Women’s Basketball Faces Nebraska on the RoadWomen’s Basketball Faces Nebraska on the Road
Craig Houtz

Women’s Basketball Faces Nebraska on the Road

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UNIVERSITY PARK – Penn State women's basketball faces Nebraska on the road Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET.

OPENING TIP

  • Penn State is coming off a 70-60 victory over Purdue last Saturday, its fourth-straight win at Bryce Jordan Center and second at home in Big Ten play.
  • With a game-high 24 points along with eight boards and six assists, Makenna Marisa moved into 13th place in program history in career points (1,543) and career assists (381), passing Tanya Garner (1988-91, 1,538 points) and Corinne Gulas (1980-81, 379 assists).
  • Leilani Kapinus recorded her first double-double of the season and fourth in her career with 17 points and a season-high 12 rebounds.
  • This year Marisa leads the team in scoring (18.7 ppg), assists (4.3 apg), made three's (37) and three-point percentage (45.1%) in addition to 4.8 rebounds and 1.9 steals per game.
  • Leilani Kapinus leads the Big Ten in steals (52) and is seventh nationally.
  • Starting in every contest after the first game, Ciezki has averaged 10.8 points, 2.8 assists, 2.1 three-pointers and 1.3 steals per game.
  • Penn State ranks in the nation 10th in steals per game (12.3), 14th in turnovers forced per game (21.9), 17th in three-point percentage (37.0), 31st in assists per game (16.7), 38th in turnover margin (4.6), 44th in field goal percentage (45.1) and 46th in scoring offense (75.7 points per game).
  • Penn State owns wins over four reigning conference champions: Norfolk State (MEAC), Fairfield (MAAC), Youngstown State (Horizon League) and Toledo (MAC).

 
SCOUTING NEBRASKA

  • Are 10-6 to start the season and have lost three-straight Big Ten games (76-59 against Michigan, 74-62 in overtime at then-No. 3/4 Indiana and 57-45 at Rutgers last Saturday) after winning 90-67 at No. 20 Maryland 90-67 and 82-54 over Wisconsin at home.
  • Rank in the nation 31st in made three-pointers per game (8.4) and assists per game (16.7).
  • Junior guard Jaz Shelley ranks 10th in the nation in assists (102) and leads the team in scoring (14.3 points per game), three-pointers (37) and steals (24).
  • Sophomore center/forward Alexis Markowski leads the Big Ten in double-doubles (six), averaging a team-high 9.0 rebounds per game along with 14.3 points per game, 19 blocks and 42.9 three-point field goal percentage.

 
AGAINST THE CORNHUSKERS

  • Nebraska has the edge in the series, 10-8.
  • Penn State took last year's matchup 83-76 on Feb. 17 at home.

 
ONE OF THE TOP POINT GUARDS IN THE NATION, MAKENNA MARISA

  • Senior Makenna Marisa was one of 20 point guards selected to the Nancy Lieberman Award Watch List heading into the season and named to the All-Big Ten Preseason Team by the coaches and media.
  • This year she leads the team in scoring (18.7 ppg), assists (4.3 apg), made three's (37) and three-point percentage (45.1%) in addition to 4.8 rebounds and 1.9 steals per game.
  • She has recorded 71 double-digit scoring games and 31 20-point games with seven this year.
  • A 35-game streak of consecutive double-digit games that started at the beginning of last season ended Nov. 26 against Fresno State.
  • She has recorded seven 25+ points and 5+ assists games, the 10th most in the Big Ten since 2009-2010 (courtesy of Her Hoop Stats).
  • With 1,543 career points, she is 13th in school history.
  • Starting this season ranked 24th, she needs 77 more to pass Andrea Garner (1997-2000, 1,619 points) for 12th.
  • In program history she also ranks tied for third in 30-point games (seven), fifth in career free throw percentage (82.4%), eighth in career three-point field goals made (161), eighth in career scoring average (15.6 ppg), tied for ninth in career double-digit assist games (three) and 13th in career assists (381).
  • In the nation, she ranks 20th in career assists, 26th in career free throw percentage and 50th in career points.
  • For the 2022-23 season, she ranks in the nation 22nd in three-point percentage (45.1), 27th in points (299), 33rd in made field goals (110), 51st in minutes per game (35.0), 59th in assists (69), 65th in three's made (37) and 96th in assist/turnover ratio (1.0).
  • In the Big Ten she is second in minutes per game, third in three-point percentage, fifth in scoring, tied for fifth in made three's, seventh in assists, tied for seventh in steals, 13th in free throw percentage (76.5) and assist/turnover ratio (1.4) and 18th in field goal percentage (44.0).
  • In the win over Rutgers, she produced a game-high 32 points with four made three-pointers and six free throws in addition to five rebounds.
  • In the home win over Purdue, she produced 24 points, eight boards and six dimes and went 3-6 from three.
  • At Drexel in the second to last game played, she notched one of the best games in her career, pouring in 28 points off 10-16 shooting from the field, including tying a career-high seven made three's, along with five assists, three boards and a steal.
  • In the Big Ten-opener at Minnesota she recorded one of the best games as a Lady Lion, recording a career-high 34 points (13-21 from the field, seven three-pointers, six assists, two blocks and two steals.
  • In the program's largest comeback against Syracuse, she produced 22 points, including 13 in the fourth quarter, eight rebounds and seven assists.
  • She notched a double-double in the first two contests: 24 points and 11 rebounds against Norfolk State and 14 points and 10 assists against Fairfield.

 
A TRIO OF 1,000 POINT SCORERS

  • Johnasia Cash notched her 1,000 career point in the win over Youngstown State, becoming the third current Lady Lion to accomplish the feat (Makenna Marisa and Taniyah Thompson).
  • Cash has produced 392 combined from the 2020-21 and 2022-23 seasons as a Lady Lion for an average of 9.8 ppg.
  • She had 659 in her seasons at SMU.
  • Thompson accomplished the feat in her three seasons at East Carolina.
  • Among active career scoring leaders in Division I, Marisa ranks 50th (1,543), Thompson 107th (1,325) and Cash 248th (1,051).

 
CASHING REBOUNDS

  • Johnasia Cash has pulled down the 11th most career rebounds (927) among active Division I players in the nation and is also 29th in double-doubles (25).
  • In her fifth season, Cash has averaged 7.3 boards per game both in her career and two seasons at Penn State (2020-21 and 2022-23).
  • In her first season as a Lady Lion in which she earned Third-Team All-Big Ten from the media, she recorded a double-double in all 11 games in which she gathered 10+ rebounds.
  • After readjusting due to missing last season, her rebounding picked up with a three-game streak of 10+ rebounds (Bryant-11, Syracuse-12 and Toledo-10). 


SOPHOMORE CAMPAIGN FOR ALL-FRESHMAN KAPINUS

  • Much like last season, Leilani Kapinus has proven she can do it all for the Lady Lions.
  • This year she leads the squad in steals (52), rebounds (6.1 per game) and blocks (13) and has put up 11.8 points and 2.9 per game, a 50.4 field goal percentage and 72.4 free throw percentage.
  • Kapinus is seventh in the nation in steals, leads the Big Ten in overall steals and steals per game (3.3) while tied for 15th in blocks, 19th in rebounding and free throw percentage and 22nd in assists (46).
  • She has scored in double-figures in eight-straight games and 12 overall, pulled down at least seven rebounds in seven contests and gotten at least three steals nine times.
  • She produced her first double-double of the season in the win over Purdue with 17 points and 12 rebounds along with a game-high seven steals and four assists.
  • She racked up nine steals in the win over Fairfield along with 11 points and eight boards.
  • In the win over Youngstown State, she nearly produced a double-double with 21 points and nine boards along with five assists and four steals.
  • Against Fresno State, she produced 12 points, six steals and five assists.
  • She notched 18 points on 8-10 shooting from the field and had five steals and four assists.
  • Making all five free throws, she got 15 points, seven rebounds, four blocks and three steals in the win over West Virginia.

 
FRESHMAN IMPACT

  • Shay Ciezki has made an instant impact as a freshman.
  • After coming off the bench in the opener, Ciezki has started every game since.
  • In 466 minutes of action as the main ballhandler after Marisa, she has committed just 33 turnovers with 44 assists.
  • She is one of three Lady Lions averaging at least double-digit points (10.8), has made the second most three's (32) and averaged 1.3 steals.
  • In the nation she ranks 58th in three-point percentage, and in the conference she's seventh along with being tied for 11th in three's made per game (2.0) and tied for 23rd in assists.
  • At then-No. 14/19 Michigan, she notched career highs in points (21), field goals (eight) and three-pointers (five) along with four assists.
  • She became just the second Lady Lions' freshman since the 2009-10 season with 20+ points, 5+ three's and 4+ assists in a Big Ten game (Maddie Burke: 20 points, six three's and four assists at Iowa, Feb. 19, 2021).
  • She was pivotal in the team's 21-point comeback against Syracuse, scoring 16 of her 18 points during the team's second half rally.
  • She followed the game with 16 points and three assists with two three-points against Toledo.
  • She notched her first double-digit scoring performance against Youngstown State with 16 points along with five rebounds and three assists.
  • She produced her first collegiate basket as part of a seven-point, four-rebound and two-steal performance against Fairfield.
  • She notched a career-high six assists along with 14 points and four three-pointers in the win over West Virginia.

 
UP NEXT
Penn State stays on the road to face No. 12/9 Iowa on the Big Ten Network Saturday at 12:30 p.m. ET.