Jan. 31, 2012
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UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. - The No. 19/21 Penn State Lady Lions (16-5, 6-3) are back in the Bryce Jordan Center to kick off the month of February when they host Indiana (5-17, 0-9) on Thursday at 7 p.m. Student-athletes from several Penn State women's teams will be signing autographs on the concourse pregame as part of Penn State's National Girls and Women in Sports Day celebration. As always, Penn State students get in for free with ID.
PROMOTIONS: Student-athletes from several Penn State women's teams will be signing autographs on the concourse pregame as part of Penn State's National Girls and Women in Sports Day celebration. At halftime, the Penn State wheelchair basketball team will face off against a team of Penn State coaches and celebrities, including football assistant coach Larry Johnson Sr., men's hockey coach Guy Gadowsky and former Nittany Lion and NFL standout Larry Johnson Jr.
RADIO/LIVE STATS: The game is on the Penn State Sports Network and ESPN Radio 1450 locally with Jerry Fisher and Brian Tripp calling the action. The audio feed is available at www.GoPSUsports.com.
LAST TIME OUT: The Lady Lions had their five-game winning snapped in a tough 83-77 loss at Michigan State Sunday. Sophomore guard Maggie Lucas was 9-for-13 from the field on the way to 21 points for her 12th 20-point game of the season, while junior forward Mia Nickson added a season-high 18 points via an 8-for-9 effort from the free throw line. In addition to her 21-point effort, Lucas had three rebounds and a pair of assists in a full 40 minutes. Nickson also hauled in six rebounds, a had a steal and an assist. Junior center Nikki Greene also reached double figures with 10 points.
SCOUTING INDIANA: The Hoosiers are 5-17 overall and 0-9 in Big Ten play. Jasmine McGhee is one of two Indiana players averaging double figures at a 13.1 scoring mark. She also contributes 6.0 rebounds per outing. Aulani Sinclair accounts for 12.2 points per game and has a team-best 43 three-pointers. Sasha Chaplin leads active players in rebounding (6.4) and is third in scoring (7.8).
ALL-TIME VS. THE HOOSIERS: The Lady Lions are 27-9 all-time against Indiana, but are just 4-6 in the last 10 games versus the Hoosiers. Penn State is 15-2 in home games all-time against IU. The Lady Lions swept the season series from the Hoosiers last year with an 82-69 win at home and an 80-77 win in Bloomington.
LAST TIME VS. IU: The Lady Lions used a furious 18-5 run in the final six minutes of the game to erase a double-digit deficit en route to an 80-77 win over Indiana on Feb. 13, 2011. Julia Trogele found Nikki Greene under the basket for the layup to give the Lady Lions a 78-77 lead with 40 seconds left. Trogele had a solid all-around performance as she was 7-for-8 form the field en route to 15 points, seven rebounds, a career-high 11 assists, four steals and two blocked shots. It was her fifth double-double of the season and the ninth of her career.
PINK ZONE GAME TIME: The Penn State Lady Lions will host the Sixth Annual WBCA Pink Zone at Penn State game against Minnesota on Sunday, Feb. 26 at 2 p.m. The game will be televised live on the Big Ten Network.
BENTLEY ON WOODEN MIDSEASON LIST: Junior point guard Alex Bentley was named to the John R. Wooden Award Midseason Top 20 list. Selected by the Wooden Award National Advisory Board, the list is made up of 20 student-athletes who, based on their performances in November, December, and January, are the frontrunners for college basketball's most prestigious honor. Bentley is one of two student-athletes from the Big Ten (Ohio State's Samantha Prahalis) to be named to the midseason list.
TWELFTH TIME TO 20: Sophomore guard Maggie Lucas turned in her 12th game with 20 or more points with 21 markers in the win at Michigan State Jan. 29. Lucas, who had 12 games with 20+ points as a freshman, was 9-for-16 from the field against the Spartans.
SEASON HIGH FOR NICKSON: In her first full action in three games, junior forward Mia Nickson returned with a vengeance with a season-high 18 points. The effort passes her previous season high of 12 points at Nebraska on Jan. 15. Nickson was 8-for-9 from the free throw line in the game and also pulled in six rebounds.
HELPERS TOP 10 FOR AB: With a pair of assists at Michigan State Jan. 29, junior guard Alex Bentley moved into the Top 10 on Penn State's career assists chart, tying Tanya Garner for the spot with 411 helpers. Next on the all-time helpers chart for Bentley is Tanisha Wright, who had 484 dimes from 2002-05. Bentley is just the 11th player in school history to reach 400 assists.
PERFECT ROAD START: The Lady Lions got off to a 4-0 start on the road in the Big Ten for the first time since 2003-04 when that squad started 5-0.
The Lady Lions hit the road again for a Super Bowl Sunday matchup at Minnesota before returning the BJC to face Wisconsin on Thursday, Feb. 9. The Wisconsin game is a Dollar Dog Night at 7 p.m. Single game tickets and PNC Flex Books are available by calling 800-NITTANY. PNC Flex Books are $99 and give fans 12 vouchers, including one for the Coaches vs. Cancer game and one for the Pink Zone game, which 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 at 2 p.m. as the Lady 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. For more information on the Pink Zone at Penn State, visit the official Pink Zone website at www.gopsusports.com/pinkzone. The WBCA Pink Zone at Penn State is also on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pinkzoneatpennstate.
The Lady Lions are on Twitter. Follow sports information contact Kris Petersen (@ladylionsid) and the Lady Lions and coaches (@pennstatewbb) to get the inside scoop. The Lady Lions are also on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pennstateladylions.