UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.- Penn State women’s basketball is set to face Minnesota on Wednesday, Jan. 28. The contest between the Lady Lions (7-14, 0-10 Big Ten) and the Golden Gophers (14-6, 5-4 Big Ten) is set to tip off at 6 p.m. inside Rec Hall. The game will serve as a National Girls and Women in Sports Day celebration.
GAME INFORMATION
vs. Minnesota
- Date: Wednesday, January 28 2026 | Time: 6 p.m. ET
- Location: University Park, Pa. | Venue: Rec Hall
- Live Stats | Watch: B1G+ | Notes | Radio
- Admission: Ticketed
LAST TIME OUT
- Penn State fell to Oregon, 89-59, on Saturday in Eugene. The Lady Lions battled in the first and second quarters of the contest, trailing by just six points at halftime. The Ducks used a 34-point third quarter to create a significant deficit that PSU could not climb back from.
- Nyla McFadden and Kiyomi McMiller led the Lady Lions offensively with 15 points each.
- McFadden posted 15 points on six-of-eight shooting from the floor, marking her fourth double figure scoring performance of the season. She also posted six rebounds.
- Maggie Mendelson led the Lady Lions on the glass with seven boards.
SCOUTING THE GOLDEN GOPHERS
- Minnesota is 14-6, 5-4 Big Ten. The Golden Gophers are on a two-game win streak with victories over Oregon and Wisconsin most recently on Sunday. Minnesota owns a ranked win over no. 21 USC.
- Grace Grocholski leads the team offensively, scoring 14.0 points per game. Tori McKinney (12.5) and Mara Braun (10.7) also average double figure scoring.
- Grocholski is ranked third in the country and second in the conference in three-point percentage (47.7).
As a team, the Golden Gophers are second in the nation in turnovers per game (10.7) and own the seventh-best assist to turnover ratio (1.56). The Golden Gophers are ninth in the country in scoring defense, only allowing 54.2 points per game. - Minnesota finished the 2024-25 campaign 25-11, 8-10 Big Ten. The Golden Gophers earned a spot in the WBIT, becoming the eventual WBIT Champions with a win over Belmont in the championship game.
PENN STATE – MINNESOTA SERIES
- Penn State owns the all-time series by a 32-26 margin.
- The Golden Gophers won the most recent meeting last season, 90-54.
- In the 2023-24 campaign, the teams faced twice with Penn State earning both wins including a 90-34 victory in the regular season finale.
LADY LIONS IN THE RANKS
- Merkle ranks first in the nation in field goal percentage (74.2) and 11th in field goals (170). She is also fifth in the conference points per game (19.3).
- McMiller ranks 10th in the nation in field goals (172) and first in field goal attempts (400), ranking fifth and first across the B1G consecutively in those categories. She sits sixth in the conference in points per game (18.8).
- Murray is second in the Big Ten in three pointers (55) and third in three pointers per game (2.62).