Lady Lions Fall to Michigan During Annual Pink Zone Game
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Lady Lions Fall to Michigan During Annual Pink Zone Game

Pink was the theme on Sunday afternoon at the Bryce Jordan Center as the Lady Lions took on the University of Michigan during the 10th Annual Pink Zone game at Penn State. Unfortunately for the Lions, Penn State was unable to pull out a victory after a late rally in the second half and fell to the Wolverines, 91-87.

Freshman Teniya Page led Penn State (6-10, 1-4) with a career-high 31 points as the Lady Lions had their best shooting game of the season, shooting almost 50% from the floor. Senior Brianna Banks also chipped in for Penn State, scoring 19 points while also passing her 600th career point during the game against the Wolverines (10-6, 2-3).

Defensively, Penn State forced 23 Michigan turnovers and were able to capitalize on their errors and turn them into points. Unfortunately for the Lady Lions, they were out rebounded 37-27 which caused problems down the stretch for Penn State.

While Michigan led for majority of the game, the Lady Lions looked to get ahead in the fourth and final quarter. Penn State was able to get within five points of the Wolverines with less than two minutes left in the game, but late free-throws were the decisive factor as the Wolverines were able to escape with the win.

Off the court, the stands were full as almost 700 cancer survivors were on hand to celebrate their victory against the disease while raising awareness and support for the cause. For Head Coach Coquese Washington, this game meant a lot not only for the Lady Lions, but for the Penn State community as a whole:

“Certainly, it’s probably our favorite game of the year just because of what it means to this community. I mean when you look at everybody that’s here, it’s not just about Lady Lion basketball, but about what it means to Centre County and what it means to the Penn State community. Having us all gather the community and galvanizing around for a cause. I just think you see the Penn State spirit on this day, feel the Penn State spirit of giving back to the community. I think you feel that every Pink Zone game and as it continues to grow, it really I think speaks volumes about Penn State University and really who we are as a university and who we are as an athletic department.”

The Lady Lions will now hit the road for two games, facing the Iowa Hawkeyes on Jan. 20th at 8 p.m. and Illinois on Jan. 23rd at 3 p.m. Both games will be streamed on BTN Plus.