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No. 11/12 Lady Lions Fall at Delaware, 80-71
Alex Bentley leads Penn State with 20 points
NEWARK,
DEL.; November 17, 2011 — In front of a raucous crowd, the #11/12 Penn
State Lady Lions (2-1, 0-0 Big Ten) struggled from the field in the
second half, shooting just 28.9%, and dropped an 80-71 decision at
Delaware (2-0) Thursday night. Elena Delle Donne led all scorers with
40 points.
Junior guard Alex Bentley (Indianpolis,Ind.)
narrowly missed out on her first career double-double with a team-best
20 points and nine assists, which ties her career high. She also added
three rebounds and three steals in the loss. Senior guard Zhaque Gray
(Chicago, Ill.) chipped in 15 points, while sophomore guard Ariel
Edwards (Elmont, N.Y.) tallied eight points and eight rebounds in her
first career start.
In front of many of her hometown fans
that made the trip from Narberth, sophomore guard Maggie Lucas
(Narberth, Pa.) accounted for 12 points, three rebounds and two
assists. Sophomore center Talia East (Philadelphia, Pa.) continued her
solid play with six points, a career-high 11 rebounds and twoblocked
shots.
Delaware dictated the pace early, sprinting out to
a 15-3 lead in the first four and a half minutes of the game before
Edwards sparked the Lady Lions’ comeback with a jumper, which was
followed by Lucas having a hand in the game’s next nine points with a
free throw, a pair of three-pointers and a beautiful feed to Bentley on
the break. Bentley gave the Lady Lions their first lead of the game
with a layup and Gizelle Studevent (La Jolla, Calif.) made it an 18-15
lead with just under 11 minutes to play to cap the 15-0 run.
The
Blue Hens retook the lead with an 8-2 spurt, but Penn State responded
with a layup by Gray and back-to-back scores by East and Edwards to
make it a 26-23 lead for the Lady Lions with seven minutes to play in
the opening frame. Delaware once again surged ahead with a 7-2 run to
establish a 30-28 marginwith 1:40 remaining in the half, but the Lady
Lions put together a furious finish to the first half with a
seven-straight points, including five by Gray in a one-minute stretch.
Elena Delle Donne capped the scoring in the first half to send the
teams into the break with Penn State leading 35-32.
Bentley,
Lucas and Gray paced the balanced Penn State scoring attack with seven
points each. Bentley also dished out five assists and had a steal,
while Lucas had a pair of helpers. Edwards was solid with six points
and six rebounds for theLady Lions, who shot 50% (15-30) from the field
in the first half.
The Lady Lions continued their hot
finish to the first half with a pair of Nikki Greene (Diboll, Texas)
free throws and a layup by Lucas to establish a 39-32 lead less than a
minute into the closing period. Penn State extended the lead to eight
(51-43) over the next seven minutes before the Blue Hens scored
eight-straight points to even thescore at 51-51 with 9:15 left.
On
the ensuing Penn State possession, Bentley knocked down a
three-pointer, but Delaware responded with a three-pointer of their own
by Trumae Lucas to tie the game at 54-54 with less than nine minutes to
play. The squads swapped scores over the next three minutes until the
Blue Hens went on a 5-0 run to take a 66-62 lead with 4:21 left.
After
an exchange of free throws, Delle Donne connected on a jumper over
Edwards to make it a 70-66 game with less than four minutes left.
Bentley connected on a layup and Gray nailed a three-point to get the
Lions within one at 70-69 with 3:16 left, but that is as close as Penn
State would get as the Blue Hens scored 10 of the game’s final 12
points to claim the nine-point win.
GAME NOTES: Sophomore
Ariel Edwards made her first career start … Edwards tied her career
high with eight rebounds … Sophomore Talia East posted her first career
double-digit rebounding game with 11 caroms … Freshman Tori Waldner saw
her first collegiate action and pulled in two rebounds … Junior guard
Alex Bentley turned in her second 20-point performance of the season
with a team-best 20tallies … Bentley also tied her career high for the
fourth time with nine assists … Sophomore Maggie Lucas moved into
seventh place on Penn State’s career three-pointers list (121), passing
Brianne O’Rourke.
The Lady Lions continue their four-game
road trip at South Carolina before traveling to Reno for the Nugget
Classic over Thanksgiving. Last season, Penn State posted 78-48 win
over the Gamecocks, led by 19 points from Julia Trogele and 14 tallies
each by Maggie Lucas and Zhaque Gray. Lady Lion Basketball season
tickets are available by calling 814-867-2557. Season tickets are $117
for adults, $52 for youth and $91 for seniors. Single gametickets 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.
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