Penn State women’s basketball (5-1) was handed its first loss by Southern California (5-0) 71-70 Wednesday in its second game of the Baha Mar Pink Flamingo Championship in Nassau, Bahamas. The matchup was Penn State’s first test against a ranked opponent this season.

In the midst of a physical matchup, Shay Ciezki was a dominant force with 18 points, seven rebounds, and three assists.

How It Happened

With both teams starting off their seasons undefeated, tonight’s matchup was sure to be a tough one. The game started off strong for the Lady Lions after Makenna Marisa capitalized off of a USC turnover with a quick jump shot. Quickly followed by another from Shay Ciezki, Penn State led up 4-0.

USC answered with a layup and a three-pointer from Kayla Padilla to take the lead. The back-and-forth game began, with driving layups from both Penn State’s Taylor Valladay and USC’s Juju Watkins. Kylie Lavelle put her first points on the board with a clean three-point jumper along with a layup minutes later.

KYLIE LAVELLE from beyond the arc pic.twitter.com/4tCjFuOD4y

— Penn State Women's Basketball (@PennStateWBB) November 23, 2023

The Lady Lions were unable to hold onto their lead coming off of the media timeout, and Watkins sent the Trojans to a 14-12 lead off of free throws. Marisa answered quickly with another jumper and Valladay continued with another powerful layup of her own.

Lavelle managed to keep the ball alive off of second-chance points and opponent turnovers, resulting in a USC timeout and a total of 10 first-quarter points for the sophomore.

KYLIE IS HER

9-0 run for Penn State, 10 bench points for Kylie… pic.twitter.com/jpD7zu4rH6

— Penn State Women's Basketball (@PennStateWBB) November 23, 2023

USC answered quickly after their timeout with a driving layup from McKenzie Forbes, tightening the score margin to five. A free throw from Watkins was the last successful score for the Trojans before the clock in the first quarter ran up.

After discrepancies on a last-minute foul call, the Lady Lions led 21-17 at the conclusion of the first quarter.

Marisa started the second quarter off hot for Penn State but was quickly countered by USC’s Rayah Marshall. Penn State held the lead 23-19, a few minutes in. Malia Samuels added her first points for the Trojans off the bench with a three-pointer.

Kenna just out here doing Kenna things pic.twitter.com/D7contP5UK

— Penn State Women's Basketball (@PennStateWBB) November 23, 2023

Watkins took her second fall to the ground of the night, and USC fans broke out into a fury. Some fans attempted to storm the court as they believed Penn State hurt Watkins intentionally. The calling on the court stood, and there were no external calls made on the play.

Valladay racked up some more defensive rebounds amid a back-and-forth battle, giving her five points on the night so far. Watkins pulled up for a bank jumper, giving USC a 24-23 lead. Ciezki put up four more and Marshall added another jumper of her own; the Lady Lions held their lead 27-26.

A jumper and a second-chance layup from USC’s Dominque Ono put the Trojans up 30-27, but they were quickly countered by Ciezki’s three-pointer to tie the game up with 2:35 to play in the second quarter.

FROM WAY DOWN TOWN.. Shay. Ciezki

pic.twitter.com/9S4b5GEGgc

— Penn State Women's Basketball (@PennStateWBB) November 23, 2023

Jayla Oden added a layup for the Lady Lions that continued to build the momentum for the team. Two more free throws for USC’s Marshall tied the game for the fifth time.

With moments to spare, Leilani Kapinus added a jumper for the Lady Lions off of a USC turnover. Watkins threw up a three-pointer with barely any time left on the clock and sunk it in. The second quarter came to a close with USC up one 35-34.

With a quick foul from Chanaya Pinto to start the third quarter, Watkins capitalized and sunk in two of her three free throws. Kapinus answered with a strong driving layup and a free throw to tie the score up at 37.

Padilla put up her second three of the night for USC to pull the Trojans up to a three-point lead. Watkins brought her total to 17 points after she sunk in a jumper off of a fast break.

Pinto did just the same and turned defense into offense by completing a fast break layup. Soon after, Padilla answered with her third three. Coming off of a defensive rebound, Kapinus took off on a fast break to add another layup and narrow the lead.

Ciezki hit one for Penn State right when it was needed, and the Lady Lions trailed 45-44. Yet again, Pinto hit another fastbreak steal layup for the Lady Lions with 5:30 to go in the third quarter.

After some free throws on both sides of the court, the game was tied up 49-49. Off of a Penn State turnover, USC went up with a layup from Watkins and a three-pointer from Forbes. Penn State was forced to call a timeout after this run.

After the timeout, Ali Brigham put up her first field goal of the night to make the Lady Lions trail by four, 55-51. Leilani Kapinus racked up a technical foul, and Watkins made only one of two technical free throw shots.

After somewhat of a quiet game, Marisa went to the line and put two in for Penn State. The Lady Lions were down 59-54 heading into the fourth quarter.

USC started off the fourth with a layup by Marshall which was quickly countered by Valladay. Taylor Bigby sunk in a three-pointer for the Trojans to give them an eight-point lead. Seconds later, Oden put up a three of her own, assisted by Brigham.

Brigham started to really turn on for the Lady Lions and added another jumper and layup. The gap narrowed to 64-63 with Penn State having gained a significant push at the start of this quarter.

Two completed free throws from Marisa put Penn State back up 65-64. After a 9-0 run for the Lady Lions, the media timeout provided a brief reset for both teams with a few minutes left to play.

Ciezki added a free throw and a reverse layup. At this point, Penn State was outscoring the Trojans 14-5 in the fourth quarter. In the jumble of an offense, USC was forced to call a timeout to reset.

SHAY WHAT @shay_ciezki#NCAAWBB x FloHoops / @PennStateWBB

pic.twitter.com/TLecUhr8ty

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) November 23, 2023

After some more back and forth, Pinto knocked two free throws in. Just when everyone thought the game was over, Watkins hit a layup and a three-pointer with only 90 seconds left to play. Penn State led 70-69.

USC called a 30-second timeout, resulting in another Watkins layup. Penn State called a timeout of their own with 21 seconds to spare. The Lady Lions got the ball under their own basket.

In a last-second attempt to score, the Lady Lions fell just short of a victory. The Trojans edged out Penn State 71-70.

Takeaways

• This was a wildly physical game, filled with elbows, screams, and intensity. This game closely resembled one that would be seen in an NCAA Tournament, with fans yelling at each other and tensions high. Each team had to constantly fight to be the toughest team on the floor and play fiercely.
• Penn State had to pull out its best defense tonight to counter freshman all-star Juju Watkins. The Lady Lions forced 20 USC turnovers but still allowed Watkins to put up 31 points. Watkins was the only player to score for the Trojans in the fourth quarter, guaranteeing the win for USC. In future ranked matchups, the Lady Lions need to contain key players to achieve a win.
• Kylie Lavelle had a night. After putting up 10 points in the first quarter, she remained a dominant force in the post the whole night. This was her second double-digit scoring effort as a Lady Lion. Lavelle is a prime example of how much depth this team has as she was able to produce for this team coming off of the bench.
• Shay Ciezki was a dominant force in tonight’s matchup. With 18 points and seven rebounds, she was a part of many of the runs that set Penn State on a path of momentum. Ciezki’s night was a team-high for Penn State.
• The Lady Lions face their first loss of the season but not without a fight. This game featured 15 different lead changes and was truly a back-and-forth battle. They faced a talented USC team and can now take what they have learned from a ranked matchup into the rest of the season.

What’s Next?

The Lady Lions will return from the Bahamas for a 1 p.m. tip on Sunday, November 26, against Providence at the Bryce Jordan Center. Folks can stream the game on BTN+.