Lady Lions Fall To Rutgers 76-72
Penn State women’s basketball (7-12, 0-8 Big Ten) fell to Rutgers (9-9, 1-6 Big Ten) 76-72 in Rec Hall on Sunday afternoon.
Despite Gracie Merkle and Kiyomi McMiller combining for 48 points and 19 rebounds, their efforts fell short, as Penn State’s losing streak extended to eight games.
How It Happened
Penn State won the tip, but immediately turned it over while trying to get the ball to Gracie Merkle in the post, leading to a corner three from Rutgers. The Lady Lions responded on the next possession with a great baseline drive from Tea Cleante that stressed the defense, leading to an open Nyla McFadden for three. The deep ball continued to fall early on, as Faith Blackstone looked off the defense and found Nene Ndiaye to give the Scarlet Knights an 8-3 lead.
Kiyomi McMiller went coast-to-coast to grab her first bucket against her former team and then did it again on the very next possession, giving Penn State an 11-10 lead.
Rutgers climbed back on top with a 10-2 run. Merkle finally was able to corral a pass and drop in a layup for her first field goal of the game. Penn State earned a trio of stops at the end of the first quarter, and supplemented them with a mid-range jumper from Murray to make it a 22-19 game.
McMiller slithered her way into the paint and drew a foul, but missed both free throws. Viktoria Ranisavljevic injected Penn State’s offense with life after converting a four-point play.
McMiller added on to that with a three of her own, bringing the Lady Lions within five points.
Imani Lester continued to have her way with Penn State’s defense, using a drop step against Maggie Mendelson to score down low and extend Rutgers 33-28 lead. Still, McMiller answered, fighting through contact to convert an and-one opportunity.
Carolyn Kieger drew up a great playcall to get Moriah Murray open off a ball screen by Merkle, but the guard couldn’t get the shot to fall.
In the closing moments of the first half, Ranisavljevic earned a trip to the line, but could only get one shot to fall, sending Penn State into the locker room trailing 35-33.
The Lady Lions came out strong to begin the second half, with McFadden finding Merkle for an easy bucket in the paint, and then scoring a fastbreak layup herself on the next possession. Rutgers burned an absurdly early timeout to stop the momentum, but it was to no avail, as Cleante forced a turnover for Penn State directly out of the break. Then, McFadden kept her strong second-half start going with a strong layup through traffic, giving Penn State a 39-35 lead.
Ndiaye splashed a three to cool off the red-hot Nittany Lions, but McMiller didn’t blink, losing a pair of defenders in the open court for an easy transition layup. The former Scarlet Knight kept the energy flowing on defense, fiercely blocking Janae Walker under the hoop and stomping her feet in animation.
Mendelson locked down Lester in the post, blocking her shot to spark a fast break that resulted in a mid-range jump shot for McMiller.
With the game tied 45-45, Penn State forced back-to-back stops and then took the lead off a mid-range jumper by McFadden. Merkle sealed off her defender down low, allowing McMiller to punch through the paint for an easy layup.
After starting the game 0-7 from three-point range, Murray finally got one to go, prompting the Rec Hall crowd to explode as Penn State took a 55-50 lead with a minute left in the third quarter.
The whistles were active for Rutgers on offense to start the fourth quarter, sending the Scarlet Knights to the line twice in quick succession. Rutgers climbed to a 61-57 lead, but Murray found McMiller on a baseline cut for a layup. Then, Merkle kept her rhythm going in the paint with an easy bucket to tie it up 61-61.
Penn State’s offense began to gravitate heavily toward Merkle, and it was working. She was either scoring or Rutgers was fouling her. Still, the game remained gridlocked, as Rutgers continued to answer offensively.
As crunch time began, the Lady Lions trailed 73-65.
McMiller splashed a step-back three-pointer to bring it within five points, but Rutgers continued to draw fouls on offense, keeping Penn State out of rhythm. After a stop, McMiller found another pair of quick buckets to make it 75-72, but just 20 seconds remained, leaving Penn State out of opportunities to take the lead.
Takeaways
- Despite the loss, Kiyomi McMiller was operating at a different pace than everyone else, blazing down the court all day to log a 27-point double-double against her former team. She also added 11 rebounds, five assists, and forced two defensive turnovers.
- Penn State suffered a crucial offensive drought lasting about 10 minutes, starting at the end of the third quarter. During this period, the Lady Lions were outscored 25-13, allowing the Scarlet Knights to gain an insurmountable cushion.
- Maggie Mendelson appears to be gaining confidence in Penn State’s lineup. The two-sport athlete consistently boxed out, used active footwork to defend, and could be heard directing traffic on defense. She finished with just one rebound and a block, but her contribution in relief to Merkle goes beyond the box score.
What’s Next?
The Lady Lions head to the West Coast to take on Washington on Wednesday, January 21, at 9 p.m. The game will be broadcast on Big Ten Plus.
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