Penn State Battles For 68-55 Win Over ClemsonPenn State Battles For 68-55 Win Over Clemson
Mark Selders

Penn State Battles For 68-55 Win Over Clemson

Box Score

Head Coach Carolyn Kieger Postgame Quotes | Penn State Student-Athlete Postgame Quotes

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State women's basketball team fought for a gritty 68-55 win over Clemson Thursday night at the Bryce Jordan Center.
 
Penn State held a 14-point halftime lead that was trimmed down to one midway through the third quarter thanks to a 13-0 Clemson run. The Lady Lions responded with a 10-0 streak that would help Penn State out-score the Tigers 28-16 in the final 15 minutes to secure the 68-55 victory.
 
Senior Siyeh Frazier stuffed the stat sheet with her second double-double of the season with 17 points and 10 rebounds, in addition to five assists and three steals. Sophomore Lauren Ebo tallied a career-high 16 points on a 7-for-8 effort from the field. Junior Kamaria McDaniel added 13 points, while freshman Anna Camden rounded out the double-digit scorers with 11 points.  
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

  • A back-and-forth first quarter saw the score knotted up at 13-13 with just under two minutes to play. McDaniel hit the front and back ends of a 7-0 Penn State run to close the term and give the Lady Lions a 20-13 edge heading into the second.
  • Penn State kept its foot on the gas pedal in the second quarter, as back-to-back threes from Camden capped a 7-0 term-opening run and 14-0 overall streak that put PSU ahead 28-13 at the 5:42 mark. The Lady Lion defense held Clemson scoreless for a span of 7:06 stretching from the 1:55 mark of the first quarter to the 4:41 mark of the second. Penn State forced six Tiger turnovers during the strong defensive stand.
  • Clemson wouldn't get within single digits for the remainder of the first half as six points from Frazier in the final five minutes helped Penn State take a 40-26 lead at the break.
  • The Tigers scored the first 13 points of the second half as Clemson suddenly trimmed the PSU lead down to just one at 40-39 five minutes into the third quarter.
  • Frazier converted a key conventional three-point play at the 4:40 mark to snap the Clemson streak. The and-one sparked a huge 13-2 Penn State run that saw four more points from Frazier as Penn State responded to Clemson's run to take a 53-41 lead through three quarters.
  • The Tigers found themselves within six at 61-55 with just 1:32 left to play, before Frazier found Ebo all alone under the basket and Ebo tossed in a layup that ignited a 7-0 game-closing run. Penn State went 5-for-6 from the free throw line in the final minute to seal the 68-55 victory.



 
KEY NOTES

  • The Lady Lions picked up their third win over a 2019 NCAA Tournament team this season. Penn State also defeated 2019 NCAA Tournament competitors Towson and Fordham.
  • Penn State dished a season-best 17 assists.
  • Freshman Makenna Marisa accounted for six of those assists, marking a new career high for the rookie.
  • Ebo was nearly perfect from the field, going 7-for-8 and adding two points from the free throw line for her 16 points. It bested her previous career high of 15 points that was set on Dec. 9, 2018 against St. Bonaventure.
  • Camden was a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the arc. The rookie recorded the second double-digit scoring game of her career.
  • McDaniel has now scored in double figures in all five of Penn State's games this season. She played all 40 minutes against Clemson.
  • Penn State moves to 5-1 all-time against Clemson.
  • Penn State forced 19 Clemson turnovers and held the Tigers to a 33.3 percent (24-for-72) clip from the field.

 
FROM THE SOURCE
Head Coach Carolyn Kieger

  • "I am just extremely proud of our team. This is a great bounce-back win against an extremely well-coached team, an NCAA Tournament team last year. We knew at halftime that they were going to make adjustments and they were going to come out with some energy. I love that our team weathered the storm and that we kept our heads."
  • "Obviously another huge performance by Siyeh Frazier here with another double-double on the year, 17 [points] and 10 [rebounds], and five assists. I can't say enough about her. And Lauren Ebo came off the bench and had a monster second half for us which was huge."
  • "This is definitely a growth moment for us and a big-time performance coming back after that loss."
  • Full Kieger Transcript

 
UP NEXT

  • Penn State closes out a five-game homestand Sunday afternoon against George Mason.
  • Tipoff is slated for 2 p.m. from the Bryce Jordan Center.