Penn State Runs Past Michigan State, 86-73, For B1G VictoryPenn State Runs Past Michigan State, 86-73, For B1G Victory
Mark Selders

Penn State Runs Past Michigan State, 86-73, For B1G Victory

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Box Score

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – A full-team offensive onslaught led the Penn State women's basketball team to an 86-73 win over Michigan State Thursday night at the Bryce Jordan Center.
 
Penn State tallied a season-best 22 assists on 31 made field goals in its efficient offensive night to earn the Lady Lions' first Big Ten victory of the season.
 
Senior Siyeh Frazier and junior Kamaria McDaniel both registered 24 points. McDaniel also led Penn State with career-best marks of 11 rebounds and nine assists, finishing just one assist shy of a triple-double. Junior Alisia Smith added 16 points and freshman Shay Hagans rounded out the double-digit scorers with a career-best 12 points.


 
HOW IT HAPPENED

  • Michigan State held an early 7-2 edge two minutes into the game, but Penn State raced back with seven-straight points over the next 53 seconds to jump in front 9-7. The score was knotted at 17-17 with just under three minutes to play in the first quarter before McDaniel drained a three-pointer that sparked a 7-0 PSU streak in a 1:06 span to help the Lady Lions take a 24-19 lead into the second stanza.
  • The Spartans were back within one at 26-25 two minutes into the second quarter, but strong passing led to four Penn State layups in the next 1:29 as the Lady Lions strung together nine-straight points to take a 35-25 lead with 6:05 left on the clock.
  • The Penn State offense continued to shine as MSU wouldn't get closer than eight for the remainder of the first half. The Lady Lion lead reached as much as 13 before an MSU jumper ended the half and PSU took a 47-36 edge into halftime.
  • The Spartans scored the first nine points of the second half to trim their deficit to two at 47-45 before McDaniel drained a clutch three-pointer at the 6:31 mark. The trey was followed by four points from Frazier to put the Lady Lion lead back at 54-47 with just over four minutes on the clock. 
  • MSU's Taryn McCutcheon hit back-to-back three-pointers that pulled the Spartans within 54-53 at the 2:25 mark. A clutch trey from Frazier then highlighted a 7-4 Penn State spurt to close the quarter and give PSU a 61-57 edge heading into the final term.
  • Michigan State was within four at 67-63 just under four minutes into the fourth quarter. Frazier scored five-straight points and Hagans followed with a jumper to put Penn State ahead 74-63 with 5:19 left on the clock.
  • The Lady Lions wouldn't look back as that 7-0 streak served as the front end of a 16-2 stretch that gave Penn State the separation it would need to pull away for the 86-73 win.

 
KEY NOTES

  • Penn State dished a season-best 22 assists. It marked the most assists since the Lady Lions recorded 22 against American on Dec. 16, 2018.
  • Penn State finished 17-of-18 from the charity stripe for a season-high 94.4 free throw percentage.
  • The Lady Lions improve to 30-18 all-time against Michigan State.
  • McDaniel recorded her first career double-double with 24 points and 11 rebounds. Her 11 rebounds are a career high, besting her previous high of eight against Maryland on Dec. 28, 2018.
  • McDaniel also dished out a career-high nine assists, just one assist short of a triple-double.
  • Of McDaniel's 24 points, 15 came from beyond the arc to tie a career-high five three-pointers made.
  • McDaniel now has six 20-plus point performances this season. She has tallied double-digit efforts in 14 of Penn State's 15 games.
  • Frazier scored a career-high 24 points, besting her previous high of 21 against Minnesota on Dec. 28, 2019.
  • Frazier also tied a season high with five assists.
  • Hagans scored a career-high 12 points, besting her previous high of 11 against Sacred Heart on Dec. 22, 2019. Hagans finished a game-best +25 in plus/minus.
  • Smith was the fourth Lady Lion to record double-digits with 16 points, her fifth double-digit effort of the season.

 
FROM THE SOURCE
Head Coach Carolyn Kieger

  • "I'm extremely proud of our team's effort tonight. We've been talking about max effort for the last three weeks and trying to get them to play with the sense of urgency that we need them to. We watched some film to fix our first three steps on offense, and I thought they did a great job tonight on primary and transition."
  • "I can't say enough about Kamaria McDaniel tonight. I thought our posts were fantastic and were setting screens and doing the little things for us. I've been challenging Shay Hagans a lot in practice and in film sessions because I believe she can give us more, and tonight she did that for us. She accepted the challenge and rose to it, and I think this will be the start of something special for her. Siyeh Frazier just attacks the bucket with a sense of urgency that's hard to guard. When she gets it in her mind that she's going to attack the rim then she is pretty hard to stop. She's a spark for us."

 
UP NEXT

  • Penn State hits the road Sunday to face Ohio State.
  • Tipoff from Columbus, Ohio is slated for 2 p.m.