Penn State women’s basketball (10-10, 1-8 Big Ten) fell to No. 21 Michigan State (16-3, 6-2 Big Ten) 82-61 at the Breslin Center on Wednesday night.

Despite a quick start from beyond the arc from the Lady Lions, Michigan State dominated the game with a stifling defensive press. Moriah Murray took center stage with eight threes, standing as a shining light in another lackluster offensive outing from Penn State. The Lady Lions fell to .500 for the first time this season after their 8-0 start.

How It Happened

Moriah Murray cashed in from three on the near side to break the ice against the Spartans in the first minute.

Heard Mo, heard. #LionMentality pic.twitter.com/45K81AHw3L

— Penn State Women's Basketball (@PennStateWBB) January 22, 2025

Michigan State went on to a 7-0 run as the Lady Lions failed to capitalize on Murray’s fast start. She then drained another three to pull it back to 7-6. Michigan State then performed another 7-0 run before Gabby Elliott made her first three in her return to the Breslin Center.

Both teams exchanged three-pointers as head coach Carolyn Kieger called her first timeout with the Lady Lions down 17-9 midway through the opening frame.

Jayla Oden converted at the cup coming out of the timeout. Alli Campbell also scored her first points of the night with a quick fadeaway. After a Michigan State turnover, the Lady Lions took it the other way, where Elliott’s shot was blocked. The Spartans converted a deep two in transition.

Sloppy offense ensued on both sides near the end of the first quarter, with turnovers taking place within seconds of each team gaining possession. More frustration followed as the officials called a 10-second violation on the Lady Lions. They failed to score in the final 3:06 of the first quarter.

Gracie Merkle and Grace Hall connected at the top of the second frame to end the scoring drought. The Spartans immediately responded to keep their lead at 10.

Merkle scored her first points of the night with a dominant show of force in the paint. Murray tried another shot at three with her hot hand but missed for the first time on the night.

Scoring came to a deadlock as a media timeout took place with 4:26 remaining in the half. Penn State battled another scoring drought at 2:56 at the timeout as Michigan State only scored one of its last nine field goals.

Campbell failed to connect with Elliott in the corner coming out of the timeout, tossing the ball out of bounds in her direction. Michigan State went up by 13 before Murray scored another three from the same spot to pull back within 10.

Three threes for Mo Murray, we're calling a heat check#LionMentality pic.twitter.com/cfgcMnKXFa

— Penn State Women's Basketball (@PennStateWBB) January 23, 2025

Michigan State’s Emma Shumate retaliated with a triple of her own to bump the Spartans’ lead back to 13. The Spartans continued to aggressively press the Lady Lions, forcing another turnover before Penn State could even reach the paint. Murray launched a three before being closed in but caught nothing but air.

Merkle’s bad pass created another Penn State turnover. Gra Vanslooten converted the turnover into two more points for Michigan State. Oden turned the ball over once again on Penn State’s subsequent possession, its fourth in the last 3:19.

Murray cashed in from beyond the arc once more before the half, but Michigan State’s Nyla Hampton put some more salt in the wound with a buzzer-beating layup to end the half 41-24 in the Spartans’ favor.

Merkle cleaned up with an offensive rebound and layup to open Penn State’s scoring in the second half. Michigan State star Theryn Hallock responded with a corner three to elevate the Spartans’ lead to 18.

Ines Sotelo banked in another three for the Spartans, handing them their largest lead of the night early in the third quarter. Julia Ayrault blocked Merkle at the rim and cashed in from the corner as the exclamation point on an 11-0 Michigan State run to open the second half before a Penn State timeout.

Murray notched her fifth triple of the night for Penn State’s first points of the half. However, Hallock matched it with another corner three, retaining the Spartans’ lead at 26.

Ayrault continued to pour it on with another three to make it a 58-29 ballgame. Kieger called a timeout with 4:57 left in the third quarter.

More missed jumpers and turnovers plagued Penn State throughout the remainder of the penultimate frame as it went through another long scoring drought. Michigan State took the pedal off of the gas from beyond the arc but remained persistent with its points in the paint. The Spartans led 65-37 at the end of the third.

Cam Rust entered the game for some rare minutes early in the fourth quarter as Murray connected from downtown once more.

Vitoria Santana hit a triple in rare minutes for her as well. Jill Jekot and Arian Williams also entered the game in the fourth quarter as Murray cashed in twice more from beyond the arc. Michigan State dribbled it out and secured the win.

Takeaways

• Penn State simply failed to generate much of anything offensively against the Spartans’ staunch and suffocating defense. The Lady Lions went on multiple scoring droughts of over three minutes each, highlighting the difficulty of putting the ball in the net from the start of the game all the way down to triple zeroes.
• Michigan State’s dominant defense amplified Penn State’s turnover issues that have persisted all season long. The Lady Lions committed 26 turnovers on the night, which the Spartans converted into 30 points.
• Despite the loss, Murray posted her best outing of the season since November’s win against Georgia. Murray connected eight times from deep out of 12 shots, good for her highest three-point percentage of the year at 66%. All her points came from beyond the arc as she tied her season high in triples made all the way back in the opening win against Bucknell.

What’s Next?

The Lady Lions return home to face Rutgers at 1 p.m. on Sunday, January 26, at the Bryce Jordan Center. Folks can tune in on BTN+.