UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State women’s basketball falls to no. 12/13 Michigan State, 81-70, on Saturday inside Rec Hall. The Lady Lions drop to 8-16, 1-12 Big Ten while The Spartans improve to 20-4, 9-4 Big Ten. Despite Penn State’s best first quarter of the season, Michigan State outscored the Lady Lions in the second half to secure the win.
Sophomore guard Kiyomi McMiller spearheaded the Penn State offense, achieving a new career high 37 points. She also posted a new personal best 16 field goals made. The sophomore was effective on all ends of the court, grabbing eight rebounds, dishing out three assists and notching one steal. Freshman guard Tèa Clèante put forth her third-straight double figure scoring performance of the year with 10 points in addition to two assists and two steals. The Lady Lions produced their best first quarter scoring performance of the year and largest first quarter lead of the campaign, both previous occurrences taking place last season.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
Michigan State got the scoring going first using an offensive rebound to give it an extra possession. McMiller responded on the other end of the court with a step-back shot from long range. The Spartans converted on their next trip down the court, but Murray used a three-pointer to silence their efforts. A defensive stop by McMiller allowed her to drain a long jumper while extending PSU to an 8-4 advantage. MSU captured the lead with five-straight points until Penn State engaged in a 13-0 run to take a 19-9 lead at the 4:24 mark. The stretch was highlighted by five points from McMiller and five from Clèante. The Spartans broke their four-minute dry spell with just under three to play, but McMiller responded with a pair of baskets on her next possessions. Viktoria Ranisavljevic took a trip to the charity stripe where she made both shots to create a 15-point margin. Each team had one final basket to finalize a 28-13 advantage for PSU after the first 10 minutes of action.
Second Quarter
The Spartans cut the deficit to nine using six-straight points to open the second frame. Murray sparked the PSU offense with two points. The Spartans netted a shot from long range, but Ranisavljevic did the same on the other end. MSU added five-straight points to decrease the gap to six points. Maggie Mendelson made one of her two free shots and Nyla McFadden converted a layup under the rim to extend the PSU lead to nine. Penn State converted defense into offense with a three-pointer out of the hands of Clèante after a steal from McFadden. Michigan State earned a trip to the charity stripe where it converted both, but Mendelson had the answer on the other end with a layup. McFadden and McMiller drained both of their free shots to balloon the Lady Lions’ lead to 45-29 at the 1:32 mark. The Spartans added four unanswered points to conclude the first half with PSU ahead 45-33.
Third Quarter
McMiller picked u where she left off in the first half, converting a set of points to surpass the 20-point mark. Michigan State added four points on its next two attempts to pull within 10. McMiller drained her third three-pointer of the day to cross PSU over the 50-point threshold. MSU added one point from a free shot before McMiller netted a layup underneath the basket. Michigan State engaged in a 13-0 run to decrease the margin to one point with 1:55 on the third quarter clock, forcing PSU to utilize a timeout. Following the break, neither team added points to the board until the final three seconds when MSU converted a three-point play to pull ahead 54-52 at the end of the third frame.
Fourth Quarter
The Spartans built their lead to six points after four unanswered points to start the final stanza. McMiller got PSU going offensively with a long jumper. Clèante used a steal-and-score to cut the margin to two points. Michigan State took a trip to the free throw line, but McMiller responded with two points of her own. The Spartans drained a shot from long range before using a Penn State miscue to add another two points. McMiller cut the deficit to five but, MSU converted on its next two offensive possessions to widen the gap to eight points. The teams traded baskets before five-straight scores for the Spartans. Both teams added layups over the final minute, but Michigan State prevailed, securing a 81-70 win
POSTGAME NOTES
Michigan State at Penn State
February 7, 2026
Rec Hall (University Park, Pa.)
- The Lady Lions produced their best first quarter scoring performance of the season – best since a 28-point first stanza performance against Rutgers on Jan. 26, 2025. It marked their largest first quarter lead since leading Niagara 33-13 on Nov. 14, 2024.
- Penn State shit 68.9% from the floor and 60% from three-point range in the first quarter.
- McMiller set a new career high in points with 37 and made field goals with 16.
- McMiller recorded her 23rd double figure scoring performance of the season and 38th of her career. It was her 23rd 20-plus-point performance of her career and third 30-plus-point outing of the year and second in a row.
- Clèante has achieved double figure scoring in 10 games this season.
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