University of Minnesota Athletics
University of Minnesota
Penn State
Minnesota Falls at Penn State, 58-54
1/14/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Minnesota led by 11 points with 16:39 left in the game, but Penn State rallied for a 58-54 victory on Thursday evening at the Bryce Jordan Center.
The Gophers (8-10 overall, 0-5 Big Ten) dropped their fifth-straight game, and lost a double-digit second-half lead for the third time in Big Ten play this season. Minnesota was led by 19 points from junior guard Kiara Buford, while sophomore forward Katie Loberg added 18 points.
"I think we played very well defensively against the highest-scoring team in the conference, but we made some mistakes in the second half that allowed them to close the gap quickly," Minnesota head coach Pam Borton said. "They made a three-pointer and got a layup in transition, and it felt like they got right back into the game in a span of about three minutes."
Minnesota's defense held Penn State (14-4, 3-1) to 8-of-24 field goals in the opening half, but the Lady Lions heated up after the break to make 12-of-28 attempts, including 4-of-7 treys. Penn State's Maggie Lucas made all four of those three-pointers and finished with a game-high 20 points, while Mia Nickson added 12 points and 11 rebounds.
Minnesota jumped ahead 6-4 on a pair of free throws by Loberg and two field goals from Buford. But Penn State responded with back-to-back by Zhaque Gray and Lucas to pull in front, 10-6.
Buford added four more points to tie the game at 10-10 with 11:36 left in the opening half, but the Lady Lions responded with an 8-2 run for an 18-12 advantage at the 6:51 mark.
Minnesota pulled back within one point, 18-17, on baskets by senior point guard China Antoine and freshman guard Sari Noga, with Noga's coming from three-point range with 5:40 on the clock.
With the Gophers trailing, 19-17, Loberg scored six of her 10 first-half points to push Minnesota ahead, 23-19, at the 1:18 mark.
After Penn State pulled back with a pair, sophomore guard Leah Cotton nailed a trey from the right corner to give Minnesota a 26-21 lead, and the Gophers went to the locker room with a 26-24 advantage. The first-half point total for the Lady Lions tied for the second-lowest output this season.
Minnesota stretched its lead early in the second half, taking a nine-point lead at 33-24 with a 7-0 run over the first 3:00, as Buford made a three-pointer, followed by a steal and layup from Antoine, and a jumper by Loberg.
The Gophers built their lead to 11, as Loberg added two free throws to make it 35-24 in favor of the Gophers before Alex Bentley tallied PSU's first points at the 15:28 mark. But that basket started an 8-0 run for the home team to cut Minnesota's advantage to three points with 14:06 left.
The Lady Lions turned up the pressure down the stretch, switching to a player-to-player defense that the Gophers struggled with, and Gray gave Penn State a 44-42 lead that it never relinquished with 9:19 left.
Minnesota stayed close, but Lucas had 14 of her 20 points in the second half, as the Lady Lions held on for the win.
The Gophers now have a week before their next game, as they play host to Wisconsin next Thursday, Jan. 20 at 7:30 p.m. (CST) in Williams Arena.
