UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Led by a 40-point outing from sophomore guard Shay Ciezki and the program's record for 3-pointers in a single-game with 15, Penn State women's basketball cruised to a 101-73 victory over the Central Connecticut State Blue Devils on Wednesday afternoon inside the Bryce Jordan Center.
The Lady Lions rattled off their second consecutive victory in front of a field trip day crowd of central Pennsylvania elementary and middle school students, with over 1,200 local schoolchildren in attendance at the Bryce Jordan Center. The lively BJC crowd saw the Blue & White climb to 9-3 overall and 7-0 in home games through the conclusion of the non-conference slate. PSU has recorded nine-straight non-conference victories on its home court dating to a 69-57 win over West Virginia on Dec. 11, 2022, marking the longest non-conference home winning streak since 2010.
Penn State came away with the victory in its third all-time meeting with Central Connecticut State, with PSU's record against the Blue Devils improving to 3-0 following Wednesday's outing. In defeat, the Blue Devils drop to 2-10 heading into their non-conference finale against Morgan State on Jan. 3.
The Lady Lions cracked the century mark for the third time this season and second game in a row, booking back-to-back 100-point games for the first time since scoring 103 points in consecutive games against Nevada and North Carolina on Nov. 26 and Nov. 30, respectively. Penn State set the single-game record for 3-point makes in a game with 15, connecting on 53.6% of their 28 attempts in the game. PSU was dominant on the boards, outrebounding CCSU by a 42-31 margin, while racking up a 48-36 differential in points in the paint.
Ciezki's individual performance was astounding, as the Buffalo, New York, native rained in a career-high-shattering 40 points on 15-of-23 shooting with an 8-for-14 mark from beyond the arc. The sophomore tied Kamaria McDaniel for the third-most points in a single game in program history and notched just the fourth 40-point performance in the Penn State record book. Redshirt junior guard Leilani Kapinus poured in 13 points, while redshirt freshman guard Moriah Murray and graduate guard Tay Valladay each booked 12 points, respectively, rounding out the four Lady Lions in double figures.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
Pinto got her own board and put it back in to open the scoring less than a minute in, but the Blue Devils snapped back with a triple on the other end. Back-to-back Lady Lion layups fueled by a five-second violation allowed the Blue & White to find some rhythm in the early going. A Ciezki long-range jumper from the right wing gave PSU a 9-2 lead at the 7:23 mark of the opening frame, forcing a Blue Devil timeout. CCSU came out of the timeout with a pair of buckets, but a 7-0 Lady Lion over the next 2:04 saw the PSU lead reach double digits at 16-6. Both squads traded baskets over the next couple of minutes, but three-straight 3-pointers from PSU saw the Lady Lion lead grow to 25-11 with a little more than a minute left in the frame. Penn State closed the period out with a 13-1 run over the final three minutes of work, culminating in a 32-12 advantage after one.
Second Quarter
Brilliant defense on one end turned into a stellar fast break opportunity for the Lady Lions to open the second, as Kapinus found Ciezki for the score. A triple from Kapinus on the ensuing possession put the Blue & White up by a 37-12 mark, forcing another Blue Devil timeout. PSU took advantage of multiple CCSU giveaways to create offensive chances, leading by a 49-20 margin with six minutes left in the frame, but a 6-0 Blue Devil reply gave the visitors some life offensively. In response, Ciezki booked a personal 7-0 run to crack the 20-point mark in the game with over four minutes left in the first half. Central Connecticut booked back-to-back layups, but a stable second period of work from the Lady Lions came to a close with PSU maintaining a 59-32 lead.
Third Quarter
Central Connecticut opened the second half on an 11-2 run, making it a 61-43 Penn State lead, but a putback layup from Campbell ballooned the Lady Lion lead back to 20 points. Another exchange of baskets paved the way for a quick 6-2 Penn State run to maintain its offensive momentum. Leading by a 69-47 margin, a tip out of bounds from Pinto on the defensive end led to the third quarter media break with 3:22 to play in the frame. Another stellar individual run from Ciezki featuring a pair of free throws, a pair of skillful layups and 3-pointer from straight-away gave Penn State a 79-55 advantage after three quarters of work.
Fourth Quarter
Ciezki's unreal offensive performance continued to start the final 10 minutes of play, with the sophomore star draining a right-wing triple to give Penn State an 82-57 lead. CCSU responded with a jumper, but Ciezki snapped back with yet another triple. PSU cracked the 90-point threshold with 6:14 remaining in the game, as Ciezki connected on a corner 3-pointer to book the fourth 40-point game in Lady Lion basketball history. Moments later, Murray drained a triple to secure the program-record 15th make in the game to put Penn State ahead by a 95-66 tally. With both teams looking to their bench the rest of the way, PSU managed to pull away and finalize the 101-73 result.
POSTGAME NOTES
Central Connecticut State at Penn State
December 20, 2023
Bryce Jordan Center (University Park, Pa.)
- The Lady Lions broke the program record for three-pointers in a single game with their 15 on the afternoon.
- Last time Penn State scored 100 points in back-to-back games: 2012- vs UNC and at Nevada. 103 points both times.
- This win marks the team's sixth 90-plus point game and third 100-plus point game this season.
- Penn State is undefeated at home this season with seven wins in the Bryce Jordan Center.
- This is the second game in a row the Lady Lions have hit 10 or more three pointers in the first half with 15 this game and 11 in their previous game.
- Ciezki was in double figures in the second quarter, totaling 22 points at the halfway mark.
- Ciezki broke her career high point total and met the third highest point total of a player in a single game in Lady Lion history. She also earned a career high in three pointers with the second highest number made in school history with eight. She also broke her career best field goal total with 15.
- Murray met her personal best mark of four three-point field goals.
- Penn State outscored Central Connecticut State University 48-36 in the paint and outrebounded the Blue Devils 42-31.
- The Lady Lions added 24 more bench points to their total of 346 this season.
- Penn State passed the ball well with its sixth outing with 20 or more assists on 23 today.
- Penn State is on a nine-game non-conference home winning streak since a nine-game run from 2009-2010. The Lady Lions current streak dates back to a 69-57 win over West Virginia on Dec. 11, 2022 to begin this streak.
UP NEXT
The Lady Lions return to the court for their final game of the 2023 year to host Michigan State on Saturday, Dec. 30. Tip off in the Bryce Jordan Center is set for 4 p.m.
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