UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – In a dominant performance that featured all 13 student-athletes, the Penn State Lady Lions rolled to their fourth consecutive victory in front of a raucous Field Trip Day crowd, coming away with a solid 101-45 victory over the Niagara Purple Eagles Thursday afternoon inside the Bryce Jordan Center.
Following Thursday’s victory, the Lady Lions continued their winning ways and logged their fourth consecutive victory, marking the third consecutive season with a 4-0 start or better. The Blue & White squared off against Niagara for just the third time in program history, meeting for the first time since the 1993 campaign. Penn State climbed to 3-0 against the Purple Eagles all-time, crossing the 100-point scoring threshold for the second time in the three combined meetings following Thursday’s showing in Happy Valley. In defeat, the Purple Eagles fall to 0-3 overall and return to action on Saturday, November 16, with a 7 p.m. (ET) matchup at common opponent Duquesne.
The Lady Lions were dominant in practically every statistical measure, highlighted by a Bryce Jordan Center field goal percentage record of 62% shooting from the floor. PSU connected on 39-of-63 combined field goal attempts and buried 8-of-21 attempts from beyond the arc. Penn State out-shot the Purple Eagles by a 62% to 28% differential from the field as well as a 38% to 25% differential from 3-point range. PSU was clinical down low, outscoring Niagara 60-20 in the paint while hauling in a 46-24 margin on the glass. The Lady Lions were also elite in fastbreak opportunities, mustering 38 points in up-tempo opportunities while holding the Purple Eagles to just eight points in fastbreak chances.
Redshirt sophomore center Gracie Merkle was dominant in her 15 minutes of effort, dropping a season-high 24 points on a remarkably effective 10-for-12 shooting from the floor. Merkle, a native of Mount Washington, Kentucky, hauled in seven rebounds in addition to her impressive shooting performance. Redshirt sophomore guard Moriah Murray continued her electric stretch from beyond the arc, going 5-for-10 from deep en route to her third double-digit scoring performance of the year with 17 points. Freshman guard Talayah Walker poured in a career-best 12 points on a perfect 4-for-4 effort from the field in addition to a quartet of free throw makes, while graduate guard Gabby Elliott rounded out the quartet of Lady Lions in double figures with 11 points on 5-for-7 shooting.
Penn State’s veteran tandem of returning guards in graduate Alli Campbell and senior Jayla Oden were both remarkably precise in the passing game, with the Baltimore, Maryland, native Oden surpassing her career high in assists with nine. Oden’s nine feeds outpaced a seven-assist effort on March 3, 2022, during her stint at Illinois. For Campbell, the Altoona, Pennsylvania, native mustered six assists to go along with seven points and four rebounds, an all-around impactful outing from PSU’s most experienced collegian. Oden and Campbell combined for 15 assists against just three turnovers, an assist-to-turnover ratio of 5.00.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
Turnovers maligned the opening minute of action, but Campbell delivered a dime to Murray in the left corner for the opening triple of the game for the Lady Lions. Niagara replied with a layup on the ensuing possession, but PSU’s offense was able to break the Purple Eagle press moments later for an easy layup from Merkle. Niagara found the bottom of the net from the left corner to deadlock the game, but a 1-for-2 trip to the line from Campbell put the Blue & White ahead by one. After the Purple Eagles tied things back up at 6-all, PSU engaged in a 5-0 scoring run highlighted by a Merkle and-one to force a Niagara timeout with Penn State leading 11-6. Out of the media break, teams traded baskets before the Lady Lions snapped off a 9-0 run highlighted by some pristine passing to take a 23-9 advantage. The Purple Eagles attempted to battle back to cut into the Lady Lion lead, but PSU closed the opening 10 minutes out on an 8-0 scoring run to take a 33-13 lead following the first period.
Second Quarter
Elliott drained her first look of the second quarter from long range, carrying Penn State’s momentum over from the first frame, but the Purple Eagles would respond with competitive back-and-forth effort just before Niagara called timeout with 6:59 remaining in the half to force a media break with PSU leading by a 41-17 margin. Out of the brief break, Walker stormed down the court for an impressive driving layup off a Purple Eagle giveaway. The Blue & White rattled off another extensive 8-0 scoring run sparked by a paint jumper from Elliott, resulting in a domineering 47-17 edge with 4:25 to play. Dominant defense and up-tempo offense was the name of the game for Penn State over the final four minutes of the half, with the Lady Lions out-scoring Niagara by a 10-1 tally to take a 57-20 lead into the halftime intermission.
Third Quarter
Penn State inbounded the ball to start the second half, with Murray capitalizing on a 2-for-2 trip to the stripe on the opening possession of the frame and Merkle completing a putback chance to further solidify the Lady Lion advantage. Back-to-back connections from Campbell to Merkle put the Blue & White ahead by a 65-22 margin, but a straight-away 3-pointer from the Purple Eagles snapped the run. Baskets fell both ways over the middle portion of the period, but a fastbreak bucket from Rust extended Penn State’s advantage to 70-31 at the third quarter media break with 4:52 to go in the frame. Niagara and Penn State went four consecutive possessions with a field goal, highlighted by a fastbreak chance that turned into a Lady Lion bucket on a feed from Murray to Campbell. PSU nearly closed the quarter out on a 6-0 run, but a Niagara triple before the break made it a 79-39 Lady Lion edge with 10 minutes to go.
Fourth Quarter
The first two minutes of the final frame passed largely without incident, but an and-one layup from Hall provided PSU with the first three points of the period. PSU proceeded to rattle off a 12-0 scoring run over the next few minutes highlighted by back-to-back paint buckets by Merkle in a 30-second span to take a striking 91-39 lead with 5:45 to go. Neither offense managed anything significant in the next minute, but Niagara managed to connect on a layup just before the media timeout to make PSU’s lead 50 points. The Purple Eagles replied with four straight points and a 2-for-2 trip to the line, but Walker responded with a quartet of free throw makes on the ensuing two possessions to put PSU ahead by 52. Jekot put the Blue & White one point shy of the century mark, and a fastbreak bucket from Walker gave Penn State their first 100-point outing since downing Maryland in January of this year, closing the book on a 101-45 result for the Lady Lions.
POSTGAME NOTES
Niagara at Penn State
November 14, 2024
Bryce Jordan Center (University Park, Pa.)
- The Lady Lions produced their third, 30-plus-point first quarter in just four games this season.
- Penn State shot 61.9% which is a Bryce Jordan Center record for field goal percentage.
- The Lady Lions produced their first 100-plus-point outing of the year.
- The Blue & White’s margin of victory was 56 points.
- Penn State has won 15-straight non-conference home games in a row dating back to 2022 marking the second longest streak in school history.
- Every Lady Lion touched the floor in the contest.
- Murray put up 17 points to add to her total of 79 on the season with most of her points this morning coming from three pointers. She shot two-of-two from the charity stripe to contribute to her combined 12-of-12 on the season.
- Merkle posted her fourth consecutive game scoring 20 or more points and her third 20-plus-point scoring effort. She produced 10-of-12 shooting from the field to total 24 points.
- Oden and Campbell combined for 15 assists to help the Lady Lions to their total of 27 assists. Oden's nine passes is good for a career best for the senior.
- Penn State outscored Niagara 60-20 in the paint.
- The Lady Lions totaled 16 steals and scored 38 points off the fast break.
- Jill Jekot scored her first points as a Lady Lion.
- Ari Williams played her first collegiate minutes.
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