Lady Lions Pull Away Late for Road Win at Fordham

Penn State women’s basketball (2-1) rebounded from another slow start to cruise to victory over Fordham, 72-55, Wednesday night in the Bronx.

The Rams (1-2) led by as many as 12 points in the first half, but All-Big Ten preseason selection Teniya Page had her best performance so far this year — scoring 25 points after averaging just 11.5 points during the opening two games.

How It Happened

The Lady Lions’ defense struggled with Fordham’s hot shooting hands in the first half, which buried 45 percent of attempts from the field through the first 20 minutes of play. 

The teams traded runs throughout the second quarter, with the Rams going up by double digits at one point and Penn State battling back to go ahead late in the period. Fordham would have the last word, using an 8-0 run in the final minutes to take a 44-38 lead into the break.

Penn State’s defense stepped up in the second half and the Rams were not up to the challenge. Fordham — shooting just 16 percent in the second half — scored all of 11 points in the final two quarters.

Heading into the fourth quarter it was still just a four-point game in favor of the Lady Lions, but Penn State was able to run away with it midway through the final frame by going on a 9-0 run.

With a double-digit lead in hand — thanks to Page’s game-high 25 points, as well as the scoring efforts of sophomore forward Alisia Smith (16 points) and junior guard Siyeh Frazier (15 points) — the Lady Lions were able to ease down the stretch to the 72-55 win.

Takeaways

• Lauren Ebo, a freshman forward who started the first two games on the low post, didn’t appear against Fordham. Fellow freshman forward Bexley Wallace started, but played just four minutes. Sophomore forward Sam Breen played only seven minutes. For the most part, the Lady Lions played with a smaller lineup of four guards and Alisia Smith as the lone low post player.
• It’s safe to say the Lady Lions will have much better luck when Teniya Page can knock down shots. After shooting just 28 percent in her opening two games, she hit 10-20 from the field against the Rams.

What’s Next

The Lady Lions are back in action Sunday when they host Princeton (1-2). Tipoff in the Bryce Jordan Center is at 2 p.m. and the game can be seen live on BTN.