If Penn State players expected an easy road victory Sunday against the Northwestern women’s basketball team, few could blame them.
After all, the No. 17 Lady Lions had defeated the Wildcats by a combined 65 points in the teams’ last two matchups in Evanston.
But NU (6-9, 1-3 Big Ten) reminded everyone that it is a much improved team in a hard fought 79-63 loss Sunday.
The Cats played a solid game, outrebounding Penn State (13-3, 4-0) while shooting a respectable 48 percent from the field and allowing its opponents only six free-throw attempts.
And although NU never led on the scoreboard, it cut the lead to as little as four points in the second half.
But things could have been different had the Cats started off better.
“We had a slow start in the first half and a slow start in the second,” NU head coach June Olkowski said. “We don’t know if we’re not getting here on time or if we’re not focusing properly, but we have to work on it.”
Penn State roared out of the gates, hitting its first four field-goal attempts on the way to an 11-0 lead. The Lady Lions forced early turnovers and relied on Kelly Mazzante, their All-American junior guard and leading scorer.
Mazzante had to bear a bit more weight than usual Sunday, as the Lady Lions had the services of only seven players because of injuries.
“We knew how important it was not to get into foul trouble — especially being shorthanded,” said Mazzante, who was in foul trouble for much of the game. “But I thought we did a good job of it.”
The Cats did their best to contain Mazzante and her supporting cast, employing a 2-3 defensive zone. NU was able to keep the Lady Lions from getting too many easy baskets in the first half by restricting them to the perimeter. But Penn State shot 50 percent in the opening half to keep its offense moving and hold off an NU rally
After the initial Penn State run, NU outscored the high-octane Lady Lions offense 30-25 in the rest of the first half.
“They jumped on us, and we fought back and got closer and closer and closer, then all of a sudden it’s halftime,” NU center Sarah Kwasinski said. “We just dig holes for ourselves.”
Kwasinski did her best to keep her squad in the game, collecting 16 points, seven rebounds and five assists to lead NU in all three categories.
Junior forward Michelle Zylstra chipped in a season-high 13 points while sophomore guard Samantha McComb added 10.
But, in the end, NU didn’t have an answer for Penn State’s offensive firepower.
The Lady Lions, who played five guards during several stretches, shot 51 percent from the field while taking 30 3-point shots.
The majority of Penn State’s scoring came in the second half, when the Cats defense seemed to break down and allow open shots.
One player who benefitted from this was Mazzante, who finished the game with 31 points, five assists and four steals.
And although Penn State received only two points from a two-player bench, it benefitted from double-digit scoring from four starters.
But the game was a lot closer than the final score, and the Lady Lions made note of it.
“There’s definitely an improvement in (NU) from last year,” Penn State coach Rene Portland said. “They’re deeper and tougher, they go after every loose ball. They feel better about themselves.”
