams came out of the locker room and the offense was flowing, as the first four minutes featured one tie and a pair of lead changes. After exchanging buckets to open the half, Clara Che hit a 3-pointer to knot the score at 23. After a Jaylen Williams jumper, Che knocked down another 3-pointer to push Providence into the lead, 26-25, with 7:26 to play. A layup by Frazier and 3-pointer from Carter pushed Penn State back into the lead, 30-26, with 6:04 to play. Eventually the two teams would be knotted at 34, but a 3-pointer from Carter and layup from Alisia Smith (Lansing, Mich.) pushed the lead back to five points, 39-34. The two teams traded buckets, with Providence's of the 3-point variety, to make it a four-point game headed to the fourth quarter.
Penn State 41, at Providence 37
Fourth Quarter
A 6-2 run to open the fourth quarter for Providence knotted the score at 43, but the Lady Lions reeled off eight-straight points to build the lead to 51-34 with 5:07 to play. A pair of buckets and two free throws by the Friars trimmed the lead back two, 51-49, with 3:21 to play, but Penn State scored the next six points to again bolster its lead to eight, 57-49, on a pair of Frazier free throws with 54 seconds to play. Free throws accounted for the remainder of the points on both sides and the Lady Lions held on for a 60-51 decision to stay perfect on the year.
Penn State 60, at Providence 51
Up Next
The Lady Lions return home for a Monday, Nov. 20 tipoff vs. Central Connecticut State at 6 p.m. inside the Bryce Jordan Center. Fans who cannot make it to the game can catch all the action live on the airwaves of the Penn State Radio Network with Jerry Fisher and Joe Putnam.