Penn State women’s basketball (10-17, 3-13 Big Ten) beat Rutgers (9-18, 1-15 Big Ten) in New Brunswick on Saturday.

Kyomi McMiller and Gracie Merkle controlled the offensive side of the ball. They combined for 63 points today, giving the Lady Lions their third conference win of the season.

How It Happened

The Lady Lions won the opening tip-off but quickly turned the ball over. Nene Ndaiye had the first point of the game off a free throw for Rutgers.

Penn State started with three turnovers on offense. They also struggled with defensive rebounds, not boxing out, and following the ball well. Rutgers continued to score off free throws from four offensive turnovers in a row for the Lady Lions.

Rutgers started strong, leading 6-0 with 6:29 left to go in the first quarter. The Scarlet Knight defense blocked two shots in a row to grow their lead.

Penn State was getting dominated in the paint on offense, as Rutgers blocked four shots in a row. Tèa Clèante put Penn State on the board with its first three points of the game.

With two free throws and a layup off a fast break, the Lady Lions narrowed Rutgers’ lead to three. Rutgers led the Lady Lions 10-7 with 4:34 left in the first. Clèante led Penn State in scoring with five points.

Imani Lester led Rutgers in scoring with ten points, which helped maintain Rutgers’ lead. The Lady Lions continued to play sloppily on offense, giving Rutgers better shot opportunities.

McMiller helped the Lady Lions get back in the game with free throws and a nice step-back shot. Merkle found her rhythm in the paint, tying the game with 58 seconds left in the first quarter.

The Lady Lions got their first lead of the game with 21 seconds left in the first with a 3-pointer from Cleante. The first quarter ended with Penn State leading 21-18.

Rutgers started the second quarter with possession, but quickly missed a 3-pointer. Lester had the first basket of the quarter, giving her 13 points on the game.

Lester scored another two for Rutgers, giving them another lead. McMiller led Penn State with scoring with 11 points, and gave the Lady Lions another lead with 6:30 left in the half.

Merkle returned and continued to score in the paint. McMiller and Merkle took charge of Penn State’s offense, expanding its lead to six with 5:13 left in the half.

Merkle had been averaging 19.0 points per game this season. The Lady Lions slowed down on offense, trying to give her the ball for easy baskets.

Penn State had been finding open players on offense through swift cuts. The Lady Lions were still making sloppy turnovers, but were able to come back and score.

Both teams had been creating open space on offense, scoring easy layups. McMiller continued to find ways to score and led the Lady Lions with 18 points at the half.

The first half finished 38-32, as Penn State came back from a sloppy start with strong offensive performances from Merkle and McMiller.

Rutgers started the second half with the ball and a three from Lester. Penn State responded with two layups from Merkle.

Both teams started out hot offensively. Moriah Murray had her first shot attempt and points of the game with a three.

The Lady Lions showed no signs of slowing down as McMiller knocked down another three for Penn State, then an and-one right after. With 7:33 left in the third quarter, she had 23 points.

Rutgers started in zone defense, but the Lady Lions used open space and scored three straight 3-pointers early in the second half. Penn State took an 11-point lead with 6:00 left in the third quarter.

The Scarlet Knights didn’t slow down despite trailing and continued to move the ball well to score on offense. Its defense was just unable to stop three-point shots and Merkle in the paint.

Both teams started to slow down offensively toward the end of the third. Defense was a key factor, forcing missed shots and catching rebounds. The third quarter ended 63-53, Penn State leading.

The Lady Lions started the fourth quarter with possession, but missed a layup. The Scarlet Knights had the first points of the fourth quarter with a layup from Ndiaye.

Merkle had a technical foul with 9:24 left in the game, giving Rutgers two free throws. The Scarlet Knights narrowed Penn State’s lead to six. However, Merkle continued to get the ball in the paint. She reached 20 points with 8:45 left in the game.

Penn State’s plan appeared to be give Merkle the ball as much as possible. Her dominance in the paint is difficult to guard, giving Penn State easy points. McMiller reached 30 points and eight assists with 6:46 left to go in the game.

Rutgers began to shoot more 3-pointers as Penn State remained in zone defense. Rutgers narrowed the Lady Lions’ lead to four, but Nyla McFadden scored a corner 3-pointer in response.

McMiller reached four fouls late in the game but remained in the game. Coach Kieger wanted to keep her lead scorer in the game, as Rutgers began to come back.

With 2:40 left in the game, Penn State led 77-73, but Merkle quickly responded with another layup. Penn State used a timeout with 1:13 left in the game, leading by six.

Rutgers fouled McMiller with 1:08 left to go, which gave her foul shot opportunities. Penn State led Rutgers 84-75 with 33.5 seconds left.

Kaylah Ivey hit a deep three for Rutgers with 26 seconds left, but it wasn’t enough. The Lady Lions won 87-78 through a strong defensive finish.

Takeaways

• McMiller led the offensive side of the ball with eight assists and 37 points, tying her record in points in a game.
• Merkle continued to control the paint. She finished with 26 points, showcasing her dominance.
• Amiya Evans had four fouls earl,y giving her less playing time. It was a big loss for the Lady Lions, but they managed to pull off a hard-fought win.

What’s Next?

The Lady Lions return home to play USC at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, February 25, at the Rec Hall. The game will be broadcast on Big Ten Plus.