Michigan
Penn State
Smith, Ingram Not Enough as U-M Drops Third Straight
1/13/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- The University of Michigan women's basketball team (No. 22 AP, No. 20 USA Today/ESPN) suffered its third straight loss this afternoon (Sunday, Jan. 13) with a 78-65 defeat to Penn State at the Bryce Jordan Center. Michigan was paced by sophomore forward Jennifer Smith (Lansing, Mich./DeWitt HS) with 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the floor, while senior guard Alayne Ingram (Lansing, Mich./Waverly HS) hit four three-pointers on the way to 20 points.
Michigan (11-6, 1-5 Big Ten) slowed down an early Penn State run with good defense, which led to opportunities in transition on the other end of the floor. One such instance led to an Ingram to Tabitha Pool (Ann Arbor, Mich./Huron HS) fast break as the Wolverines were in the midst of a 12-2 run that turned an 8-4 deficit into a 16-10 lead with less than 15 minutes left in the half.
Michigan also utilized its high-low game on the offensive end as Smith scored seven early points to help Michigan maintain a lead of five (28-23) with just over five minutes left in the half. Michigan's early advantage was also aided by excellent shooting from Ingram on the perimeter, with 11 points through the first 15 minutes, including 3-of-3 from three-point land.
Michigan, however, began to bog down offensively late in the half as Penn State's zone defense caused the Wolverines to force a couple of shots on possessions that went deep into the 30-second shot clock. The Wolverines coughed up a couple of unforced turnovers that led to Penn State points in transition. As a result, Penn State (11-7, 3-2 Big Ten) closed the half on a 13-1 run, holding the Wolverines without a field goal over the final 5:22 of the half to lead 36-29 at the break.
Both teams shot over 50 percent in the first half, with Penn State scorching the nets at .577 (15-26) and Michigan shooting .522 (12-23) after an 11-for-13 (.846) start, but eight Wolverine turnovers compared to just three for the Lady Lions were the difference. Ingram led Michigan with 11 first-half points, while LeeAnn Bies (Lakeview, Mich./Lakeview HS) led with four boards and four assists.
Despite four early points from Smith to start the second half, the Wolverine deficit ballooned to double digits (45-34) with just less than 16 minutes left. Smith continued to keep Michigan in the game, hitting a pair of jumpers from the top of the circle as the Wolverines used a 6-0 run to cut the lead down to five (45-40) at the 14:30 mark.
Michigan again hit a bump in the road offensively, scoring just one field goal over a 4:30 stretch as Penn State's lead stretched to as much as 13 (60-47) with under seven minutes remaining. A pair of free throws from Pool cut the lead back to nine (60-51) with 6:25 left, but 15 fouls on the Wolverines in the second half turned the final five minutes into a parade to the free throw line. Penn State found itself in the double bonus for nearly the final 10 minutes of the game, making a Michigan comeback similar to last year's a tall order.
The Wolverines were not able to get the deficit back to single digits over the final five minutes as the Lady Lions pulled away for the 78-65 victory.
Michigan remains on the road for its next conference contest at Minnesota on Thursday (Jan. 17, 7 p.m. CST) at the Sports Pavilion in Minneapolis, Minn.
N O T E S
Stephanie Gandy's three rebounds put her over 200 for her career .... Jennifer Smith's 22 points give her a team-best 13 games in double figures this season ... LeeAnn Bies' five assists are a career best.
Q U O T E S
U-M Head Coach Sue Guevara
On the game overall ... "We seem to be the cure for everybody's shooting ills. We have not slowed people down defensively of late. I thought we did a decent job on (Kelly) Mazzante, but they had other people step up and get the job done. LeeAnn Bies struggled for us, but we did not have anybody else step it up."
On the play of Jennifer Smith ... "I thought Smith had a chance to have a good day, especially considering the numbers (LeeAnn) Bies has been able to post in the past against Penn State. However, I really though Smith earned her points today and really worked hard. I was very pleased with her effort today on the offensive end from the low post and out to the high post in terms of knocking shots down."
On ending the team's slow Big Ten start ... "We need to take this one practice at a time and get it fixed. Another thing that continues to happen is the turnovers and most of the them are unforced, which is what really hurts us. I know I have already said that we will get back to Basics 101, but that is what we have to do."
Contact: Rich Marion (734) 763-4423
