UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.- Penn State women’s basketball begins two-game home stint with Thursday night tilt against no. 9 Michigan. The Lady Lions (7-8, 0-4 Big Ten) and the Wolverines (12-2, 3-1 Big Ten) are set to face off at 6 p.m. with coverage on B1G+.
Penn State is in search of its first conference win of the season while Michigan looks to improve to a 4-1 Big Ten record.
GAME INFORMATION
vs. no. 9 Michigan
- Date: Thursday, January 8, 2025 | Time: 6 p.m. ET
- Location: University Park, Pa. | Venue: Rec Hall
- Live Stats | Watch: B1G+ | Notes | Radio
- Admission: Ticketed
LAST TIME OUT
- The Lady Lions fell 74-73 at Wisconsin in thrilling battle on Sunday afternoon. After the Badgers captured a lengthy lead in the first quarter, Penn State battled back to reclaim the advantage in the fourth quarter. A stretch of 14 unanswered points for Wisconsin in the middle of the fourth quarter was the difference maker, finalizing the win.
- Kiyomi McMiller surpassed a new career best with 36 points on 14-of-22 shooting from the floor. She made three of her four shots from three-point range and knocked down all five of her free throws. This was her third consecutive double figure scoring outing and 14th this season.
- Gracie Merkle recorded 12 points on five-of-seven shooting from the field.
- Amiya Evans led the Lady Lions on the glass, matching her career high 12 rebounds.
SCOUTING THE WOLVERINES
- Michigan is 12-2, 3-1 in 2025-26 with its only two losses coming to no. 1 UConn and Washington. The Wolverines own a ranked win over no. 18 Notre Dame earlier this season at the Shamrock Classic.
- Olivia Olson leads the team on offense with 18.0 points per game. Syla Swords follows with 14.3 points per contest. Mila Holloway (12.0) and Te-Yala (10.4) also average double figure scoring for Michigan.
- As a team, the Wolverines have the ninth-best scoring offense in the country, putting up 87.9 points per game. They rank 10th in scoring margin (30.9), 10th in turnovers forced per game (15.2), 10th in offensive rebounds per game (17.0), 11th in free throw attempts per game (24.07) and 14th in rebound margin (11.6).
- Olson and Swords were named to the Preseason All-Big Ten team ahead of the campaign.
- Last season, Michigan finished 23-11, 11-7 Big Ten after making a run to the second round of the NCAA Tournament where the Wolverines fell to Notre Dame.
PENN STATE – MICHIGAN SERIES
- Penn State leads the all-time series against Michigan by a 32-22 margin.
- Despite PSU leading the series, the Wolverines have won the most recent 10 contests.
- Penn State is 17-7 in games played in Happy Valley against Michigan.
- There have been 22 meetings between the squads that ended in a score differential of 10-or-less points.
LADY LIONS IN THE RANKS
- Merkle finished the 2024-25 campaign ranked third in the nation and first in the conference in field goal percentage (.670). Among power 4 players, she ranked first in field goal percentage, 15th in double-doubles (13), 20th in rebounds per game (8.6) and 23rd in blocks per game.
- Moriah Murray sat 21st in the nation in three pointers per game (2.63) and second in the B1G in 2024-25.
- As a team, the Lady Lions ranked 14th in the nation in assists per game (17.7) and fifth in the Big Ten last season.
- After 15 games, Merkle ranks first in the nation in field goal percentage (74.7) and 11th in field goals (127). She is also fourth in the conference points per game (19.1).
- McMiller ranks 13th in the nation in field goals (124) and second in field goal attempts (286), ranking fourth and first across the B1G consecutively in those categories.
- Murray is first in the conference in three pointers per game (2.87) and in total three-pointers (43).