UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Graduate guards Tay Valladay and Ashley Owusu put on a show inside the Bryce Jordan Center on Thursday night, combining for 41 points as the Penn State women's basketball team returned to .500 in Big Ten play with an 80-67 win over the Purdue Boilermakers.
The Blue & White took a moment before the game began to celebrate the program's 1,000th all-time win with the BJC crowd, featuring a highlight video that commemorated the school's illustrious history in women's basketball. Historic memories transitioned to present-day success as PSU improved to 12-5 overall on the season and moved even in Big Ten Conference play, rising to 3-3 ahead of Sunday's test against Nebraska. Penn State recorded its second consecutive home victory against the Boilermakers dating to last season's meeting in University Park while moving to 24-35 against Purdue all-time. In defeat, the Boilermakers fall to 9-8 overall and 2-4 in B1G competition.
Penn State lit the scoreboard up from the floor on Thursday by shooting 51%, the ninth game PSU shot 50%-or-better this season and third time against B1G foes in 2023-24. The Lady Lions took advantage of Purdue giveaways and racked up an impressive 21-13 differential in points off turnovers against the Boilermakers. The Blue & White totaled 19 assists on 30 made baskets compared to just 11 Purdue assists on 20 makes from the field. Finally, Penn State managed to double Purdue up in transition points, logging a 16-8 win in fastbreak scoring.
Valladay, a native of Chicago, Illinois, booked her seventh-straight game in double figures and her second 20-point game since transferring to Penn State, finishing with 22 points on 7-for-11 shooting from the floor and 2-for-3 from beyond the arc. Owusu made her BJC debut and saw 27 minutes of work off the bench, connecting on seven field goal attempts and a long-range jumper to finish with a season-high 19 points. The Woodbridge, Virginia, native has booked back-to-back outings with at least 18 points, five rebounds and four assists, leading the Lady Lions in multiple statistical categories two games in a row.
Senior forward Ali Brigham was a significant presence down low for the Lady Lions, finishing with eight points on 4-for-6 shooting with four rebounds and an assist. Redshirt sophomore forward Grace Hall added six points, while sophomore guard Shay Ciezki, graduate forward Chanaya Pinto and redshirt junior guard Alli Campbel each contributed five points.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
Penn State controlled the opening tip, but Purdue booked the first points of the evening at the charity stripe. Each squad exchanged misses from long range, but a sweet reverse layup from Brigham on a feed from Kapinus got the Lady Lions on the board. Owusu entered the contest around two-and-a-half minutes in, drilling her first jumper of the night from mid-range. The squads exchanged buckets back and forth over the next couple of minutes, with another Owusu make leading to an 11-6 Lady Lion advantage at the media break. Purdue pulled back within one point of the lead, but Hall called glass on a turnaround jumper to give PSU a 15-12 lead. The Boilermakers managed to deadlock the ballgame at 16-all, but a Valladay mid-range bucket found the bottom of the net on a pick-and-roll drive to give Penn State an 18-16 lead through the first quarter.
Second Quarter
A sweet give-and-go play between Marisa and Brigham resulted in the first Lady Lion points of the second quarter, and Ciezki drilled a pair of free throws to put Penn State up by five. Baskets fell both ways over the next two minutes, but a sweet right corner 3-pointer from Valladay gave the Blue & White a 28-21 edge at the second period's media timeout. Valladay's triple marked the start of a dominant 8-0 run for PSU over the next two minutes, but the Boilermakers managed to slow things down with a reverse layup along the baseline. The quick Purdue reply was answered by a physical layup down low from Brigham, granting Penn State a 10-point lead as the first half neared its end. Purdue hit a quick jumper the other direction, but a successful trip to the line from Valladay afforded PSU a 37-27 lead at the break.
Third Quarter
Owusu got things going with a successful mid-range shot in the last second of the shot clock and found Ciezki for a 3-pointer on the left wing the next trip down the floor to give the Lady Lions their largest lead of the night at 42-27. Purdue rattled off a quick 5-0 response, but an Owusu right-wing triple found nothing but net as the Blue & White stymied Purdue's momentum. Penn State and Purdue traded buckets back and forth over the next three minutes with neither squad able to maintain a significant scoring run. A Kapinus layup with 3:35 left in the frame sparked a stellar 9-1 Lady Lion run to close out the third period of play, with Penn State managing its largest lead of the game at 58-40.
Fourth Quarter
A magnificent bounce pass from Owusu around halfcourt found a blazing quick Valladay, who battled through contact to sink the opening bucket of the final quarter for the Blue & White. Valladay connected on another physical layup the next offensive trip down, and an acrobatic turnaround jumper from Owusu marked the end of a fourth quarter-opening 6-0 scoring run. Purdue dished out a 5-0 run to cut the lead to 19, but a hook shot from Hall maintained the Lady Lion momentum. Kapinus drilled a tough shot down low moments later, but the Boilermakers refused to go away after booking an 8-0 scoring run that forced PSU into a 30-second timeout. With a renewed focus out of the short intermission, Penn State held on the rest of the way and came away with the 80-67 victory inside the BJC.
POSTGAME NOTES
Purdue at Penn State
January 18, 2024
Bryce Jordan Center (University Park, Pa.)
- Penn State celebrated its 1000th program win prior to tip off in the contest.
- This was the Lady Lions' third Big Ten win.
- Every player who recorded minutes in the contest scored at least one point.
- This was Penn State's ninth game shooting 50% or higher from the field including three in Big Ten games.
- In Ashley Owusu's Bryce Jordan Debut, she posted 19 points, five rebounds and four assists. This was the Virginia natives second consecutive game scoring 19 points and grabbing five rebounds.
- Top contributors to the win over Big Ten foe Purdue include Valladay (22) and Owusu (19)
- Owusu also surpassed 1400 career points with two performances.
- Tay Valladay notched her 10th game in double figures this season including the last seven consecutive.
- Valladay also posted her fourth 20-plus-point performance of her career and second this season.
- Grace Hall recorded a season high six points.
UP NEXT
The Lady Lions continue their brief home stint on Sunday, Jan. 21 when they host the Nebraska Cornhuskers.
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Visit GoPSUSports.com for more information on Penn State women's basketball. Fans can keep up to date with the Lady Lion women's basketball team on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @PennStateWBB.
Head Coach Carolyn Kieger Postgame Press Conference
Ashley Owusu and Tay Valladay Postgame Press Conference
Penn State vs Purdue Highlights