Lady Lions basketball is navigating through a rough season.

Despite high expectations entering the year, the Lady Lions now sit in last place in the Big Ten with a 1-12 record in conference play after a 13-point loss to No. 12 Michigan State on Saturday.

While the result wasn’t what Penn State had hoped for, the Lady Lions put up a fight against a nationally ranked Spartans team, building a 16-point first-half lead and showing plenty postive signs before allowing a late comeback.

“We did a really good job executing. I thought we did a really good job sharing the basketball,” Carolyn Kieger said. “Was just kind of a collective, cohesive unit there.”

That cohesion led to one of the best first-half Penn State performances all season, sparking a 20-4 run to end the first quarter.

Along with a solid first half, Kiyomi McMiller was another bright spot for the Lady Lions. The former five-star dropped a career-high 37 points, registering her second consecutive 30-point effort.

Her offensive production has arguably been one of the few bright spots for Penn State this season, with her 20.2 points per game leading the team. In McMiller’s first season after transferring from Rutgers, she has been spectacular, especially as of late, earning praise from her coach.

“She’s attacking downhill, she’s attacking aggressively,” Kieger remarked. “She’s playing confidently, and I think it’s been contagious.”

The Lady Lions will look to replicate that scoring effort again when they take on No. 20 Maryland in their next matchup. With the team needing at least two wins in its final five games to have a chance at clinching a spot in the Big Ten Tournament, Penn State has little room for error. Still, Kieger doesn’t plan to make major changes heading into the team’s next challenge.

“It’s going to be a very similar game plan to Maryland as it was for Michigan State,” Kieger noted. “We’re looking forward to carrying that momentum from these last two performances.”

The team has certainly looked better as of late, winning its first conference game this season against Purdue last week. How the Lady Lions build on that momentum will determine if Penn State makes an appearance in the Big Ten Tournament in March.

“The biggest thing we keep trying to do every day is just get better, stack days, get better at practice, get better as a team, get better as coaches,” Kieger explained. “Build confidence, build chemistry, and just keep stacking winning habits that will eventually transform and translate into these games that we got coming up.”

Penn State women’s basketball will look to keep stacking those winning habits against Maryland. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. on Thursday, February 12, at the Xfinity Center in College Park, Maryland. The game is scheduled to be streamed on Peacock.