The Guru Report: Almqvist Leads Penn to Big Five Win Over La Salle; Princeton Wins a Two-Overtime Thriller; Notre Dame Rallies at Tennessee in ACC/SEC Challenge

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

 

PHILADELPHIA — Kayla Padilla, Penn’s former superstar, may have moved on to one of the hottest programs in the nation at the moment, playing her graduate season at No. 6 Southern Cal with the nation’s top recruit in JuJu Watkins.

 

But that doesn’t mean her former school has become yesterday’s news, watching the Quakers play whenever possible.

 

She had the time Wednesday night to watch junior Stina Almqvist light up La Salle with 24 points, her fourth 20-point game of the season, leading Penn to a 79-71 Big Five win at The Palestra.

 

“She’s on fire,” Padilla commented in a text when asked if aware of the game and Almqvist.

 

Holes may be in Swiss cheese, but so far everything about the Swiss export to the Quakers has been solid.

 

“I had some great players come before me, so I think for me it was just patience and wait for my turn,” she said. “Where there’s an opportunity, just step up, and I think my coaches and teammates helped me get to the point I am now.”

 

Of course, with Padilla gone, roles needed to be changed and so she now occupies a combo role playing the “4” and “5” spots.

 

“I’d be lying if I thought she was going to take this big of a step, but she looked more confident, older on the floor,” said Penn coach Mike McLaughlin. “I thought she’d take a leap in terms of kids had graduated, we needed kids who didn’t play as much. She’s taken a massive step.”

 

Most of Almqvist’s work on the night was in the first half, scoring 18 points before La Salle (3-3, 0-1 Big Five) cooled her down a bit. But then Jordan Obi picked up the slack with 16 of her 18 points in the second half.

 

 Scoring punch also came from freshman Mataya Gayle with 18 points for the Quakers (5-2, 1-1), while Lizzy Groetsch scored 17 points, shooting 8-for-12 from the field.

 

“This was a classic case of you know what’s coming, and can you stop it?” La Salle coach Mountain MacGillivray said of defending Almqvist. “She was going to try to go for it with her right and if she couldn’t she was going to put it on the floor with her left and go back to her right, every time.

 

“We knew it was coming, we were even in position, and she made plays.”

 

So now it’s down to just two teams that have a chance to win the Big Five crown with a 4-0 slate and Saint Joseph’s and Villanova will meet next Saturday night at 7 p.m. in Hagan Arena on Hawk Hill, ESPN+ airing the game.

 

In between, though, Villanova will host Penn Tuesday at 7 p.m. on FloHoops.If La Salle can beat Villanova and Temple, the Explorers could be going for a co-championship when they travel to Saint Joseph’s at

noon on Jan. 15 for what is also annually the first of a home-and-home series in the Atlantic 10 with the Hawks.

 

Back to Almqvist, who discussed her evolution from being the classic comparative case of an understudy in a Broadway play who reaches stardom.

 

“I’m just getting more comfortable around the rim and liking my position more as the ‘4’ or ‘5’” she said. “I think I’ve always loved to score the ball, even in Sweden, coming in.

 

“It’s always been there, just obviously in every team you have a different role. But losing Kayla is like losing 20 points per game, so we’ve got to step up some way.”

 

It’s going to take some doing to find a better interior duo in the Penn history than Sydney Stipanovich and Michelle Nwokedi, who temporarily broke up the Princeton monopoly in winning three Ivy titles in four seasons (2014-17).

 

But Obi and Almqvist look to be the next best duo.

 

More help was added with the return of Floor Toonders, who had a right foot injury in a preseason scrimmage, rolling her ankle.

 

The idea, McLaughlin said, is to get her ready for Ivy play when the 2004 portion of the calendar arrives in two months.

 

“Yeah, it’s great to have her back, she just practiced with us for the first time yesterday,” McLaughlin said.  “She’s obviously very restricted to what we can do now. She’s only gone live for about 10 minutes so far, and I didn’t think it was fair to extend her much further today.

 

“Over the next couple days, as we practice, I’ll be able to extend her (minutes.).” 

 

La Salle was hampered in this one with Emilee Tahata and Aryss Macktoon sidelined for unspecified medical reasons.

 

Makayla Miller made good in her first start with 23 points, shooting 10-of-18 from the field.

 

“She had a good night tonight,” MacGillivray said. “Really pleased with her scoring numbers, she still had four assists and one turnover.”

 

Molly Masciantonio had 11 points, while she also dealt six assists and two steals.

 

La Salle will host Virginia Sunday at 1 p.m. on ESPN+ while Penn will travel to No. 23 Marquette at 2 p.m. on FloHoops.

 

Princeton Edges Seton Hall in Overtime: The first battle of New Jersey in the three-team series among Rutgers, Princeton and Seton Hall turned out to be quite the contest with newly ranked No. 25 Princeton extended into two overtimes until the Tigers prevailed 75-71 at home in Jadwin Gym.

 

Reigning Ivy player of the year Kaitlyn Chen scored 21 for Princeton (5-2), while Skye Belker scored 18.

 

Micah Gray had a career-high 24 points and connected on seven shots from beyond the arc for the visiting Pirates (4-3) of the Big East.

 

One of Gray’s 3-pointers came at the buzzer in regulation to force the first overtime and a second with 1:20 left in the first overtime that tied the score, and it remained that way to extend the game one more five-minute extra period.

 

Azana Baines had 12 points and 11 rebounds for Seton Hall. Her two foul shots gave the Pirates their only lead in the second overtime with 53 seconds left. Then Belker put Princeton back in front with 37 seconds left and then she blocked a shot with 12 seconds left to secure the win.

 

The Tigers next head to Atlantic 10 favorite Rhode Island, Sunday, in Kingston at 1 p.m. on ESPN+.   

 

Penn State and Rutgers Cruise to Wins: After two straight games in which leads were given up, one that resulted in a one-point loss to then-No. 8 Southern Cal that likely cost Penn State from earning its first Associated Press ranking since 2014, the Lady Lions kept their foot on the gas Wednesday night at the way to a 97-47 win over Radford at home in the Bryce Jordan Center in State College.

 

Five players scored in double figures led by Makenna Marisa, who collected 24 points off of shooting 10-for-15 from the field, including 4-of-7 from deep.

 

Leilani Kapinus was equally hot from the field, shooting 6-of-9 attempts for 15 points and shared team-high totals in rebounding with Ali Brigham, grabbing eight. Shay Czieki also scored 15, while Tay Vallay and Moriah Murray each scored 11 points.

 

Penn State (7-1) got 37 points out of forcing the Highlanders (2-6) into 29 turnovers.

 

The Lady Lions will get another crack at gaining the poll when they travel to No. 16 Ohio State to open the Big Ten slate but first comes a visit to West Virginia in Morgantown, Monday, at 6 p.m. on ESPN+

 

Meanwhile Rutgers at home in Jersey Mike’s Arena in Piscataway, N.J., celebrated the Scarlet Knights’ annual Recess Day matinee with an 82-48 win over Delaware State (0-6).

 

Kaylene Smikle torched the nets for a personal best 33 points, shooting 13-for-20 from the field and 5-of-9 from deep, while Destiny Adams scored 19 points, and Chyna Cornwell scored 12 and grabbed 12 boards for her third double double of the season.

 

Smikle’s total was the first 30 plus performance in the program since Arella Guirantes scored 30 on BYU in the NCAA tournament three seasons ago, and first in the arena since Guirantes scored 36 in a Big Ten clash a season earlier on Ohio State. 

 

Unlike Penn State’s wire-to-wire run, the Scarlet Knights (4-5) had to rally from a 20-16 deficit at the end of the first quarter, which they did over the next two periods, 25-7 in the second, and 23-11 in the third.

 

Next up on Friday night, Lafayette visits at 7 p.m., followed by La Salle same time next Tuesday and then the first conference clash will be Saturday, Dec. 9, at 4 p.m. against No. 17 Indiana on the Big Ten Network.

 

Lafayette Wins Fourth Straight: Abby Antognoli  shot 6-for-12 from the field, including 5-of-9 from beyond the arc to score 25 points, while Makayla Andrews scored 12 as the Leopards won their fourth straight by defeating host UMBC 59-53.

 

The visitors (4-3) had to rally from a 16-10 deficit in the first quarter, which they did effectively the next period 13-4 and then went on to ride Antognoli’s four foul shots near the end of regulation to secure the win over UMBC (1-6).

 

The win streak will get a challenge Friday night when the Leopards visit Rutgers.

 

Delaware Prevails at American: The Blue Hens downed the Eagles 68-58 at Bender Arena in the nation’s capital to win their second straight, riding a 23-12 surge in the third quarter.

 

Tara Cousins had 23 and nine rebounds for the winners, while Sydney Boone scored 11, and reserve Darrionna Howard and Klarke Sconiers each scored 10 to get Delaware (3-3) back to .500.

 

Emily Johns scored 15 points and Lauren Stack scored 14 for American (1-5).

 

On Sunday Delaware travels to Duquesne of the Atlantic 10 at 2 p.m. on ESPN+ in Pittsburgh.

 

The National Scene: Day two of the inaugural ACC/SEC Challenge on Thursday became extra interesting before day one got under way when LSU coach Kim Mulkey announced at a press conference in Baton Rouge in advance of the defending NCAA champions and No. 7 Tigers rematch with their Final Four semifinals opponent No. 9 Virginia Tech that MVP Angel Reese would play after missing four games.

 

“Angel’s back, Kateri’s (Poole) not, and and Sa’Myah’s (Smith) done for the year, referencing on the latter a torn ACL, MCL and medial meniscus in the opening quarter of a 99-65 win over MAAC favorite Niagara in the Cayman Islands Classic.

 

The other two players did not make the trip that included LSU edging Virginia 76-73.

 

“It’s a boost having her back,” Mulkey said of Reese. “She’s a tremendous player, one of the best in the country. She gives us a good matchup with (Elizabeth) Kitley, but it’s not just for this game — it’s for the rest of the season.”

 

The ACC jumped to a 4-1 start highlighted by No. 18 Notre Dame’s rally from a 16-point deficit to beat No. 20 Tennessee 74-69 in Knoxville.

 

Tennessee (4-3), now in danger of falling out of the poll again after a third Top 25 loss, led 45-29 with 7:03 remaining in the third period.

 

The No. 18 Irish (6-1) then went on a 15-3 run to move within a basket but Jasmine Powell’s three-point play with 1.7 left in the third got the Lady Vols back to five in front.

 

Notre Dame went ahead for the first time since early in the game on Anna DeWolfe’s score with 4:25 in regulation and KK Bransford’s shot with 47.7 seconds left sealed the outcome.

 

Maddy Westbeld had a double double 15 points and 11 rebounds for the Irish, while Natalija Marshall had 15 points and nine rebounds.

 

Hannah Hidalgo, a freshman from Haddonfield, N.J., had 13 for the Irish, while dealing five of her seven assists in the third quarter, and DeWolfe scored 11.

 

Powell had 14 points, Destinee Wells scored 13, Wake Forest transfer Jewel Spear scored 11, and Karoline Striplin had 10 for Tennessee, but Rickea Jackson was still not back in uniform.

 

Notre Dame next hosts Lafayette Wednesday while Tennessee plays Ohio State Sunday.

 

Tennessee had held the all-time record of 565 consecutive appearances under the late Pat Summitt, stepping down in a battle with Alzheimer’s disease, and Holly Warlick.

 

The Vols have since spent stretches in and out of the poll, though were expected to be solid this season with former player Kellie Harper guiding the team.

 

Meanwhile, even while seeing a bunch of incredibles records end due to injuries, Connecticut continued to be ranked and ultimately tied the Tennessee streak record in the preseason vote and then passed it the first week after season play got under way.

 

In other challenge results, the lone SEC win came with Florida prevailing at Georgia Tech 68-58.

 

NC State (8-0) handed visiting Vanderbilt (7-1) it’s first loss, winning 70-62 at Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh, N.C., as Saniya Rivers scored 22 for the Wolfpack.

 

No. 22 Louisville won at No. 19 Ole Miss 64-58 in Oxford as Kiki Jefferson scored 16 for the Cardinals (7-1) and Nina Rickards scored 15 against the Rebels (6-2), led by Snudda Collins with 22 points.

 

Miami on the road upset host No. 21 Mississippi State 74-68 as reserve Lemyah Hylton scored 16 for the visiting Hurricanes (6-0) and Jasmyah Roberts scored 15.

 

Mississippi State (8-1), suffering its first loss, were without injured starters Jessika Carter and Erynn Barnum while Seton Hall transfer Lauren Park-Lane scored 20 and grabbed 10 rebounds.

 

Looking Ahead: Just one game on the locally slate, Villanova will host Richmond of the Atlantic 10 at 7 p.m. at Finneran Pavilion, the game airing on FloHoops.

 

The ACC/SEC Challenge continues on Thursday, the most anticipated is the No. 7 LSU-No. 9 Virginia Tech game at 9 p.m. on ESPN. That follows the match from Chapel Hill, N.C., when No. 18 hosts No. 1 South Carolina at 7 p.m. and at halftime the new Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame class will be announced.

 

At 5 p.m. Duke visits Georgia on the SECN while at the same time on the ACC network Missouri visits Virginia.

 

No. 15 Florida State hosts Arkansas at 7 p.m. on ESPN2; Kentucky hosts Boston College at 7 p.m. on SECN; Syracuse hosts Alabama at 7 p.m. on the ACCN, while the day wraps with Auburn hosting Clemson at 9 p.m., on SECN while at the same time on ACCN Wake Forest hosts Texas A&M.

 

Elsewhere No. 17 Indiana visits Maine at 7 p.m. on ESPN+ and Michigan State visits DePaul at 7 p.m. on FloHoops.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Guru Report: St. Joe’s Blasts Bucknell; Drexel Nipped at Lehigh; USC’s JuJu Watkins Sets Trojan Freshman Mark; No. 7 Colorado Beats Boston U With Closing Surge

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

 

If one wanted to be creative with only three local schools – two against each other — playing Tuesday night — and ahead of the Power 5, two-night ACC-SEC rumbles coming Wednesday and Thursday, then one can label Saint Joseph’s trip to Bucknell and Drexel’s jaunt up north to Lehigh as the Big 5/Patriot League Challenge though the Dragon women won’t be in formal City Series play until next season.

 

Creativity out of the way, for Saint Joseph’s after the Hawks’ escape from Temple in overtime last week, it was back to domination with Talya Bruglar’s turn to put up the numbers in a 71-46 win at Sojka Pavilion in Lewisburg, Pa.

 

As for the other game, Lily Fandre’s foul shot with one second left in regulation after missing her previous one made it a sweet 58-57 triumph for Lehigh and quite a painful loss for Drexel at Stabler Arena in Bethlehem, Pa.

 

The autopsy on the Dragons (2-3), who trailed by 11 in the first quarter, shows them taking a 44-40 lead into the last quarter and going through long scoreless stretches allowing the Mountain Hawks (6-1) to inch their way back in front.

 

“We kept a high scoring team to 58 points on their home court and we needed 59 to win….and we didn’t get it,” Drexel coach Amy Mallon texted during the Dragons’ return trip.

 

‘We had a lot of shot attempts, only 11 turnovers, and a strong showing on boards. We just didn’t make enough shots today.”

 

Fandre’s long shot from downtown tied it 46-46 with 6:49 left and Lehigh briefly took the lead at 5:51 to play on Maddie Albrecht’s score.

 

Grace O’Neil tied it with two free throws 48-48 with 5:19 remaining but Lehigh quickly struck back with a 3-pointer from Ella Stemmer.

 

It got to 56-50 and might have been more but Stemmer committed a turnover and Laine McGurk scored with an offensive rebound of Momo LaClair’s miss to cut it to 56-52 with 48 seconds left.

 

McGurk then stole a ball from Fondre and scored to cut it to 56-54 and after Lehigh scored on a free throw McGurk tied it from deep with six seconds left. 

 

Drexel’s Jasmine Valentine sent Foundre to the line with one second left and the drama ended after she scored on her second attempt from the line.

 

“We finally got to playing like ourselves in the fourth quarter, and I’m really proud of them,” said Lehigh second-year coach Addie Micir, a former Princeton star out of Lower Bucks County. “But, Drexel, you have to give them credit. 

 

“They gave us everything they had. (Villanova transfer Brooke) Mullin came out on fire. They crashed the boards, and they forced us to respond period,” Micir said.

 

As for the final play, the Lehigh coach observed, “For us, it's just go and knock our free throws down. We're really good shooters. We don't harp on it. We don't force it. Go up there and be loose.

 

“To miss the first one is pretty tough and to go in and make the second one, but she responded. She had a smile on her face after the first one. We knew, and her teammates knew the second one was going in.”

 

 Mullin scored a career-high 17 points and was a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the arc, while McGurk scored 14, the only two Drexel players in double figures. Chloe Hodges had a team high seven rebounds.

 

The Dragons defense forced 18 turnovers, second worst for the Mountain Hawks this season.

 

Stemmer had 15 points for Lehigh and Colleen McQuillen scored 13, each connecting on three triplet attempts, while Meghan O’Brien grabbed a game-high eight rebounds.

 

The Mountain Hawks play their second straight against a Coastal Athletic Association squad when they travel to Hofstra Sunday before returning home to host La Salle, a week from Thursday.

 

Drexel are off until visiting Marist next Wednesday.

 

Meanwhile, Bucknell (2-5) may be known as the Bison, but it was the Hawks (6-0) who stampeded their way on the opposition.

 

That allowed a Hawks personal family moment in the fourth quarter when junior Kaylie Griffin, the eldest daughter of veteran coach Cindy Griffin scored her first career field goal.

 

Brugler was 11-for-15 from the field, scoring 23 points, while also grabbing four rebounds, dishing three assists and getting a pair of steals. Laura Ziegler double-doubled her way to 12 points and 11 rebounds, while Julia Nystrom scored six, dished six, and had three rebounds.

 

Bucknell’s Ashley Solfikanich was 8-for-11 from the field, finishing with 18 points.

 

The Hawks are back in Hagan Arena Saturday at noon (ESPN+) to host North Florida of the ASun Conference.

 

The National Scene: There were only two games off a light schedule the Guru put on the radar chart.

 

However, though the outcome was predictable, a late insert off the noteworthiness of the No. 6 Southern Cal 85-44 victory over visiting Cal Poly (2-5) in the Galen Center in Los Angeles is freshman sensation JuJu Watkins had 30 points, her fourth 30 plus game for the Women of Troy (6-0) breaking the rookie program record set by Lisa Leslie and Paula McGee.

 

One of the non-Watkins highlight plays came at the end of the third quarter when former Penn star Kayla Padilla stole the ball and fed former Harvard star McKenzie Forbes who beat the clock with a three-pointer.

 

Watkins, meanwhile, has come on the scene lighting the scoreboard the way Iowa’s Caitlin Clark and Uconn’s Paige Bueckers did when both were freshman in 2020-21.

And because the way it went was unexpected, No. 7 Colorado finally broke free in the fourth quarter and crushed visiting Boston University 85-55 in Boulder to bounce back from the weekend upset loss to then-No. 10 N.C. State. 

 

Frida Formann had 22 points to pass 1,000 in her career, while also scoring five triplets and grabbing six steals.

 

Her total of 201 from beyond the arc moved her into sixth place in program history passing former ESPN and Philadelphia Inquirer journalist Kate Fagan.

 

Colorado (7-1) outscored Boston U. (5-2) by 26 in the final period.

 

As for the original two games on the Guru’s tracker, the first, while Penn was done its games in the San Diego Thanksgiving Classic and returned home, two city locals met to wrap it all up, and it went beyond the wire in overtime after UC San Diego and host San Diego State each missed a chance in the final five seconds of regulation to claim victory.

 

But in the overtime UC San Diego, the team Penn beat Sunday, prevailed 77-71 over the Aztecs (4-3), who beat the Quakers Saturday.

 

Sumayah Sugapong had 18 points and reserve Denali Pinto scored 17 for the winning Tritons (3-4), while Katie Springs grabbed 11 rebounds.

 

Kim Villaobos scored 16 with seven rebounds and Abby Prohaska scored 15 for the home team.

 

In a single game host Wyoming, a high Mountain West preseason pick, beat new Big 12 member BYU 86-74 as Malene Pederson scored 19, reserve McKinley Dickerson scored 17, Tess Barnes scored 13, and Allyson Fertig scored 12 for the winning Cowgirls (4-2).

 

Lauren Gustin, a senior forward on a bunch of watch lists in her career, scored 26 points with eight rebounds for BYU (6-1), the first season loss for the former perennial West Coast Conference contenders.

 

Looking Ahead Locally: It’s going to be a busy day and night highlighted by La Salle’s visit to Penn at the Palestra at 6 p.m. for the fourth of the ten-game City Series schedule.

 

It’s the visiting Explorers’ first of the season thus a Penn win – the Quakers are 0-1 — means only Saint Joseph’s and Villanova remain with a chance to go 4-0. If it goes the other way, then La Salle stays in the mix. 

 

In the morning, Rutgers hosts Delaware State at 11 at Jersey Mikes Arena for the annual Education Day battle.

 

Speaking of battle, another in the Jersey trio battle shapes up when newly ranked Princeton hosts Seton Hall at 7 p.m. on ESPN+ in Jadwin Gym.

 

Elsewhere Penn State tries to stay on the winning side hosting Radford at 6. p.m. at Bryce Jordan Center in State College, while two 7 p.m. contests in the remaining group has Delaware at American U. in the nation’s capital on ESPN+ while Lafayette also on ESPN+ visits UMBC in Baltimore.

 

On Thursday just one game, but now looking big, Villanova hosts streaking Richmond of the Atlantic 10 at 7 p.m., at Finneran Pavilion, serving as a homecoming for former Cardinal O’Hara star Maggie Doogan, who was this week’s conference player honoree and also one of the five USBWA national player honorees.

 

Looking Ahead Nationally: The ACC/SEC two-day challenge gets under way and Wednesday’s highlights have No. 18 Notre Dame at No. 20 Tennessee at 5 p.m. on ESPN2; at 7:15 p.m. on the ACCN, Vanderbilt, coached by former UConn star Shea Ralph, is at No. 5 N.C. State, both unbeaten at 7-0; and No. 22 Louisville is at No. 19 Ole Miss, both 6-1.

 

On Thursday No. 24 North Carolina is at No. 1 South Carolina on ESPN; two teams in the Final Four semifinals last April have No. 9 Virginia Tech at No. 7 LSU.

 

And that’s the report. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Guru Report: Villanova and Penn Win With Penn State and Lafayette Surviving Blown Leads; Iowa Avenges Upset By Kansas State

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

 

Though less hectic than the previous three days of tournaments galore across the Thanksgiving weekend, Sunday still had it all from a revenge win for No. 5 Iowa against No. 16 Kansas State in the title game of the Gulf Coast Showcase in Estero, Fla., to another unranked upset of a ranked team which occurred in the same event, and a near perfect five of six wins for the locals led by Villanova and Penn.

 

We’ll start with the locals of which the losing team had a lead, and two others nearly gave their games away.

 

Villanova on the road down in Winston-Salem, N.C., for a single contest, closed out Wake Forest on a 9-0 run to pull away to a 74-65 win over the Demon Deacons of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

 

The Wildcats (4-1) jumped to a 23-10 lead on their opponent (2-4) after the first quarter, but Wake Forest narrowed the gap to 53-49 with 10 minutes left in regulation.

 

It got tighter and eventually the home team tied it twice, the second time 65-65 with 1:08 left in regulation.

 

The ‘Cats took a timeout setting up a play on the sidelines from out of bounds.

 

Using their go-to, Lucy Olson complied with a three-ball that gave ‘Nova the lead for good.

 

The Wildcats then caused a critical turnover and with the clock running down, the Deacons were forced to foul and ‘Nova foiled the strategy with a perfect 6-for-6 from the line over the final 30 seconds.

 

In this one, coach Denise Dillon had her wish list fulfilled in getting the usual early season performance from Olsen, who had 21 points, five assists and four rebounds. 

 

But help also came from the supporting cast, Kaitlyn Orihel off the bench scored 14 points, Christina Dalce had a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds, and Brynn McCurry also scored 12.

 

Malaya Cowles scored a game-high 22 for Wake Forest.

 

On Thursday night Richmond of the Atlantic 10 will visit Finneran Pavilion at 7 p.m. on FloHoops. The Spiders had a hot hand this weekend in Drake’s tourney winning all three games against Maine, the hosts, and Louisiana Tech in Des Moines, Iowa.

 

Out West in a two-day tournament of predetermined matchups in San Diego, Penn bounced back from Saturday’s loss to San Diego State by beating UC San Diego 76-68 to finish the Southern California trip with a pair of wins counting the opener last Wednesday at Chapman.

 

With leading scorer Stima Almqvist in foul trouble, Jordan Obi accelerated her reliable effort, scoring 18 of her game-high 22 points on 7-for-7 from the field in the first half, including hitting all three attempts from deep for the Quakers (4-2).

 

Obi also had a career and game-high four blocked shots, eight rebounds, four assists and three steals.

 

Freshman Mataya Gayle scored 12 and dealt five assists, while Lizzy Groetesch had 10 points and nine boards, and freshman Abby Sharpe in reserve had 11 points, shooting 4-for-4 from the field, including a pair of three-pointers. She also grabbed five rebounds.

 

In her first start, freshman Ese Ogbevire had nine points, three rebounds, an assist and a steal against the Tritons (2-4) of the Big West Conference.

 

Penn returns home to host its second City Series game at The Palestra when La Salle visits Wednesday night at 6 p.m. (ESPN+) for the Explorers’ first Big 5 affair on the season.

 

Then it’s back on the road for four games, though two will be nearby for Big 5 visits to Villanova and Temple.

 

Out at State College, Penn State at the outset seemed to suffer no negative after-effects from its near-upset of No. 8 Southern Cal during the week, jumping to a 29-9 lead at home at the Bryce Jordan Center in the first quarter against Providence of the Big East.

 

But the Friars (3-3), who are 0-7 in the series, rallied to go in front of PSU (6-1) 54-49 at the start of the fourth quarter.

 

The Lady Lions regained control down the stretch for a 73-66 victory.

 

Shay Ciezki led the winners with 17 points, shooting 6-for-13 from the field, including three from deep, while Chanaya Pinto had a personal best 14 points, and Mackenna Marisa scored 13.

 

The Lady Lions picked up 35 points off 26 turnovers.

 

On Wednesday Penn State will host Radford at 6 p.m.

 

Meanwhile not far from State College in Loretto, Lafayette won its third straight, beating host Saint Francis, Pa., of the Northeast Conference 60-58.

 

Halee Smith scored 15 for the Leopards (3-3) of the Patriot League, Abby Antognoli scored 12, and Kayla Drummond scored nine while Kendall Carruthers scored 21, Destini Ward collected 14 points, and Julianna Gibson grabbed 10 rebounds for the opposition (0-6), which has yet to win this season.

 

Nevertheless, Lafayette had an 11-point lead at the half, grew it to 19 in the third quarter, and then had it all disappear, trailing 55-51 with 4:53 left in regulation.

 

Kay Donahue, however, got the Leopards to a tie with a 3-pointer and foul shot with 3:17 left.

 

Antognoli at the line got it to 60-57 with 2:36 left.

 

St. Francis got one more point but with 16 seconds remaining, the Leopards forced a shot clock violation.

 

Next up on Wednesday its off to Baltimore to play UMBC at 7 p.m.

 

While Lafayette and Penn State escaped disaster, not so much for Rider, which went up to North Jersey to play Fairleigh Dickinson.

 

In a roller-coaster of a game in Hackensack, the Broncs outscored FDU 20-13 in the first quarter, got shutdown 18-2 in the next, regained control 23-11 in the third, and then up seven points with less than three minutes remaining, it all vanished under a 10-0 run giving the Knights (1-5) a 64-59 victory, their first under new coach Stephanie V. Gaitley.

 

Makayla Firebaugh shot six from deep and had a game-high 23 for Rider (2-4). Taylor Langan scored 12, and Kaylan Deveney scored 10.

 

Rider is off until Saturday hosting former MAAC rival Monmouth, now in Drexel’s Coastal Athletic Association, at 2 p.m. (ESPN+) in Alumni Gym in Lawrenceville, N.J.

 

Delaware salvaged a win and 7^th place in the Gulf Coast Showcase, beating Vermont, 73-66, as Tara Cousins matched a personal best with 22 points, shooting 9-for-16 from the field, including 4-of-7 from deep for the Blue Hens (2-3).

 

Chloe Wilson and Sydney Boone each scored 17 against the Catamounts.

 

Delaware next visits American U. In Washington, D.C., Wednesday night at 7 p.m. on ESPN+.

 

The National Scene: At the top of the Gulf Coast Showcase, one of the few events this past week using a true tournament format instead of predetermined pairings in rounds, No. 5 Iowa trotted out its Caitlin Clark showcase and the Hawkeyes avenged a recent upset that got No. 16 Kansas State into the Associated Press women’s poll, beating the Wildcats 77-70 for the championship.

 

Kansas State (6-1) twice reduced double digit deficits in trying to become the fourth team and first outside the Big Ten to go 3-0 on the Hawkeyes (7-1) with Clark on the roster.

 

But the reigning national player of the year would have none of it, scoring 32 points, her 40^th career 30 plus game, with seven 3-pointers, and the NCAA runners up finished on a 10-2 spurt.

 

“We just responded and stayed together,” Clark said.

 

Iowa also got 13 points from Molly Davis and 11 points and 10 rebounds from Kate Martin.

 

“We’ve won the last four minutes of the two previous games,” said Kansas State coach Jeff Mittie. “Didn’t do it today.”

 

The Wildcats’ Serena Sundell and Ayoka Lee each scored 18 points and Zyanna Walker scored 11.

 

In the third-place game reigning ASun champion Florida Gulf Coast did what it's done several times as an unranked team – beat one that’s rank.

 

This time the Eagles (5-2) edged No. 18 North Carolina 65-64 as Kierra Adams scored on a layup with seven seconds left in regulation.

 

The Tar Heels (5-2) lost to Kansas State 63-56 in one of the semifinals.

 

FGCU, who lost at Villanova in an NCAA second round game in March, lost to Iowa here in the other semifinal and at Stanford earlier this month.

 

The Eagles’ Dolly Cairnes scored 18 points and Maddie Antenucci scored 15.

 

Deja Kelly scored 24 for UNC and Boston College transfer Maria Gakdeng scored 22 with nine rebounds.

 

In other events with championship games Sunday, Miami beat ETSU 68-44 to win its tourney, while William & Mary spoiled FIU’s bid as a host winning 59-57.

 

No. 4 Stanford at home in a single game crushed UAlbany 79-35 extending Tara VanDerveer’s women’s record to 1,193 back to nine more than Uconn’s Geno Auriemma.

 

And that’s the report.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Guru Report: UConn Bounces Back; No. 3 Colorado and No. 23 Washington State Suffer First Losses; Penn, Rutgers, Delaware, and Princeton All Lose

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

 

For the locals, Saturday began with Delaware losing its consolation semifinals game to Purdue-Fort Wayne 88-74 in the Gulf Coast Showcase in Estero, Fla., and thus at 11 a.m. on Sunday for 7^th place will meet Vermont, a 62-50 loser to Western Kentucky.

 

The Showcase on the busiest event day of the season until March Madness arrives is one of the few over the Thanksgiving weekend that is played in a true tournament format.

 

The middle saw Princeton after upsetting No. 22 Oklahoma unable to pull another ambush in the Fort Myers Tip-Off Island Division on No. 21 Indiana, losing 72-63 to the Hoosiers.

 

No question its certainly still respectable for the Tigers (4-2), who have a four-point loss a week ago at No. 2 then No. 4 UCLA, but in a crowd of ranking aspirants for the new Associated Press Poll on Monday it may not be respectable enough.

 

However, the non-conference slate ahead of Ivy competition offers Seton Hall, Rhode Island, Villanova, and Rutgers to give Princeton decent material to build its case.

 

As for the other two locals, Penn in the late afternoon in the first of a two-stop (City of) San Diego Classic couldn’t keep up with San Diego State, falling 74-49 to the Aztecs (4-2). 

 

On Sunday the Quakers (3-2) will play at the University of San Diego at 5 p.m. (ESPN+) wrapping up the three-game Southern California road trip that began with a win at Chapman.

 

Finally playing the very last game on the busy national slate in the very last second Rutgers’ Kaylene Smikle was unable to get an attempted game-tying three-pointer to drop thus losing 68-65 to Boise State and both games in the South Point Classic in Las Vegas.

 

The National Scene: No. 6 UConn in the Cayman Islands Classic in George Town bounced back from its UCLA beatdown on Friday by topping Big 12 Conference third place pick Kansas 71-63 Saturday night as Paige Bueckers scored 22 points while Aubrey Griffin scored 20 and grabbed eight rebounds for the Huskies.

 

Nike Muhl dealt six assists. 

 

The Jayhawks (2-3), who came within a point of No. 9 Virginia Tech on Friday, only trailed by four late in the game before UConn reeled off a 13-4 run to its largest lead at 60-47 with 7:02 left in regulation.

 

Kansas then rallied to within five but Bueckers put up the gates with a layup to end the threat.

 

The Jayhawks had four players score in double figures led by Taiyanna Jackson with 16 points and 12 rebounds.

 

“I think they pretty much gutted this one out, it wasn't pretty, either, Huskies Hall of Fame coach Geno Auriemma said. “But when you're struggling like we're struggling right now, it's just as easy to lose a game like this as it is to win it.

 

“So, I'm really happy with the way we hung in there and some of the plays we made down the stretch.” 

Bueckers only had two points at the half before heating up for 20 the rest of the way.

 

“She plays aggressively and when she's playing the way she played in the second-half, obviously we're a completely different team,” Auriemma said. “It’s Going to be really nice to see when we get some more contributions to help her, and she won't have to work so hard and carry most of the load.

 

“I thought Aubrey tonight was fantastic. That's the Aubrey that we are going to need every single night because we don't have anybody else like her who can do what she does.”

 

Auriemma now has 1,184 victories, eight behind Stanford Hall of Famer Tara VanDerveer.

 

The good news for UConn is the Huskies now have a week off. The tough news is at the end of it, they go to No. 12 Texas in Austin next Sunday in the Jimmy V Women’s Classic.

 

The unbeaten Longhorns (7-0) on Saturday night completed a three-game sweep in the Paradise Jam – Reef Division whipping American Conference favorite South Florida 76-44 as Taylor Jones and Rori Harmon each scored 15 points in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands.

 

USF (5-3) got 10 each from Vittoria Blasigh, a freshman, and Romi Levy off the bench.

 

Texas rolled through Arizona State, 84-42, and High Point, 101-39, in its previous two games.

 

Elsewhere in the Cayman Islands Classic, No. 9 Virgina Tech beat Tulane, 76-70, as Georgia Amoore scored 24 for the Hokies (5-1) and UCLA had no letdown off its UConn win, beating Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference favorite Niagara 97-46 to drop the Purple Eagles to 2-4 as Gabriela Jaquez scored 23 and grabbed six rebounds for the Bruins (6-0) off the bench.

 

But No. 7 LSU (7-1), the NCAA champs still without Angel Reese for unspecified reasons in four straight games and on this trip Kateri Poole, barely avoided an upset in edging Virginia 76-73.

 

DePaul transfer Aneesah Morrow scored 37 points and grabbed 16 rebounds.

 

Tigers coach Kim Mulkey said in the previous game the Poole situation would be addressed when LSU returns to Baton Rouge.

 

Flau’jae Johnson had 15 rebounds against the Cavaliers (4-2).

 

Virginia’s Paris Clark had 19 points, seven rebounds and three steals while Sam Brunelle had 15 off five three-pointers.

 

Meanwhile after Green Bay recently knocked Creighton out of the rankings, the Phoenix (4-2) in the Cancun Challenge in Mexico put No. 23 Washington on the endangered list with a 59-48 win over the Cougars (7-1), their first loss as Bailey Butler had 10 points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals.

 

It had been Washington State’s best start since 10-0 in 1978-79. 

 

Maddy Schreiber had 12 points for Green Bay, whose longtime coach Kevin Borseth is three short of 800 wins.

 

Charlisse Leger-Walker had 17 points for the Cougars and Tara Wallack scored 16.

 

Washington State wasn’t the only team with its first loss after having helped the PAC-12 look invincible in its likely final season as a conference before next summer’s 10-member football-driven realignment in which only the Cougars and Oregon State are in limbo on their future.

 

In a top 10 battle, No. 3 Colorado, which shocked the nation opening day upsetting then-No. 1 LSU, the Buffs fell to No. 10 NC State 78-60 in the Paradise Jam, the second Top 3 victim of the Wolfpack (7-0) this month after stunning then No. 2 UConn in Raleigh.

 

River Baldwin had a career-high 26 points.

 

“Our coaches and staff prepare us so well,” she said. “We knew what we had to do, and everybody can see that the chemistry on this team is just unmatched.

 

NC State was picked eighth in the ACC preseason poll.

 

Colorado (6-1) got 20 points from Jaylyn Sherrod while Frida Formann scored 14.

 

In a game of might have been poll survival in a battle of lower ranked teams in the Fort Myers Tipoff – Island Division No. 19 Tennessee avoided a two-game sweep completing likewise to No. 23 Oklahoma 76-73 as reserve Jasmine Powell scored 13 of her 19 points in the fourth quarter for the Lady Vols (4-2). 

 

Oklahoma (5-2) got 16 points and eight rebounds from Sahara Williams while Lexy Keys and Aubrey Joens each scored 12.

 

Early in the third quarter Oklahoma built a 10-point lead before Tennessee erupted with a 13-3 run.

 

Back in the semifinals of the Gulf Coast Showcase, the outcome has set up for the championship a quick Sunday night rematch from the first time that saw Kansas State then unranked win at then-No. 2 Iowa.

 

The No. 16 Wildcats (6-0) earned the right to be the fourth team and first outside the Big Ten to go 3-0 on Iowa with Caitlin Clark in the lineup in the first three meetings by edging No. 18 North Carolina 63-56 as reserve Gisela Sanchez had 15 points. 

 

Deja Kelly had 14 points for UNC (5-1).

 

The now No. 5 Hawkeyes had little difficulty with Florida Gulf Coast, winning 100-62 and setting a program record with 20 three-balls while coach Lisa Bluder picked up her 500^th win at Iowa (6-1).

 

Clark scored 21 points and Taylor McCabe had a career-high 18 points shooting the long ball 6-for-7, while Gabbie Marshall was 4-for-5, and Sydney Affolter 3-for-3.

 

“They’re obviously a national championship contender,” said FGCU coach Karl Smesko of the Hawkeyes. “But tonight was as good as I've ever seen them.”

 

Maca Retamales scored 16 for the Eagles (4-2), and Dolly Cairns scored 13.

 

Gonzaga could be in position to join the poll the first time this season after beating Alabama 68-58 in the Betty Chancellor Classic in Katy, Texas if the Zags (6-1) beat No. 20 Louisville Sunday.

 

In tournaments that had true championships Saturday off advancement Marquette beat Arkansas 74-55 to win the Fort Myers Shell Division Tip-off, UNLV beat San Diego 93-56 to win the Dana on Mission Beach Thanksgiving Classic, Texas A&M beat host Cal 65-51 to take the Raising the B.A.R. Invitational in Berkeley. 

 

In a single game back from its tough loss to Florida, Columbia at home romped over Northeastern 88-45 as Abbey Hsu had 26 points for the Lions (3-4) who next host Providence Wednesday 11 a.m., the annual Education Day event.

 

The Local Scene: In Delaware’s Saturday loss to Purdue-Fort Wayne the Blue Hens (1-3) got 17 points from Klarke Sconiers while Tara Cousins scored 16 points and reserve Ande’A Cherisier had 13 off the bench.

 

In Penn’s loss at San Diego State, Stina Almqvist continued her hot hand for the Quakers scoring 24 points, while Jordan Obi had five points and eight rebounds, and Mataya Gayle scored eight.

 

In the Princeton game with Indiana, which was coming off a win over Tennessee, the Tigers gave up a 25-13 second quarter.

 

Sara Scalia scored 28 for the Hoosiers (5-1), whose sole loss was at Stanford. Mackenzie Holmes, who had 20 points and eight rebounds, became the second Indiana player to collect 2000 career points behind the 2,364 from Tyra Buss (2014-18).

 

Princeton twice moved within six points in the fourth quarter before getting repulsed.

 

Reigning Ivy player of Year Kaitlyn Chen scored 16, while Madison St. Rose and Ellie Mitchell each scored 11 for the Tigers, with Mitchell grabbing 16 rebounds, three blocks, and three steals.

 

Princeton next hosts Seton Hall Wednesday at 7 p.m. in Jadwin Gym (ESPN+). 

 

Rutgers’ Kaylene Smikle had 25 points while Chyna Cornwell scored 12 with eight rebounds, and Lisa Thompson scored 10 against the Broncos (5-1).

 

The Scarlet Knights head home to play Delaware State in an Education Day matinee at 11 a.m.

 

On Sunday several teams are involved in just straight non- Multi Team Events.

 

Villanova is at Wake Forest at noon on ACCNX. Rider visits Fairleigh Dickinson at 2 p.m., on the NEC Front Row while Penn State hosts Providence at 1 p.m. trying to bounce back from its tough narrow loss to No. 8 Southern Cal down in the tropics. Lafayette visits St. Francis (Pa.) at 2 p.m.

 

And that’s the Report.

 

 

 

 

 

 

     

 

 Ggg