Michigan Unable to Take Series Sweep From Penn State

Sunday, January 14

State College, Pa.

2:00 PM

Michigan

8-11 (1-5)

Penn State

9-10 (2-4)

Michigan

Penn State

1/14/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- The University of Michigan women's basketball team fell short of completing a series sweep of Penn State, as the Wolverines dropped a 65-51 decision to the Lady Lions Sunday afternoon (Jan. 14) in front of 6,904 fans at the Bryce Jordan Center. Michigan trailed by as many as 15 points in the first half, but a gutsy defensive effort brought the Maize and Blue within striking distance late in the game.

Junior Ta'Shia Walker (Lansing, Mich./J.W. Sexton HS) finished with a team-high 10 points, including a perfect 5-of-5 from the free throw line to go along with five rebounds. Freshman Krista Phillips (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan/Aden Bowman Collegiate HS) posted seven points and eight boards before fouling out. Freshman LeQuisha Whitfield (Detroit, Mich./Martin Luther King HS) chipped in nine points and five rebounds in just 12 minutes off the bench.

Penn State finished the game with three players scoring in double figures, led by Kamela Gissendanner's game-high 21 points. Amanda Brown posted a double-double with 12 points and a game-high 14 boards, while Tyra Grant added 17 points and a game-high four steals.

The Wolverines had trouble generating any kind of offense in the early minutes of the game, as a Phillips free throw was Michigan's only point in the first 3:27 of play. Meanwhile, the Lady Lions got off to a fast start thanks to Gissendanner, who scored seven early points to help Penn State jump out to an 8-1 lead with 16:26 left in the first half.

A Melinda Queen (Oak Forest, Ill./Carl Sandburg HS) steal and lay-in at 15:31 gave U-M its first field goal of the afternoon and trimmed the lead to 8-3, but PSU responded with a 14-4 run over the next 7:46 of action to extend its lead to 22-7 with 7:55 to go until the break.

A long two in the corner from sophomore Stephany Skrba (Toronto, Ontario/Langstaff Secondary School) pumped life into the Wolverines, as the bucket was the start of a 9-2 U-M run that cut the deficit back into single digits at 24-16 at 4:46. Whitfield was a main catalyst during the surge, as she came off the bench to score five straight points off a long two and U-M's only triple of the first half.

Whitfield would later score on a put-back, and Phillips' turnaround bank shot at 1:58 cut the Penn State advantage to 28-20 heading into the locker room. The Michigan defense limited the Lady Lions to just one field goal -- a Gissendanner triple -- in the final 7:55 of the half.

Whitfield's seven points led U-M in the first half, while Phillips paced the Maize and Blue on the glass with seven rebounds. Gissendanner scored 13 first-half points to lead PSU. Michigan turned the ball over 13 times in the first 20 minutes, which led to11 Lady Lion points.

The Wolverines once again buckled down on defense and held Penn State scoreless for the first 2:20 of the second half to trim the Lady Lion lead to 28-22. A three-pointer from the top by Walker kept U-M in contention and cut the deficit to eight points (33-25) with 14:02 left in the game.

Penn State answered with a quick 8-2 run to go up 41-27 before Benson and Mashea Williams exchanged triples to make the score 46-32 at 9:21. Michigan continued to claw its way back in the game, with Walker and freshman Kalyn McPherson (Traverse City, Mich./West HS) combining to score seven of the team's next 11 points to bring U-M within just seven points -- 50-43 -- with 5:43 remaining in the contest.

Walker was fouled on a triple try at 4:46, and she knocked down the ensuing three foul shots to keep the PSU lead at seven points 53-46. That would be as close as Michigan would come, however, as the Lady Lions closed out the game with a 12-5 run to pull out the 14-point victory.

The Wolverines return home to Crisler Arena to host intrastate rival Michigan State on Thursday (Jan. 18) at 7:05 p.m. The "Maize Out" game will be televised by Comcast Local and can be heard live over the radio on WTKA (AM 1050).

Contact: Marc Ressler (734) 763-4423