UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State women's basketball team opens a two-game home stand Wednesday night when the Lady Lions host #15 Ohio State in a 5 p.m. tip on the Big Ten Network. Graduate student Nia Staples will be honored prior to tipoff on Senior Night, presented by the Penn State Alumni Association.
FOLLOW ALONG
- TV: Big Ten Network – Chris Vosters (play-by-play) and Meghan McKeown (analyst)
- Listen: Penn State Sports Network with Justin Antweil and Joe Putnam – 93.3 FM, 1390 AM and online
- Live Stats: Live Stats
- Game Notes: Penn State Notes
OPENING TIPS
- The final three-game stretch of the regular season gets underway Wednesday when Penn State opens a two-game homestand against #15 Ohio State at the Bryce Jordan Center.
- Penn State has drilled double-digit three-pointers in each of its last two games, marking the first time since 2010 the Lady Lions have recorded 10-plus treys in back-to-back games.
- Johnasia Cash has recorded a double-double in eight of Penn State's last 12 games and is averaging 15.3 ppg and 9.8 rpg in Big Ten play. Niya Beverley leads the Big Ten and ranks second in the nation with a 4.3 assist-to-turnover ratio.
- The Lady Lions are the youngest team in the Big Ten with an average age of 19.56 and eight true freshmen on the roster.
IF PENN STATE BEATS OHIO STATE
- Penn State would beat a team ranked in the top 15 of the AP poll for the first time since Nov. 20, 2016 when unranked PSU defeated #13 Tennessee 70-56 inside the Bryce Jordan Center.
- The Lady Lions would snap their 11-game losing streak to the Buckeyes and earn their first victory over Ohio State since Feb. 9, 2014 when Penn State beat OSU 74-54 in Columbus.
SENIOR NIGHT PRESENTED BY THE PENN STATE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
- Nia Staples will be celebrated on Senior Night prior to tipoff of Wednesday's game against Ohio State.
- Staples will graduate this year with her master's degree in Counselor Education. Staples transferred to Penn State ahead of the 2019-20 season after graduating from West Virginia in three years with a bachelor's degree in sport and exercise psychology.
- Staples' story is one of resilience as the guard has suffered two ACL tears in the same knee during her collegiate career.
- The Cincinnati, Ohio native wrote a heartfelt and moving letter to the sport of basketball titled "Dear Basketball" ahead of Wednesday's Senior Night.
SCOUTING OHIO STATE
- The 15th-ranked Buckeyes carry a 13-4 overall record and 9-4 mark in Big Ten play into Wednesday's matchup.
- Ohio State currently sits fourth in the tightly-packed Big Ten standings.
- The Buckeyes have lost two of their last three games, dropping a Feb. 10 contest at Wisconsin (70-75) and Feb. 21 game at #11 Michigan (66-75) in their most recent action Sunday.
- All five Buckeyes starters are averaging double-digit points, led by Jacy Sheldon's 16.9 points per game. Dorka Juhasz follows with 14.9 points and a team-best 11.2 rebounds per game.
AGAINST THE BUCKEYES
- Penn State leads the all-time series 36-32, but the Buckeyes have won the last 11 matchups.
- Penn State will be looking for its first win over Ohio State since 2014.
- The two teams met last on Jan. 4 when Ohio State claimed an 82-69 victory in Columbus, Ohio.
- Penn State trimmed a 21-point deficit down to single digits with a 20-9 third-quarter run, but Ohio State held on to pull out the 82-69 win in the season's first meeting.
- Makenna Marisa led Penn State with 21 points and nine rebounds. Kelly Jekot followed with 19 points and six rebounds, while Niya Beverley added 14 points and five boards.
DEADLY FROM DEEP
- Penn State's shooters have come alive as the Lady Lions are coming off back-to-back games with double-digit treys and have made an average of 9.6 three-pointers per game over the last seven games. The Lady Lions were averaging 6.8 threes per game in the first 12 games of the season.
- In its last two games, Penn State drilled 11 threes at Nebraska (Feb. 21) and a program record-tying 14 treys at Iowa (Feb. 18), marking the first time in over 10 years (Nov. 2010) that the Lady Lions have drained double-digit threes in back-to-back games.
- Burke has hit 26 three-pointers in the last seven games combined, shooting 44.8 percent (26-for-58) from deep in that stretch. Sophomore Shay Hagans is shooting 45.5 percent (5-for-11) from three-point range in the last seven games, while senior Niya Beverley is shooting 39.5 percent (15-for-38).
FRESHMAN ON FIRE
- Freshman Maddie Burke ranks fourth amongst all Division I freshmen with 49 three-pointers this season.
- Burke has hit six three-pointers in each of Penn State's last two games, making her the first Penn State player to record back-to-back games with six or more three-pointers since former All-American and Big Ten Player of the Year Maggie Lucas '14.
- Her 49 treys already put her in fourth place on Penn State's freshman season three-point FGs made records list with at least four games remaining in the season (three regular season and one guaranteed Big Ten Tournament game), and an already shortened season due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
- Burke has drilled three or more treys in seven of Penn State's last eight games.
- The Doylestown, Pa. native has nailed five or more triples four times this season, including a career-best seven against Maryland on Dec. 31.
MARISA COMING INTO HER OWN
- Makenna Marisa has turned her game up a notch in her sophomore season.
- Marisa is currently averaging 14.2 ppg, 4.9 rpg and 4.9 apg compared to her freshman year numbers of 9.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg and 2.7 apg.
- Marisa has gone for 20-plus points on six occasions this season and has tallied 12 double-digit games.
- Marisa is coming off a 21-point, seven-rebound, six-assist effort at Nebraska Sunday.
BEVERLEY BLOSSOMING
- Senior transfer Niya Beverley (previously Wisconsin) currently leads the Big Ten and ranks second nationally with a 4.3 assist-to-turnover ratio.
- Over the last eight games, Beverley has dished 36 assists compared to just six turnovers in 323 minutes of action.
- She has also turned her scoring up a notch, averaging 13.5 ppg in the last four contests combined. Beverley is shooting 40.0 percent (20-for-50) from three-point range in Big Ten play.
- Beverley was granted immediate eligibility for the start of Big Ten play due to the NCAA's blanket transfer waiver.
CASH IS MONEY
- Senior transfer Johnasia Cash (previously SMU) has been on a tear as of late, recording double-doubles in eight of Penn State's last 12 games.
- Cash is averaging 15.3 ppg and 9.8 rpg in Big Ten play. Her season-long averages are 14.7 ppg and 9.3 rpg with nine total double-doubles.
- She earned Big Ten Player of the Week honors on Feb. 8 after shooting 63.0 percent (17-for-27) from the field while averaging 22.5 points per game and 11.5 rebounds per contest to lead Penn State to wins over Nebraska and Wisconsin.
- The McKeesport, Pa. native became the first Penn State player to record double-doubles in four-consecutive games since 1997 when she notched her fourth-straight against Nebraska on Feb. 4. Angie Potthoff was the last PSU player to accomplish the feat 24 years ago.
- Cash's efficiency has improved greatly in her first year under Head Coach Carolyn Kieger. She's shooting 46.9 percent (113-for-241) from the field this season and was a 36.0 percent (266-for-738) shooter in her three seasons at SMU.
UP NEXT
- Penn State plays its final home game of the year Sunday when the Lady Lions host #25 Rutgers at 12:30 PM on the Big Ten Network.