IOWA CITY, Iowa- Penn State women's basketball battles in high-scoring road contest at no. 2 Iowa but could not overcome the deficit to the Hawkeyes. The final score was 111-93 in front of nearly 15,000 fans inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Graduate guard Ashley Owusu posted a team high 18 points while redshirt-junior guard Leilani Kapinus notched her second double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Senior+ guard Makenna Marisa also posted 12 points and Alli Campbell found herself within the double-digit margin with 10 points.
Penn State drops to a 16-7 overall record and 7-5 mark in the Big Ten while the Iowa Hawkeyes improve to 22-2 overall and 11-1 in the conference.
In front of a sold-out, loud crowd at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, the Lady Lions battled in a high scoring game on both sides against the no. 2 Hawkeyes. The Lady Lions surpassed their all-time single-game three-point attempts record with 40 shot from beyond the arc. The double-digit made total of 13 came out of the hands of eight different Lady Lions.
Four Lady Lions surpassed the double-digit scoring mark including Owusu who earned her eighth-straight game scoring 10 or more points. Owusu's scoring outing came at the hands of the free throw line, taking 14 trips to the charity stripe and sinking 10 of those shots. Kapinus led the defensive charge once again, grabbing 10 boards, blocking two shots, forcing two turnovers and totaling 12 points to seal the double double. Marisa posted 12 points, five rebounds and three assists. Campbell's 4-of-7 shooting from the field bolstered her into the double-digit category with 10 points and four assists. Moriah Murray was a defensive and offensive weapon on the floor for the Lady Lions, posting a career high six rebounds, three assists and nine points.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
A loud crowd in Carver-Hawkeye Arena was matched by a fast-pace start by both teams. Owusu scored the first points of the game after Penn State won the opening tip. Owusu grabbed the offensive rebound to keep the ball with the Lady Lions and found net. Back-to-back points for the Hawkeyes were silenced by a three-point shot from Chanaya Pinto to knot the score at fives. The Penn State defense continued to press, forcing three turnovers in two and half minutes, including a steal and score from Jayla Oden.
Ali Brigham got in on the scoring to hit her second three-pointer of the season and first of the night. The Lady Lions and the Hawkeyes traded baskets to bring the score to 15-14 in favor of Iowa, but Kapinus grabbed the lead back for the blue & white with a shot from deep. The Hawkeyes managed to pull away by as much as five points before the Lady Lions narrowed the margin using one of their key baskets from range out of the hands of Ciezki. Penn State closed the half with the lead in its hands. Despite the yellow having the ball in the final seconds after a three-point basket from Ciezki, Owusu forced a turnover and found Kapinus down the court to end the quarter at a 25-23 score with Penn State owning the advantage.
Second Quarter
Despite the Lady Lions getting the first word of the second quarter after Kapinus stole the ball from Clark, Iowa managed a 9-2 run through the first three minutes of the stanza to take back the lead and extend the score to 32-72. Grace Hall was responsible for the answer, sinking a shot from beyond the arc to pull within three points. The Hawkeyes pushed their point total to 37 before the Lady Lions cut into the lead, turning defense into offense with Owusu forcing a turnover on Clark and Campbell nailing the three-point shot in response to narrow the margin to 37-39. Murray became the seventh Lady Lion to add to the three-point column with a shot from deep beyond the arc.
Iowa found its biggest lead of the game at the time :41 on the clock and a score of 53-41. PSU cut into that margin with their ninth three pointer of the game from Marisa. A pair of free throws from Clark sealed the score at 55-44 going into the half despite a quick inbound and shot attempt from Murray from distance that could not rattle in.
Third Quarter
A three-point play for the home team began the third stanza with Hannah Stuelke responsible. Stuelke found the net again to extend the Hawkeye lead to 60-44. Hall got the offense going for the blue & white and a free throw for Owusu began to chip away at the margin. Stuelke was hot, again scoring back-to-back layups. Marisa earned a trip to the charity stripe before the Hawkeyes engaged in two more consecutive buckets. An all-around play began with a defensive rebound with efforts from Murray and Owusu to light some fire in the Lady Lions offense with Murray finding Pinto on a layup to narrow the margin to 68-51 going into the media timeout.
A major defensive effort from Kapinus, blocking Clark's three-point attempt and creating an and one opportunity, sparked the PSU offense into a 9-0 run. The Lady Lions cut the deficit to 76-53 before Iowa hit a three-point shot just before the final buzzer of the quarter to leave the score at 79-63
Fourth Quarter
Using free throw opportunities and more shots from beyond the arc, Penn State chipped away at the Hawkeyes lead, cutting the margin to 13 with just under eight minutes to play in the final quarter. After Iowa brought its advantage to 16 again, Murray forced a three-point free throw opportunity earning a shooting foul. The Lady Lions continued to press on offense and draw fouls to earn chances at the charity strip to cut the margin to 10 points with just over five minutes to play. Brigham knocked down her second shot from long range with time winding down on the clock. Despite efforts from the Lady Lions offense to find the net in the final minutes, Iowa extended its advantage to close the quarter and bring the final score to 111-93.
POSTGAME NOTES
Penn State at No. 2 Iowa
February 8, 2024
Carver-Hawkeye Arena (Iowa City, Iowa)
- -The Lady Lions held Caitlin Clark below her season point average and forced a season high 12 turnovers on the reigning National Player of the Year.
- -There were seven lead changes and three tie scores throughout the game.
- -Penn State attempted 40 shots beyond the arc to break the all-time record for three-point field goal attempts in a single game.
- -This was Penn State's 10th game scoring 90 points or more.
- -Four Lady Lions scored in double figures: Owusu (18) for the eighth time, Kapinus (12) for the 11th time, Marisa (12) for the 15th time and Campbell (10) for the second time this season.
- -Kapinus earned her second double-double of the season in back-to-back games, notching 12 points and 10 rebounds.
- -The Lady Lions outscored the Hawkeyes on fastbreak points by a 18-14 clip and totaled more bench points by a 37-16 margin.
UP NEXT
The Lady Lions remain on the road and head to Madison, Wisc. to take on the Badgers on Sunday, Feb. 11.
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