Guru’s WBB Report: Penn State Pulls Away to Beat Nebraska for Third Straight Win

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

Good news is starting to appear somewhere - or for the moment anyway.

On a Thursday that by early afternoon came information that Rutgers’ emergence from a shutdown since Jan. 3 to play at Indiana was back on pause and that Villanova’s next three games at Creighton, at Providence, and host DePaul was also again on pause mode, then night arrived with news by mid-evening that a team that did play, namely Penn State erupted in the fourth quarter to beat Nebraska 85-74 in a Big Ten game at home in the Bryce Jordan Center in State College for the Lady Lions’ third straight victory.

Johnasia Cash hit the jackpot again, this time with a game-high 27 points and career-milestone 19 rebounds, the senior’s fourth straight double double.

The streak is the first time in the program in 24 years.

Penn State (7-7, 4-6 Big Ten) in downing the Huskers (9-6, 7-5) outscored them 26-16 in the last quarter with a booming 17-3 closeout over the final 3:17.

In addition to Cash’s heroics, Makenna Marisa scored 17, and adding seven rebounds and five assists. Freshman Maddie Burke collected 13 points and a career-high eight rebounds while sophomore Shay Hagans scored 10 points and had five rebounds.

The points have been popping, 80 or more in each game in the streak.

Overall in the resurgence it’s been four wins in six games.

With nine turnovers, ball control is being controlled at 10 or less during the run. 

By the way the last consecutive quartet of double doubles from a Lady Lions player was by Angie Potthoff who later served a long stint on the staff of now retired Hall of Fame Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw.

It’s only the second time since Penn State became a member that 19 rebounds had been grabbed in conference action.

“We made every right play down the stretch there and really kept our composure,” said Penn State coach Carolyn Kieger. “Obviously a monster game for Johnasia Cash. 

“Another huge team win. Everybody stepped up in big moments.

Penn State remains home to host Wisconsin Sunday at 2 p.m.

Elsewhere in the Big Ten, 10th-ranked Maryland handled Wisconsin 84-48 at home in the XFINITY Center in College Park as coach Brenda Frese matched the program win record of her predecessor Chris Weller at 499. 

Though all five previous season starters from 2020 are gone, Frese’s 19th season has not missed much of a beat with COVID-19 protocols the primarily interrupter.

Weller coached from 1975-2002 before Frese arrived from major success in one season at Minnesota, which hired her from Ball State.

“When you see different milestones, there’s not another team I’d have rather do it with,” said Frese, whose record at Maryland is 499-130.

Kate Benzan, a transfer from Harvard, scored 18 for the Terrapins (13-2, 9-1 Big Ten), while five others scored in double figures. Faith Masonius had a double double of 10 points and 11 rebounds.

Wisconsin (4-12, 1-12) got 20 points from Sydney Hillard. The Badgers are winless in the nine-game series with Maryland.

Coronavirus protocols notwithstanding to cause game postponements, Frese’ first shot at program record-breaking win 500 is at Nebraska on Feb. 14, Valentine’s Day at the Pinnacle Center in Lincoln.

No. 11 Ohio State bounced back from Monday's loss at Northwestern and completed a sweep of Iowa, 92-87, beating the Hawkeyes (10-5, 6-5 Big Ten) at home in Value City Arena in Columbus.

Jacy Sheldon had 29 for the Buckeyes (11-2, 7-2), while Dorka Juhasz had a double double of 16 points and 10 rebounds.

Madison Greene dealt nine assists in the first series sweep of Iowa in 13 seasons since 2008.

“(Sheldon) was really efficient, offensively,” said Ohio State coach Kevin McGuff. “She got out in transition, which allowed her to get to the rim, get to the free throw line, but overall a really good performance.’

In terms of Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, who has been the dominating freshman in the conference, McGuff said, “Incredibly gifted player, she’s going to have an incredible career at Iowa. she’s so hard to guard, she’s so good with the ball in her hands.”

Clark scored 30, her fifth 30-point game, and dealt nine assists.

Ohio State next hosts Minnesota Sunday while the Hawkeyes will host No. 17 Indiana at Carver- Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City.

South Carolina Eyes Return to the Top: The No. 2 Gamecocks handled Auburn on the road, 77-58, the last piece of Southeastern Conference business needed this week for coach Dawn Staley’s team to return to the top of the next Associated Press women’s poll Monday where they finished for the first time last March and began this season until North Carolina State beat them at home in Columbia in early December.

However from the five-slot they began the climb back up and this past Monday those same Wolfpack helped them out in a rarity beating another No.1 team on the road in Louisville, setting the stage for South Carolina (15-1, 10-0 SEC).

Of  course, there's a logical argument for N.C. State that would be unbeaten, had not it been beat the previous week in an upset at Virginia Tech in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Either way depending on the national media panel vote there will be no time to celebrate or debate because several hours later at 7 p.m. on ESPN, they will visit No. 2 or 3 Connecticut to resume one of the rare ongoing national intersectional rivalries that has not been claimed by a postponement or cancellation.

In facing the Tigers (5-12, 0-9)Thursday night, Zia Cioke had all 17 of her points in the first half while Aliyah Boston had 14 points and eight rebounds, shooting 7 of 8 from the field.

Staley is also doing double duty for a few days during the end of the week running a training camp for available members in the U.S. A. Senior Women’s National Team poll in  her role as the coach prepping for the delayed Olympics.

The school’s regular season SEC win streak extended the program record to 25 That and one by Mississippi State are the fifth longest in a tie in conference history,

Meanwhile elsewhere in the SEC, Mississippi upset visiting No. 15 Kentucky 72-60 at home in Oxford, despite Rhyne Howard scoring 26 for the Wildcats (13-5, 6-4 SEC) while Shakira Austin, a former Maryland star, had 21 points and 12 rebounds for Ole Miss (8-7, 2-7).

Another conference upset bid was foiled, however, when No. 25 Georgia repulsed Alabama on the road in overtime 83-76 in Tuscaloosa. It was the fifth of the last seven in the series to go into an extra period.

Jasmine Walker had 24 points and 12 rebounds while Ariyah Copeland had 17 points and a game-high 14 rebounds for the host Tide (12-5, 5-5 SEC) while Georgia (14-4, 6-4) which got 25 points from Que Morrison, is hopeful the win is enough to stay in the rankings.

A week after its upset of No. 3 Connecticut, No. 16 Arkansas won its second straight conference game, triumphing at Missouri 85-80 as consensus national player of the week Chelsea Dungee scored 27 and Destiny Slocum scored 22 and dealt 10 assists for the Razorbacks (14-6, 4-5 SEC)  who swept the Tigers (6-7, 2-6) for the second straight season).

Arkansas off the Tennessee pause becomes the replacement Sunday on a reshuffle to visit No. 7 Texas A&M (17-1, 8-1 SEC), which avenged its sole overall and conference loss, beating LSU at home in Reed Arena  in College Station 54-41 as the Aggies rallied from an early 10-point deficit. 

LSU (8-8, 6-4) was held to its lowest scoring total.

Kayla Wells scored 14 points for the Aggies.

“We hit some timely threes when we had to,” said A&M veteran coach Gary Blair whose overall record is now 830-331 including 422-168 with the Aggies since arriving from Arkansas in 2003-04.

Meanwhile in the Atlantic Coast Conference, playing its first game since its upset loss Monday night, No. 1 Louisville went on the road and rocked Boston College 97-68 in Conte Forum in Chestnut Hill, Mass., as Dana Evans scored 23 points and dealt five assists for the visiting Cardinals (17-1, 10-1)  against B.C. (5-8, 1-8).

Baylor Cruises Over Kansas: In the only other game played involving a ranked team, No. 8 Baylor at home in Waco, Texas, in the Big 12, routed Kansas 83-50, as NaLyssa Smith and Dijonal Carrington each scored 17, with Smith’s 10 rebounds getting a double double, and Moon Ursin scoring 16 for the Bears (13-2, 8-1 Big 12). 

Queen Egbo just missed a double double with 9 points and 11 rebounds against the Jayhawks (6-9, 2-7).

Kansas is but 2-32 against Baylor since Kim Mulkey became the Bears’ coach in 2000.

Stanford Home at Last: Having been off campus all season using other locations for adopted arenas due to stringent COVID-19 protocols in Santa Clara County in Northern California, the recent ease of rules allows No. 6 Stanford to finally return home to Maples Pavilion to host a PAC-12 weekend beginning Friday night when Colorado visits. 

It was last month in Bolder the unranked Buffs became the seventh such team to upset a No. 1 when they knocked Stanford from its perch allowing Louisville to take over first, though that reign is likely to end after three weeks.

Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer is the all-time winningest Division I women’s coach at 1,109 while UConn’s Geno Auriemma, who’s Huskies are at Marquette Friday night, is second at 1,10.

The late Tennessee legend Pat Summitt held the record at 1,098 at the time of her retirement in 2012.

VanDerveer passed her in early December while Auriemma, likewise, did so last month.

Also in the PAC-12, No. 5 UCLA is at feisty Washington State, and No.23 South Dakota State hosts South Dakota in the Summit League.

Locally in the Atlantic 10 both at 6 p.m. La Salle hosts St. Louis while Saint Joseph’s host front-runner Dayton.

And that’s the report.