Penn State women’s basketball (13-13, 4-11 Big Ten) couldn’t complete its last-minute comeback in a 67-55 loss to No. 13 Ohio State (22-5, 11-5 Big Ten). The Lady Lions produced a strong fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough to capture a fifth conference win.

How It Happened

The Lady Lions won the tipoff but immediately gave away the ball and a subsequent bucket. After some back-and-forth play, Ohio State went on a 12-0 run during the last handful of minutes in the opening quarter. Penn State called a timeout at the 5:32 mark of the first quarter, and the Nittany Lions trailed 15-5.

The Lady Lions manufactured a few more rough possessions, and the Buckeyes extended their run to 16-2. A Makenna Marisa fast break and finish brought the score to 19-9, along with two baskets from Leilani Kapinus from the foul line.

Additional hustle and defense granted Kapinus her second steal of the game, while the ensuing bucket brought the score to 21-16 at the end of the first quarter.

The start of the second quarter saw Ohio State suffer its sixth turnover of the night, though poor possessions by Penn State allowed the Buckeyes to expand their lead to 26-18.

Ohio State shot two three-pointers to make the score 34-20 with a lofty 40% completion rate from beyond the arc and helped create an 8-0 run. Meanwhile, Penn State only attempted four triples until this point.

While the Lady Lions matched Ohio State in turnovers by the end of the second quarter, they struggled to capitalize. The Buckeyes scored 15 points from turnovers against Penn State’s nine, giving the Buckeyes a 38-26 lead heading into halftime.

The Lady Lions were energized after halftime and scored their seventh offensive rebound of the night to cut the score to 38-30. Both teams struggled offensively, but Alexa Williamson put an end to Penn State’s nearly-four-minute scoring drought.

At the end of a low-scoring third quarter, the Lady Lions struggled on offense and only scored five points in contrast to the Buckeyes’ 9-0 run. The third quarter closed with a score of 51-31.

In the fourth quarter, Marisa kept the pressure on the Buckeyes despite the lengthening lead. Penn State went on an 8-0 run to cut the deficit to 21 points. Marisa continued to push the Nittany Lions to a 60-47 clip to help Penn State put together the makings of a late comeback.

Although Penn State outscored Ohio State in the fourth quarter, the Buckeyes won 67-55.

Takeaways:

• The Lady Lions made it count in the paint against the Buckeyes. Penn State picked up 17 offensive rebounds and 22 defensive rebounds to demonstrate their post dominance.
• Three-point conversions made all the difference in this matchup. While Ohio State converted eight triples, Penn State dropped just three. Shay Ciezki had a quiet night with just five points including one three. As the Lady Lions’ conference opponents dwindle, the volume of threes needs to increase in order to remain competitive.

What’s Next?

The Lady Lions will hit the road to take on Illinois at 3 p.m. on Sunday, February 19. Folks can stream the game on BTN+.