PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Penn State women’s basketball earns 87-78 win over Rutgers on Saturday afternoon inside Jersey Mikes Arena. The Lady Lions improve to 10-17, 3-13 Big Ten while the Scarlet Knights fall to 9-18, 1-15 Big Ten.
Sophomore guard Kiyomi McMiller guided Penn State on offense, matching career high 37 points, marking her fifth consecutive 30-point scoring performance. The Silver Spring, Md. native was effective on all parts of the court, posting eight assists, five steals, four rebounds and two blocks. Redshirt junior center Gracie Merkle followed with 26 points on 10-of-16 shooting from the floor. She led the team with six rebounds and dished out four assists.
As a team, the Lady Lions produced their best field goal shooting percentage of the season, posting 62.0% shooting from the floor. PSU also produced 70.0% shooting from three-point range, its second-best mark of the year. Penn State outscored Rutgers 40-30 in the paint.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
Rutgers converted three of its first four shots from the free throw line, marking the only points of the opening two minutes. A shot from beyond the arc gave the Scarlet Knights a 6-0 advantage, while PSU remained scoreless. RU capped off an 8-0 run with a mid-range jumper. Tèa Clèante gave Penn State its first points with a shot from three-point range to spark a 7-0 run. Nyla McFadden added two shots from the charity stripe and Clèante drove to the rim for another set of points. The Scarlet Knights broke the PSU scoring stretch with five-straight points to take a 13-7 lead at the four-minute mark. McMiller drained a jumper for her first points of the contest, but the Scarlet Knights hit another shot from beyond the arc in response. Merkle cut the margin to five points with a layup under the basket. McMiller followed that up with a set of points off a Rutgers miscue. The Scarlet Knights put up two points to widen the gap back to five, but a trip to the line for McMiller decreased the PSU deficit to four points. She added another pair of points on Penn State’s next trip down the court to cut the score to 18-16. A basket for Merkle continued a five-point stretch for the Lady Lions while leveling the score at 18-18. Clèante drained her second three-pointer to capture the lead for PSU and finish off an 8-0 run for the Lady Lions. Penn State was ahead 21-18 after the first frame.
Second Quarter
The Scarlet Knights quickly went to work in the second stanza, recapturing a 23-21 edge in the opening minutes. McMiller added four-straight points to take a 25-23 lead for PSU and Merkle built on that with a layup under the rim. McMiller’s two free shots extended an 8-0 stretch for the Lady Lions and widened their lead to 29-23. Rutgers added one point from the charity stripe to break up the PSU run, but Merkle had the answer on the other end. The Scarlet Knights made it a 31-27 game until McFadden found the basket for Penn State to increase its lead to six points. Rutgers answered with a basket on its next possession, but McMiller dropped in a shot from three-point range to widen the margin to seven points. RU cut its deficit to four points near the one-minute mark in the first half. The Lady Lions finished out the second quarter with a drifter from McMiller to finalize a 38-32 lead after the first 20 minutes of game action.
Third Quarter
Rutgers began the scoring for the third-straight quarter to decrease the gap to four, but Merkle responded with two points for Penn State. The teams continued to trade baskets once more until a trip to the free throw line for the home team. Murray drained her first three-pointer of the day to balloon the PSU lead to 45-38. Two shots from the charity stripe for Rutgers was followed up with a shot from long-range out of the hands of McMiller. The Scarlet Knights continued to convert, but so did McMiller, adding five-straight points. Merkle got in on the action, adding a pair of points to complete a 7-0 Penn State run. Rutgers added a layup to cut the margin to 11 points, but Evans took an open lane to the rim to create a 13-point advantage for PSU. The Scarlet Knights put up five unanswered points to cut the gap to eight. Merkle broke the silence for PSU, creating a double-digit gap at the 3:18 point. Rutgers made three-of-four opportunities at the free throw line to draw the score to 59-51. Merkle responded with a layup under the rim and McFadden made both of her free throws to give the Lady Lions a 12-point advantage. Rutgers had the word of the quarter, but Penn State still led 63-53 at the buzzer.
Fourth Quarter
Rutgers once again put up the first points in the frame with four in consecutive fashion including two shots from the charity stripe following a PSU flagrant foul issued to Merkle. She then got two opportunities at the free throw line where she made three to widen Penn State’s lead to nine points. Rutgers drained a shot from long-range, but McMiller found back-to-back jumpers to create a 10-point gap. Following a RU timeout, the Scarlet Knights hit two three-pointers to cut the deficit to four points at the five-minute mark. McFadden stepped beyond the arc for a three of her own to extend the Lady Lion lead. Rutgers answered with a layup, but McMiller added a pair of points to keep the margin at seven. Merkle made both of her free throws to increase the Penn State lead to 77-68. Five consecutive points for the Scarlet Knights allowed them to creep within four, but Merkle’s layup kept the difference at six. McMiller drove to the rim for a set of points which Rutgers matched on its next offensive possession. The Lady Lions added six points over the last minute while the Scarlet Knights put up three to secure the 87-78 win.
POSTGAME NOTES
Penn State at Rutgers
February 21, 2026
Jersey Mikes Arena (Piscataway, N.J.)
- McMiller posted her 26th double figure scoring outing of the season and 41st of her career. It was also her ninth 30-plus-point performance of career and sixth of the year.
- Merkle added her 23rd double-digit scoring outing of the campaign and 67th of her career. It was her ninth 20-plus-point game of the year and 30th of her career.
- Penn State improves to 23-37 in its all-time series history against Rutgers, splitting the 2025-26 home-and-home.
- The victory marks the Lady Lions’ 10th win of the campaign.
- There were three lead changes and three tie scores throughout the contest.
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