UNIVERSITY PARK — In a game with eight ties and 12 lead changes, the Lady Lions were unable to close in the fourth quarter as Penn State (11-8, 2-6) fell 75-67 to Minnesota (9-10, 2-6) Wednesday night in the Bryce Jordan Center.
Leilani Kapinus opened the game with three steals on Minnesota's first three possessions with seven total for the team in the first quarter steals but Penn State was only able to turn them into two points. Minnesota took the early lead, helped by its 16-7 rebounding advantage.
Toward the end of the second, Makenna Marisa made back-to-back steals leading to five PSU points, and Shay Ciezki's defense on the backcourt forced a Golden Gopher turnover on a 10-second violation. An Alexa Williamson second-chance layup brought the 24-23 Lady Lion lead. Penn State turnovers would allow Minnesota six unanswered points as the Golden Gophers took back the momentum for the 33-26 advantage at the half.
The Lady Lions came out of the break with a Ciezki layup and back-to-back treys. In between Golden Gopher buckets, Marisa made three-straight layups and finished the period with 13 points as Penn State outscored Minnesota 22-15 to even the score at 48.
Penn State and Minnesota exchanged the lead four times in the fourth. But with just over six minutes to go, the Golden Gophers went on a 10-point run for a nine-point edge.
NOTES
- With 25 points, Marisa accomplished her 73rd double figure scoring game and 32nd game with 20+ points.
- Ciezki finished with 17 points for her 12th double-digit game this season.
- Kapinus racked up 10 rebounds, eight points and six steals for her 11th game this season with three or more swipes.
- Williamson made a career-high 13 rebounds.
- Penn State forced a season-high 27 turnovers, beating their previous high 25 forced turnovers against Cornell on Dec. 21.
- The Lady Lions had the advantage in fast break points (22-13) and points off turnovers (23-16).
UP NEXT
Penn State stays home for a Sunday contest at 5 p.m. against Wisconsin on the Big Ten Network.