Kenna_vs_RutgersKenna_vs_Rutgers
Mark Selders

Penn State Travels To #24 Rutgers For Tuesday Rematch


UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State women's basketball team heads to New Jersey to face red-hot #24 Rutgers for the second time in three days Tuesday evening. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m. on the Big Ten Network.
 
FOLLOW ALONG

 
OPENING TIPS

  • Penn State heads to #24 Rutgers Tuesday evening to take on the Scarlet Knights for the second time in three days. Rutgers squeaked out a close 60-55 win in Happy Valley Sunday.
  • The Lady Lions are in the midst of four-straight games against Top 25 opponents to close the regular season. Penn State opened that stretch by claiming a signature win over #15 Ohio State last Wednesday as PSU secured its first victory over a Top 15 opponent since 2016.
  • Johnasia Cash has tallied 10 double-doubles and is averaging 15.1 ppg and 9.6 rpg in B1G play. Niya Beverley leads the Big Ten and ranks third in the nation with a 3.79 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 RUTGERS

  • Penn State would earn its second win over a Top 25 opponent in the last three games.
  • Penn State would earn a road win at Rutgers for the first time since the Scarlet Knights joined the Big Ten and the first time since Nov. 19, 1997 (53-43).
  • The Lady Lions would snap their five-game losing streak to the Scarlet Knights.

 
SCOUTING THE SCARLET KNIGHTS

  • Red-hot Rutgers rides a seven-game win streak into Tuesday evening's contest.
  • The #24 Scarlet Knights own a 12-3 overall record and 8-3 mark in Big Ten action. Rutgers' program was on pause for more than a month due to Covid-19 and the Scarlet Knights haven't lost a game since returning from their pause on Feb. 7.
  • Rutgers own's the Big Ten's best defense as the Scarlet Knights allow just 55.7 points per game and snatch up 13.1 steals per contest.
  • Arella Guirantes leads the team with 20.9 points and 6.1 rebounds per game. Rookie Diamond Johnson is a close second with 18.3 points per contest, while two other Scarlet Knights are also averaging double-digit points in the balanced attack.

 
AGAINST RUTGERS

  • Rutgers leads the all-time series that dates back to 1977, 30-19. Penn State is 1-10 against the Scarlet Knights since Rutgers joined the Big Ten, with that lone win being a 70-67 home victory over the #25/21 Scarlet Knights on Jan. 18, 2018.
  • Rutgers has won the last five matchups, including Sunday's contest in Happy Valley. Penn State erased a 10-point halftime deficit to take a second half lead and it was a one-possession game in the final 20 seconds, but Rutgers pulled out the 60-55 win to capture its seventh-straight win.
  • The Penn State defense held a Rutgers team that has won seven-straight games to its second-lowest scoring output of the season and fewest points since Jan. 3 in the hard-fought effort. Shay Hagans led Penn State with 15 points, while Makenna Marisa followed with 12 points. Johnasia Cash recorded her 10th double-double of the season with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

 
READY FOR A REMATCH

  • Penn State will face #24 Rutgers for the second time in three days Tuesday.
  • The road game against the Scarlet Knights was originally scheduled for Jan. 21, but postponed due to Rutgers' program pause.
  • The Scarlet Knights squeaked out a tight 60-55 victory in Happy Valley Sunday. Penn State used a strong third quarter to erase a 10-point halftime deficit and it was a one possession game in the final 20 seconds, but the Scarlet Knights went home with the 60-55 victory.
  • Sophomore Shay Hagans finished with a team-best 15 points and added five rebounds and four assists. Sophomore Makenna Marisa added 12 points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals. Senior Johnasia Cash recorded her 10th double-double of the season with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
  • The Lady Lions limited two of the conference's best scorers in Arella Guirantes (21.8 ppg) and Diamond Johnson (18.8 ppg) to just 14 and nine points respectively.

 
DEFENSE ON THE RISE

  • Penn State has turned its defense up a notch in the last two games, holding a pair of Top 25 teams significantly below their season averages in scoring.
  • The Lady Lions held a #15 Ohio State team that ranked 10th in the country in scoring offense (82.3 ppg) 15.3 points below its season average and kept the Buckeyes without a field goal for the final 4:24 in Wednesday 69-67 win.
  • Penn State then held red-hot #25 Rutgers (78.1 ppg) 18.1 points below its season scoring average in tight 60-55 loss Sunday that was a one-possession game in the final 20 seconds. It was Rutgers' second-lowest scoring output of the season and fewest points since Jan. 3.
  • Penn State has given up just 63.5 points per game in the last two contests, compared to its season-long average of 75.6 ppg.

 
SIGNATURE WIN

  • Penn State pulled off a 69-67 upset of #15 Ohio State Wednesday night.
  • A full-team effort led the Lady Lions to the gutsy two-point victory, a signature win under second-year head coach Carolyn Kieger that was Penn State's first victory against a team ranked in the top 15 of the AP poll since 2016.
  • Sophomore Makenna Marisa hit what proved to be the game-winning layup with 1:01 to play before the Penn State defense came up with key defensive stops in the final minute to secure the Lady Lions' first victory over the Buckeyes in the last 12 meetings.
  • Niya Beverley finished with a career-best 21 points behind a blistering 82% (9-for-11)effort from the field, including a key three-pointer in the final three minutes. Marisa narrowly missed a triple-double with 17 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. Johnasia Cash finished with 16 points, 12 of which came in the second half, and five rebounds.

 
TOUGH TESTS TO CLOSE

  • Wednesday's win over #15 Ohio State marked the first of Penn State's four games against ranked opponents to close out the season.
  • Penn State faces #24 Rutgers twice in a three-day stretch on Sunday and Tuesday before closing out the regular season Saturday at #8 Maryland.

 
MARISA COMING INTO HER OWN

  • Makenna Marisa has turned her game up a notch in her sophomore season. She is currently averaging 14.2 ppg, 5.0 rpg and 5.0 apg compared to her freshman year numbers of 9.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg and 2.7 apg.
  • Marisa earned Big Ten Player of the Week Honor Roll status on March 1 after averaging 14.5 ppg, 6.0 rpg and 5.5 apg against two Top 25 opponents and hitting the game-winning layup against #15 Ohio State.
  • Marisa has gone for 20-plus points on six occasions this season and has tallied 14 double-digit games.
  • Marisa scored what proved to be the game-winning layup in Wednesday's win over #15 Ohio State and finished with 17 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, narrowly missing a triple-double.

 
CASH IS MONEY

  • Senior transfer Johnasia Cash (previously SMU) has recorded 10 double-doubles this season and is averaging 15.1 ppg and 9.6 rpg in Big Ten play. Her season-long averages are 14.6 ppg and 9.2 rpg. Nine of her 10 double-doubles have come in Big Ten play.
  • 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 47.3 percent (125-for-264) from the field this season and was a 36.0 percent (266-for-738) shooter in her three seasons at SMU.
  • Cash's 9.6 rebounds per Big Ten game rank third in the conference.

 
BEVERLEY BLOSSOMING

  • Senior transfer Niya Beverley (previously Wisconsin) currently leads the Big Ten and ranks third nationally with a 3.79 assist-to-turnover ratio.
  • Beverley has scored in double figures in five of the last six games, including a career best 21 points on 82 percent (9-11) shooting in Wednesday's upset of #15 Ohio State.
  • Beverley has averaged a team-best 12.7 ppg over the last six games, while shooting 47.5 percent (29-for-61) from the field in that stretch.
  • Beverley was granted immediate eligibility for the start of Big Ten play due to the NCAA's blanket transfer waiver.

 
A ROOKIE SEASON TO REMEMBER

  • Freshman Maddie Burke ranks fourth amongst all Division I freshmen with 51 three-pointers this season.
  • Her 51 treys already put her in fourth place on Penn State's freshman season three-point FGs made records list with at least three games remaining in the season (two regular season and one guaranteed Big Ten Tournament game), and an already shortened season due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
  • Burke has hit six three-pointers in back-to-back games at Iowa (Feb. 18) and Nebraska (Feb. 21), 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.
  • Burke has drilled three or more treys in seven of Penn State's last 10 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.

 
UP NEXT

  • Penn State wraps up the regular season Saturday at #8 Maryland. The Lady Lions will then turn their attention to the Big Ten Tournament from March 9-13 in Indianapolis.