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Mark Selders

Lady Lions Hosts No. 11 Michigan On Thursday


UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State women's basketball team returns to the Bryce Jordan Center for the first time in over a month to welcome No. 11 Michigan on Thursday. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. on Big Ten Network.

The Lady Lions, led by head coach Carolyn Kieger, are 7-6 overall and 1-2 in Big Ten play this season.

FOLLOW ALONG

PARKING
All Penn State Athletics non-football events will require a valid permit or payment of the applicable parking fee for campus lots. Complimentary parking will no longer be issued for season ticket holders.
 
Fans with valid Penn State University Park parking permits will be permitted to park at non-football athletics events for free, following Transportation Services parking policies and access.
 
Fans without a permit are encouraged to prepay for event parking at a discounted rate through ParkMobile - https://psu.parkmobile.io/. Prepayment is available through 11:59 p.m. the day prior to each event. Season packages will be available for general parking for most sports, and information on VIP parking options available for select events will be released later.
 
Please visit the 2021-22 Women's Basketball Parking page for additional information.
 
Non-football event parking is managed by Penn State Transportation Services. For more information on parking for this event, please email parking@psu.edu or call 814-865-1436. 

THON GAME

  • Thursday's game is the Lady Lions' annual THON game. Students will receive a free THON t-shirt and in-game activities will be based around raising awareness for the largest student-run philanthropy in the world.
  • The Penn State IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon, or THON, is the largest student-run philanthropy in the world. THON is a year-long effort which raises funds and awareness for the fight against childhood cancer. With the support of students from all across the commonwealth of Pennsylvania and supporters all around the world, we continue to make great strides towards finding a cure for all childhood cancers. Our efforts culminate with a 46-hour, no-sitting, no-sleeping dance marathon in February. This year's dance marathon is set for Feb. 18-20 in the Bryce Jordan Center.
  • THON has raised more than $190 million for the Four Diamonds Fund since it began in the 1970s.

 
OPENING TIP

  • Penn State returns to the Bryce Jordan Center to host No. 8 Michigan for a Big Ten matchup.
  • The Lady Lions own 41 all-time wins over Top 10 opponents with its last coming against No. 8 Ohio State (84-66) on February 20, 2012.
  • Penn State will play its third game on Big Ten Network this season.
  • The blue and white fell 106-78 at No. 10 Maryland last Thursday.
  • Makenna Marisa led the Lady Lions with 29 points, including 24 in the second half going 10-of-12 from the floor.
  • The junior is tied for fifth in the country with eight 20-point games and tied for third and second in the Big Ten with five 25-point games.
  • Leilani Kapinus tallied 12 points, including eight in the second half, and two steals.
  • Marisa holds 10th in the country in field goals made (109).
  • Kapinus paces Big Ten freshmen with 21 steals this season and sits second among conference rookies with 14 blocks.
  • Penn State ranks second in the Big Ten with 9.8 steals per game and has at least 10 steals in four games.

 
SCOUTING MICHIGAN

  • Michigan is led by head coach Kim Barnes Arico.
  • Barnes Arico is in her 10th season leading the Wolverines with a 206-104 record.
  • She has led Michigan to four NCAA tournament appearances and an NCAA Sweet 16 appearance in 2021.
  • The Wolverines are 13-2 overall and 4-1 in the Big Ten this season.
  • Michigan is ranked 11th in the AP Poll and 10th in the USA Today/WBCA Coaches Poll.
  • Michign is coming off a 76-47 win over Rutgers last Sunday.
  • The Wolverines rank eighth in the Big Ten in scoring offense (72.7) and fifth in scoring defense (59.7).
  • Naz Hillmon leads Michigan and ranks 20th in the nation averaging 20.0 points per game.
  • She's also 10th in the country with 109 field goals made and 17th in free throws made (62).
  • Leigha Brown (15.3) and Emily Kiser (10.5) are also averaging double-figures.

 
AGAINST THE WOLVERINES

  • Penn State will meet Michigan for the 50th time in the series.
  • The Lady Lions lead 32-17 in the all-time series.
  • In the last matchup, on February 27, 2020, Penn State fell 80-66.
  • Siyeh Frazier led Penn State with 28 points, going 12-of-17 from the floor, and seven rebounds.

MARISA'S STRONG JUNIOR CAMPAIGN

  • Junior Makenna Marisa scored at least 11 points in all 13 games this season and has 20+ points in eight games, five 25-point games and two 30-point games.
  • She had 20 points vs. Rider (11/11), 30 vs. Delaware State (11/16), 29 at Clemson (11/21), 25 vs. St. John's (11/26), 23 vs. Kent State (11/28), 21 at Indiana (12/6), a career-high 33 at Duquesne (12/18) and 29 at Maryland (1/6).
  • Makenna Marisa ranks second in the Big Ten in scoring (21.7 ppg), good for eighth in the country. Her 21.7 points per game rank third among Power Five players.
  • She also sits fourth in the conference and 13th in the nation in total points (282). Marisa's 10th in the country in field goals made (109) and 13th in field goal attempts (237).
  • Marisa also holds seventh in the Big Ten in assists per game (4.7), ranking 63rd in the nation, and holds 10th in total assists (61). She's also ninth in the conference averaging 2.31 three-pointers per game.
  • Marisa is tied fifth among DI players with eight 20-point games this season and is one of 20 DI players with multiple 30-point games this year.
  • Marisa is one of 16 DI players with double-figures in all of their games this season (minimum 13 games).
  • Marisa was named Co-Big Ten Player of the Week on November 22. It was Marisa's first career Big Ten weekly honor.
  • She recorded a triple-double in Penn State's 120-51 win over Delaware State on November 16, notching 30 points, on 12-of-16 shooting, 11 assists and 10 steals against the Hornets. Her points, assists and steals totals were all career highs.
  • Marisa's triple-double was Penn State's first since Suzie McConnell on January 3, 1988 (22 points, 13 rebounds, 10 assists in a 74-63 win vs. Western Kentucky).
  • Marisa's triple-double is the 25th Points-Assists-Steals triple-double and 20th 30-point triple-double in NCAA Division I history. It's also the third 30-point triple-double and second Points-Assists-Steals triple-double in Big Ten history.

 
LADY LIONS RANK AMONG NATIONAL LEADERS

  • Penn State sits second in the Big Ten in steals per game (9.8) and fifth in total steals (127).
  • The Lady Lions are sixth in the Big Ten in three-point field goals made per game (7.2).
  • Penn State ranks 49th in the nation and seventh in the conference averaging 15.9 assists per game. The Lady Lions have at least 20 assists in four games this season.

 
BRIGHAM DOMINATING THE PAINT

  • Sophomore forward Ali Brigham made a big impact in her first game as a Lady Lion, vs. LIU, after transferring from George Washington, scoring 20 points and tallying nine rebounds and three blocks. She followed that with a 23-point performance against Rider, shooting 11-of-13 from the floor.
  • Brigham became the first Lady Lion to score 20+ points in the first two games of a season since Brianna Banks in 2015.
  • She collected her first career double-double against St. John's with 19 points, on 8-of-12 shooting, and 10 rebounds.
  • She had 10 points against No. 13 Iowa State and a team-high 18 points at Boston College.
  • Brigham tallied 13 points off the bench against Rutgers and 15 points at Duquesne.
  • Through 13 games, Brigham ranks third in field-goal percentage (57.8) and sixth in blocks per game (1.17) in the Big Ten.

 
KAPINUS DOING IT ALL

  • Freshman Leilani Kapinus has 21 steals, with three in each contest against Rider, Kent State and Boston College, leading Big Ten freshmen.
  • The Wisconsin native has a team-high 14 blocks, which is good for second among Big Ten freshmen and 20th among all Division I freshmen.
  • She's averaging 6.8 points and 4.5 rebounds per contest and led the team in rebounds in three games.
  • She had a career-high 20 points vs. Youngstown State, adding seven rebounds, four assists, four blocks and two steals. She scored 10 points in the fourth quarter in Penn State's 80-75 win over St. John's and 12 points at Maryland.
  • The freshman has 21 assists on the year, including three in each game vs. Rider, Boston College and Indiana and four vs. Youngstown State.

 
MULTIPLE CONTRIBUTORS

  • Penn State has six players averaging at least 6.4 points this season, led by Marisa's 21.7 average.
  • Ali Brigham is averaging 12.3 points per contest and reached the 20-point mark vs. LIU (20) and Rider (23), while Leilani Kapinus, owning a 20-point effort vs. Youngstown State, is averaging 6.8.
  • Anna Camden is averaging 6.7 points per contest and Shay Hagans is averaging 6.5 points per contest.
  • Niya Beverley is scoring 6.4 points per game, including a 20-point effort vs. Rider.
  • Penn State has also balanced out its minutes with nine players averaging at least 12.3 minutes per game.

 
NON-CONFERENCE PLAY

  • Penn State went 6-4 in non-conference play this season, its sixth straight season with a .500 or better record in non-conference play.
  • The Lady Lions averaged 82.0 points per game overall, including 85.7 ppg in its non-conference wins and averaged a 22.5 margin of victory in their wins.

 
STRENGTH OF THE BIG TEN

  • The January 3rd AP Poll features three Big Ten teams: No. 6 Indiana, No. 8 Maryland and No. 11 Michigan.
  • Iowa, Ohio State and Nebraska are receiving votes.
  • Penn State opened Big Ten play at Indiana on December 6.
  • The Lady Lions played 10 ranked opponents in 2020-21, the most among Big Ten schools, and earned a 69-67 win over No. 15 Ohio State on February 24, 2021.

 
UP NEXT

  • Penn State hosts Illinois at the Bryce Jordan Center on Sunday, January 16. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. with a broadcast on B1G+.