UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Despite wielding a 10-point lead early in the first quarter, the Penn State women’s basketball team dropped an 80-68 New Year’s Day decision to the No. 23 Iowa Hawkeyes Wednesday afternoon inside the Bryce Jordan Center.
The Blue & White drop to 9-5 overall following Wednesday’s New Year’s matinee and move to 0-3 through their first trio of contests in Big Ten Conference competition. Following the 59th all-time meeting of the two squads since the inaugural matchup in January of 1985, Iowa surged ahead by a 30-29 margin in the all-time series. The Hawkeyes have come away with every matchup in the series since the last Lady Lion win on January 3, 2017. Following their win, the Hawkeyes improve to 12-2 overall and 2-1 in the Big Ten Conference heading into their first B1G home game of 2025 against Maryland on Sunday.
Despite the final scoreline, Penn State came away with a win in the rebounding competition for the 12th time in the team’s 14 games played in 2024-25, moving to 9-3 when doing so. The Blue & White also logged more offensive rebounds than the Hawkeyes, 13-6. Graduate guard Gabby Elliott was the highlight of the day for the Blue & White, with the veteran shooting guard shattering her career high in scoring with 32 points on 12-for-22 shooting with a career-high seven 3-point makes. Elliott, a native of Detroit, Michigan, mustered her first game in excess of 20 points since transferring to Penn State, marking her highest scoring total since booking 25 at Notre Dame on March 4, 2021, during her time at Clemson. Redshirt sophomore center Gracie Merkle mustered her eighth double-double of the year with 13 points and 12 rebounds, while senior guard Jayla Oden rounded out the trio of Penn Staters in double figures with 10 points on the day.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
Penn State corralled the opening tipoff, but the Hawkeyes were first on the scoreboard with a turnaround hook shot in the paint. Hall utilized a baseline jump shot to give the Lady Lions their first basket of the afternoon to tie the score at two apiece two minutes into the matchup, and PSU took the lead with a putback layup from Merkle moments later. Baskets fell in both directions over the next few possessions, but back-to-back-to-back scores from Merkle and Campbell saw the Lady Lion edge grow to six points at the first quarter media timeout, leading 12-6 at the 4:18 mark. Elliott drilled a right corner 3-pointer to put the Lady Lions up by nine and close out a 9-0 scoring run, but both offenses were able to capitalize on their next six possessions to make it a 22-12 ballgame with a minute left in the first. Iowa stepped into a 3-pointer to cut the lead back to seven, but a mid-range jumper from Campbell at the end of the frame cemented the early 24-15 PSU advantage.
Second Quarter
The Hawkeyes opened the second period of play with a right-wing 3-ball and a transition bucket in the paint to pull back within four points of the Blue & White. Iowa made it a 7-0 run to open the second with a baseline driving layup, but a physical bucket from Merkle in the paint put Penn State ahead by a 26-22 differential. A pair of makes at the charity stripe sparked a 7-0 Hawkeye reply that saw Iowa pull ahead by a 29-26 margin, but an and-one from Elliott halted the momentum and knotted things up at 29 apiece. Iowa got back into a groove offensively, using a 5-0 scoring run followed by an Oden driving layup to take a 34-31 advantage at the second quarter media timeout. Out of the short intermission, Elliott got things rolling for PSU once again with a left-wing triple to tie things up, but Iowa retook the lead with a spin move for a bucket in the painted area. Stifling defense paired with an exquisite find from Murray on a pass to Hall made it a tied ballgame with a minute left in the half, but a pair of makes at the line for the Hawkeyes gave Iowa a 38-36 lead at the break.
Third Quarter
PSU’s defense forced a turnover on the Hawkeyes’ opening possession of the second half, but an offensive foul gave Iowa the ball right back. Moments later, Penn State earned the ball back and used a left-corner triple to briefly retake the lead just before the Hawkeyes utilized a baseline jumper to pull back ahead. Baskets fell in both directions over the next three possessions, but Oden battled for a hard-fought and-one opportunity with a floater in the paint to make it a one-point contest. Just before the media intermission, Iowa hit a 3-pointer from the right wing to take a 47-43 edge with 4:59 left in the third. Offense was hard to come by out of the short break, but a fadeaway triple from the Hawkeyes made it a seven-point game. PSU rattled off a 9-2 response with baskets from Merkle and Elliott and free throw makes from Oden, deadlocking the score at 52-all. A defensive breakdown by PSU saw Iowa lurch back in front with 90 seconds left in the quarter, but a left-wing bomb from Elliott saw the Lady Lions take the lead right back. A 1-for-2 trip to the line closed out the scoring in the third period for Iowa, making it a tightly contested 55-55 ballgame heading into the final 10 minutes of play.
Fourth Quarter
Iowa got the final 10 minutes started with a driving layup and a finish through contact and bolstered that early make with a left-wing 3-pointer that forced a Lady Lion timeout with the Hawkeyes leading by a 60-55 margin. Elliott connected on a triple from the right corner to make it a two-point Iowa lead, but the Hawkeyes got all three points back the next trip down the floor from the left wing. Elliott clapped back with another triple to keep the game tight, but the Hawkeyes utilized a layup down low to make it a two-possession game and capitalized on an and-one to make it 68-61. The Hawkeyes kept the offense rolling, closing the book on a 9-0 scoring run to force a PSU timeout trailing 72-61. Murray and Elliott kept PSU in the fight down the stretch with a pair of crucial jumpers, but Iowa was able to maintain its 10-point edge with around two minutes left to play in the contest. The Hawkeyes closed the game out on a ##-# run and left Happy Valley with an 80-68 victory on New Year’s Day.
POSTGAME NOTES
No. 23 Iowa at Penn State
January 1, 2025
Bryce Jordan Center (University Park, Pa.)
- Elliott booked her seventh double figure scoring outing of the season with a career high 32 points. The graduate guard shot seven-of-11 from long range, another personal best.
- Merkle got in the double figure scoring category once again, scoring 13 points on six-of-seven shooting from the field. The redshirt sophomore center notched her eighth double-double of the season with 12 rebounds.
- Oden contributed 10 points, marking her sixth double figure scoring outing of the campaign.
- The Lady Lions outrebounded the Hawkeyes by a 35-33 margin.
- There were six lead changes and nine tie scores throughout the contest.
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