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No. 17/18 Lady Lions Sprint Past Virginia Tech, 66-28
Bentley becomes 33rd member of 1,000-point club with 11 tallies
UNIVERSITY
PARK, PA.— The #17/18 Penn State Lady Lions (7-2, 0-0 Big Ten) held
Virginia Tech (2-5, 0-0 ACC) scoreless for the final 13 minutes of the
game to secure a convincing 66-28 win. After scoring seven of her 11
points in the first half, junior Alex Bentley (Indianapolis, Ind.)
became the 33rd Lady Lion to reach 1,000 career points and the 15th to
reach the milestone as a junior. The 28 points were the fewest scored
by the Hokies in program history, surpassing the 33 points scored
against Tennessee during the 1995 campaign. It is also the fewest
points scored by a Penn State opponent since giving up 21 tallies to
Rider on Nov. 14, 2010.
Sophomore Maggie Lucas (Narbeth,
Pa.) posted a game-high 20 points while also posting a team-best eight
rebounds and two assists. Junior Nikki Greene (Diboll, Texas) added 14
points, five rebounds and three steals, while Bentley chipped in 11
points, five assists and three steals. Sophomore Talia East
(Philadelphia, Pa.) had a strong night off the bench with six points
and three rebounds.
It was a slow start offensively by
both teams, but Lucas put the Lions on the board with a three. Virginia
Tech’s Monet Tellier found the basket at the 17-minute mark to give the
Hokies their first points of the game and put VT within one, 3-2. A
free throw from sophomore Ariel Edwards (Elmont, N.Y.), followed by a
layup from Lucas had the Lady Lions leading by two. However, Aerial
Wilson scored off a jumper to tie it up at 6-6 with12:39 left to play
in the first half.
Bentley sparked a 14-0 run by the Lady
Lions with a jumper that gave Penn State a convincing 20-6 lead. Lucas,
junior Marisa Wolfe (Ford City, Pa.), Greene, freshman Tori Waldner
(Milton, Ga.) and East all put the ball away during the run. Despite a
missed basket by the Hokies, a PSU turnover led to a three-pointer by
Larryqua Hall cutting off the Lady Lion run. Hall managed to close the
gap to 10 (21-11) with a jumper with 4:23 remaining, but a layup by
Edwards had Penn State back ahead by 12 (23-11).
Virginia
Tech managed to come within 10 twice more thanks to baskets from
Latorri Hines-Allen and Wilson, but the Hokies were unable to cut Penn
State’s lead down to single-digits before the half ended. After a
Wilson foul, Bentley put the Lions ahead 27-15 heading into the break.
Penn
State continued its dominance in the second half scoring seven of the
firstnine points to take a 34-17 advantage. Hines-Allen scored on a
second chance basket to make it 34-19, but Penn State pushed its lead
to 19 after a Greene layup and a fastbreak basket by Bentley to make it
38-19.
An 8-2 Hokie run brought Virginia Tech within 14
(38-24) with 14:35 to play, prompting a Penn State timeout. Out of the
break, Greene knocked down a jumper to push the Lady Lion lead to 16
(40-24). Alyssa Fenyn nailed a trifecta with less than 14 minutes to
play before Wilson headed to the free throw line where she made the
front-end bringing VT within 12 (40-28).
Nearly two
minutes passed with neither team scoring until a steal by senior Zhaque
Gray (Chicago, Ill.) led to a fastbreak layup by Bentley. From there
with a little more than 11 minutes left in the game, Penn State
embarked on a 26-0 scoring run and held the Hokies scoreless for the
final 13 minutes. Six Lady Lions contributed to the scoring run, with
Lucas leading the way with 10 points, including seven of Penn State’s
last nine points.
GAME NOTES: Alex Bentley became the 33rd
member of Penn State’s 1,000-point club with 11 points. She is the 15th
Lady Lion junior to reach the milestone and the first since Tyra Grant
… Penn State improves to 2-0 all-time against Virginia Tech … The Lady
Lions held the Hokies to 28 points, their lowest point total in school
history. Virginia Tech’s previous low was against the Tennessee
Volunteers on Feb. 22, 1995 with 33 points … It is also the fewest
points given up by a Lady Lion team since allowing 21 points to Rider
on Nov. 14, 2010 (W, 95-21) … Nikki Greene is tied for sixth with Tina
Henry on Penn State’s all-time blocks chart (140) … Maggie Lucas
eclipsed the 700-point mark with her 20-point performance … Penn State
ended the game on a 26-0 run and didn’t allow a Virginia Tech point for
the final 13:15 of the game … Penn State held an opponent under 45%
shooting for the eighth time this season, winning all but one … Penn
State shot 71.4% (15-21) from the field in the second half, it’s
best-shooting half since shooting 70.4% against Ohio State in the Big
Ten Tournament (3/4/07) … The Lady Lions are now 5-0 when outrebounding
their opponent, Penn State held the advantage on the boards, 39-31.
The
Lady Lions continue their homestand with their first-ever meeting with
UMES on Sunday at 2 p.m. The game is a Subway Full Court 4-Pack, fans
get four reserved game tickets, one voucher good for four 6-inch subs
at any of seven State College Subway locations, and one voucher good
for four soft drinks at the BJC, for just $40. Lady Lion Basketball
season tickets are available by calling 814-867-2557. Season tickets
are $117 for adults, $52 for youth and $91 forseniors. Single game
tickets go on sale Tuesday, Oct. 11. PNC Flex Books are available again
this year for $99. The Flex Book gives fans 12 vouchers, including one
for the Coaches vs. Cancer game and one for the Pink Zone game, that
can be redeemed for Nittany Lion and Lady Lion Basketball tickets in
any combination.
The 2012 WBCA Pink Zone at Penn State
will take place on Sunday, Feb. 26 as theLady Lions take on Minnesota
in the Bryce Jordan Center. Last year, the Lady Lions donated nearly
$200,000 for breast cancer causes. This year’s fundraising efforts will
benefit the Mount Nittany Medical Center, Penn State Hershey Cancer
Institute, Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition, the Kay Yow Cancer
Fund, J.C. Blair Memorial Hospital and Lewistown Hospital.
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